The Central Otago District Council has granted consent for a
114-year-old Ophir church to be used as a shop and later as
travellers' accommodation.
Russell and Judy Hinsley, who own the Swindon St property on
which St Andrew's Church is located, intend to establish a
"collectibles" shop to sell antiques.
They later plan to renovate the main part of the church and
use it as travellers' accommodation for up to five people and
move the shop to two small buildings beside the church.
They intend to finish the two small buildings in keeping with
the older style of buildings in Ophir.
A submission in opposition was made on behalf of the
beneficiaries of the estate of Maurice George Plunket, which
is opposite the church. That submission said the consent
application did not take into account the special character
of the area, being a small town with gold heritage.
"The development so far ...
gives us no confidence that the conversion of the church to a
bed and breakfast will be completed in a sympathetic manner.
Steve and Annie Chapman, who own a neighbouring property,
also opposed the venture.
They said they had bought their property because of the quiet
and private feel and believed having a business opposite them
would spoil that by affecting their lifestyle and privacy.
There were 16 conditions attached to the consent which
included for the two new buildings to be finished in a manner
which complemented the appearance of the church and other
heritage buildings in Ophir.
Another condition restricted retail hours to 10am to 5pm on
Saturdays and Sundays, 10am to 2pm on Mondays, 9am to 5pm on
public holidays, excluding Christmas Day and Good Friday and
10am to 4pm Tuesday to Friday during the months September to
April inclusive.
Other conditions limited the number of accommodation guests
to five and required provision for four parking spaces.
The church has a Category 2 classification with the New
Zealand Historic Places Trust and is listed as a heritage
item within the Central Otago District plan.
- sarah.marquet@odt.co.nz
A name, residential address, and (preferably residential) telephone number is required from readers who comment on ODT Online. These details will not be visible to site visitors.