Warkworth Town Hall to close

The 100 year-old Warkworth Town Hall is to close its doors in the New Year while Auckland Council investigates options to strengthen and future-proof the Category 1 heritage building.

Rodney Local Board made the safety-first decision this week after receiving a comprehensive report which outlined how the facility fails current Building Code requirements.

Chairman Bob Howard says board members and council officers are working with the hall’s existing tenants to help them find alternative premises by the end of March.

“Sadly we have to stop taking bookings from now on, but we will not take any chances with our community.

“We know this is a popular, well-used facility but the time has come for us to face the facts. The roof leaks, the walls are a fire risk and it fails on the seismic scale too. All up, it’s not good enough and the people of Warkworth deserve better.”

Mr Howard describes the Warkworth Town Hall as a community treasure which deserves some “TLC (tender loving care)” in this, its 100th year.

“We recently commissioned a heritage assessment which revealed that it was originally designed as an Edwardian public building using hollow glazed bricks as cladding.

“Unsurprisingly, this design and materials pre-dated current seismic standards. We’ve got the expertise on hand now to future-proof this grand old lady so she could serve our community for another century.”

Mr Howard says that while funding is not currently identified in council budgets, his board will work with the mayor and councillors, including Rodney Ward councillor and finance committee chair Penny Webster, to discuss options.

Preliminary estimates put the bill at around $3 million to fix the problems plaguing the building at the corner of Neville and Alnwick streets which, since 2005, has been limited to just 99 people at a time.

Auckland Council’s Building Policy Manager, Bob de Leur, is among the team of specialists from various council departments assembled to look into how the building might be upgraded to meet current Building Code requirements and future community demands.

“It’s important to point out that there are several issues with this building,” he says.

“It fails current seismic standards, has an unstable, leaking roof and unsafe wall and ceiling linings which are a fire risk. Our Auckland Council team has an in-house fire safety specialist whose expertise we can utilise on this and other buildings.”

The building has undergone many changes since it was first built in 1911. The extensive renovation in 1937 changed the north and principal facade of the building and consequently the east and western side elevations. The 1937 additions and modifications were designed in what is now referred to as the Moderne style with influences from the Art Deco movement.