Masterton revamp wins national award

AWARD: Lone Star's Tom Roseingrave (left) and Lands Trust Masterton chairman John Bunny with the New Zealand Property Council Merit Award won by the Seddon Building. PHOTO/SUPPLIED

The historic community-owned Seddon Building restored by Lands Trust Masterton last year has been recognised with a national award.

Owned by the Trust and leased by Lone Star, the Masterton property received an Award of Merit in the 2015 Property Council of New Zealand Rider Levett Bucknell Property Industry Awards held last month.

It was one of 10 finalists in the Hawkins Heritage and Adaptive Reuses category, which attracted nominations from properties in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.

Key judging criteria included economic factors, design and construction, efficiency of operation, owner and user satisfaction, contribution to the community, potential cultural and social benefits, degree of difficulty and any environmentally sustainable features and seismic measures incorporated into the project.

Chief judge John Dunn said the judges were impressed with the overall redevelopment of the Seddon Building, tastefully and sympathetically restored as a building of historical significance to Masterton. Built in 1908 as New Zealand's first technical secondary school, the building had been badly damaged and weakened by the 1942 earthquake, and was not able to be used commercially until the recent refurbishment.

The redevelopment included the strengthening and restoration of the property and its many original features including timber floors, wooden staircase, brickwork, and decorative walls and ceilings.

Property Council chief executive, Connal Townsend, said the awards were becoming increasingly difficult to judge as the bar is raised every year. "This year, we had 92 nominations - the biggest number since before the Global Financial Crisis.

"Since then, considerations like environmental sustainability and seismicity have become increasingly important, all within a financially prudent and development environment focused on efficiency but also, quality."

The category in which the Seddon Building was recognised was won by Christchurch's Isaac Theatre Royal, one of the first buildings restored in the city after it was damaged in the 2011 earthquake.