Secretary Lindsay McIntyre, who says the hall was the focal
point of the community and the group supports it being
rebuilt. Photo by Lynda van Kempen.
Described by Bannockburn residents as "the heart of the
community", the 99-year-old Coronation Hall has been closed to
the public and will probably be demolished because of its high
risk of collapsing in a moderate earthquake.
The Central Otago District Council owns the hall but a
community group, the Bannockburn Community Centre management
committee, manages the facility, as well as the nearby
community-owned church.
Plans to upgrade the hall were well under way and an
engineers' assessment report was done recently as part of the
consent process, under council building policy, to see if the
building was sufficiently safe in the event of an earthquake.
The engineers' report, by Nick Knowles and Rodger Vickers,
said there was a "very high risk of complete structural
failure of all stone walls in a moderate earthquake event".
The front parapets over the entrance would be likely to
experience a "catastrophic failure" and there was an
"unacceptable risk of multiple death or serious injury", the
report said.
Cromwell Community Board chairman Neil Gillespie said the
board had no option but to close the facility.
"It was a pretty hard decision to make, and we know the
community will be hugely disappointed, but it's a matter of
public safety so there was no way we could keep it open."
The report was commissioned before the Christchurch
earthquake, "but looking at what happened in Christchurch, we
have to take this information very seriously", he said.
Council property and facility manager Mike Kerr said the
walls of the building essentially had no structural
integrity.
"They are stone rubble, almost, and the lime and cement
mortar between them has degraded and several layers of
plaster is all that's holding the walls together.
"Yes, it's stood there for almost 100 years but if there was
a moderate [earthquake] shake, it could disintegrate. It's a
public building and we have to take a prudent approach," Mr
Kerr said.
The board looked at options for strengthening the building,
such as building an internal skeleton and lining the inside
to ensure the roof remained supported and walls fell
outwards.
However, that would still place lives at risk, so demolishing
and rebuilding was the favoured option and supported "in
principle" by the board.
Management committee chairwoman Margaret Dicey said it was
"pretty jolly sad" to lose the facility.
The hall was used almost every day, for events that included
meetings, indoor bowls, karate, yoga and birthday parties.
It was frequently used in association with the church for
weddings and funerals.
"It really is the heart of our community, so we're very keen
to see it rebuilt. Of course we're hugely disappointed but we
understand why this decision has been made - you can't muck
around with people's safety," she said.
Committee secretary-treasurer Lindsay McIntyre said the hall
was able to accommodate almost 100 people and it had been
used in the past for Festival of Colour events as well as
other concerts.
It was hoped some of the original material, such as the rimu
floorboards, could be used in the new building, which would
look the same as the existing one.
The board plans to seek feedback from the community about the
project and Mr Kerr said the next stage was to decide on
plans and seek an estimate of the cost.
lynda.van.kempen@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.