David and Colleen Hurd, with the historic building in the
centre of Ophir they have restored, which will open as a
cafe and accommodation outlet next month. Photo by Lynda
Van Kempen.
A restaurant and accommodation outlet will open next
month in an Ophir building which housed a general store and
butchery more than 140 years ago.
Colleen and David Hurd bought Pitches Store, in Swindon St,
in 2006. The building has New Zealand Historic Places Trust
Category 2 status, and the couple have restored the exterior
to look as "close to the original as possible".
The renovated Pitches building will open in mid-March, and
houses a cafe and restaurant as well as providing
accommodation for up to eight people.
Asked the cost of the restoration work, Mr Hurd said. "You
wouldn't do something like this if you were thinking with
your head, instead of your heart."
The couple shifted from Auckland, where they lived for about
25 years, to build a home in Ophir. Mr Hurd still commutes to
work as a lawyer in Auckland during the week.
"Let's just say, he won't be giving up work for a few more
years, " Mrs Hurd said.
She ran a cafe in Auckland for three and a-half years and
they shifted to Central Otago seeking a change of lifestyle.
"I guess being in the cafe business is in your blood, and
when we saw this building for sale ... "
Although the building was a "bit of a mess, it just kind of
got to you," Mr Hurd said.
Mrs Hurd was brought up in the Manawatu but her husband's
family were from Central Otago.
"I lived in Clyde and Mum was from Chatto Creek, and you
never grow out of a place like this. I didn't need my arm
twisted to come back here, that's for sure, " he said.
The couple built a house overlooking the Manuherikia Valley
and run part of it as a bed and breakfast operation.
"We felt at home straight away. Ophir is a real gem. People
who come and stay at the B and B think it's magic, and so do
we," Mrs Hurd said.
"People up north say, 'What possessed you to move here?', but
all you have to do is look outside to get the answer."
Although the project restoring Pitches had been a long one,
it was also incredibly satisfying, they said.
After buying Pitches, they learned that David's aunt was a
granddaughter of John Pitches, for whom the store was built.
The original building was used as a grocery store and a
butchery and was constructed about 1870. Many modifications
had been made over the years and it had been used for various
purposes, including as a service station.
The stones used to restore it were on site and heritage
stonemason Keith Hinds, who has worked on the property, said
the restoration had been done with care and attention.
"The way I see it, it's all about doing it the proper and
traditional way and no cutting corners, and that's what's
happened here," he said.
The new business will employ four full-time staff and a
part-timers initially, and has generated lots of interest
from locals and visitors, the Hurds said.
They already have some accommodation bookings.
Ophir will celebrate the 150th anniversary of the discovery
of gold at Black's Diggings in March 2013.
- lynda.van.kempen@odt.co.nz
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