Firefighters bringing fire under control at the Presbyterian church on the corner of View Road and the Esplanade in Mt Eden. 30 December 2018 - New Zealand Herald - Brett Phibbs
Two months after a huge blaze tore through a historic Auckland church hall, the fire has helped clear the way for the building's sale and demolition.
The 133-year-old St James Sunday School hall on Esplanade Rd in Mt Eden had been the subject of a long dispute between developers wanting to demolish it completely and Auckland Council, which had pushed to protect some of its heritage value.
The dispute had been taken to the High Court when, on December 30 last year, fire engulfed the hall with towering flames that could be seen from across the city.
Fire crews battle the fire at St James Presbyterian church hall last December. Photo / Brett Phibbs
Up to 15 fire trucks rushed to bring the inferno under control, which eventually left the heritage-listed hall gutted, roofless and charred.
Fire investigators have since ruled the fire was suspicious, with police confirming they are still investigating.
Last week, a team of Auckland councillors responsible for helping protect city heritage sites were given an update on the hall's status.
Council staff confirmed severe fire damage to the hall had effectively ended the dispute between Auckland Council and developers View West and given the green light for the hall's demolition.
Fire trucks queue up to help fight the fire. Photo / Brett Phibbs
It comes as problems with the hall - which was built in 1885 as a Congregational Church, but became a hall in 1900 when a larger and grander church replaced it - date back to at least 2012.
It was then the heritage-listed hall was closed-off and slapped with a dangerous-building notice.
Two years later developers View West signed an agreement to buy the site from the Presbyterian Church on the proviso they were able to gain permissions to demolish the hall and build apartments on the site.
Auckland Council blocked the application because it wanted the developers to build less apartments and retain the hall's historic front facade, which faced out onto Mt Eden's Esplanade Rd.
Witnesses said the fire left the Auckland sky choked with brown smoke. Photo / Brett Phibbs
The Environment Court eventually backed the developers, releasing a decision two weeks before last December's fire that permitted the demolition of the entire hall because there were serious safety concerns with the building.
Auckland Council had been considering whether or not to appeal the decision when the fire broke out.
James Hassall, the council's director of regulatory services, said that while the appeal had been unlikely to succeed, the fire had definitively ended any plans the council may have had to appeal.
Barfoot & Thompson selling agent Wayne Muir confirmed the site - which has been valued at $5.2 million by the council - had not yet sold, although he had received enquiries from potential buyers.
No one was hurt in December's fire, which Mt Eden local Keith Scott described at the time as feeling like "a bomb had gone off".
Specialist fire investigator Nick Linton said at the time that he understood "there had been various squatters and homeless people, vandalism and break ins" at the hall since it was closed-off in 2012.
