Garage gains temporary reprieve from demolition ball

The garage at 29 Eden Crescent

The Auckland City Council has temporarily halted demolition of an early 1900s motor garage where a developer wants to build an apartment tower and nearby residents want to create a heritage precinct.

Workers turned up last Friday to begin demolishing the single-storey brick garage in Eden Crescent only to be told by council staff that the developer, Perron Developments, had not fulfilled all the requirements of the demolition consent.

Residents of the protected heritage buildings in nearby Parliament St want a wider heritage precinct, including the garage and a small building next door owned by Perron Developments.

They have been lobbying councillors and heritage staff to protect the area, which contains a historic spring and unprotected trees, including a jacaranda and pear tree, both planted about 1860.

The chairwoman of the environment, heritage and urban form committee, Christine Caughey, said it was an "incredibly important heritage precinct" but there were obstacles to preserving the area, including the property rights of private land owners.

The 1912 motor garage at 29 Eden Crescent does not have heritage status and Perron Developments has had a resource consent for two years to build an apartment tower on the site. The council - and the developer - are awaiting a ruling from the Environment Court if the resource consent is valid for two or five years.

Perron development strategist Chris Hebditch, said even if the resource consent were valid for only two years and expired next month, the demolition consent allowed the company to seek an extension.

Mr Hebditch believed Perron had met the demolition consent conditions and sent more information to the council yesterday.

Perron was not acting in a way to circumvent any heritage plans for the area, he said.

Meanwhile, the owners of the Fitzroy Hotel in Wakefield St have put the building up for sale.

Heritage campaigner Allan Matson has been fighting to save the 1854 building after developer Golden City gained resource consent for a 15-level apartment tower on the site.

The council has since given the hotel, believed to be the oldest brick building in the city, category B heritage status and negotiated with the developer to incorporate it into the development of the site.