Contractors will begin removing the trees from the bank behind the former Stevenson & Cook Foundry building, in Port Chalmers, on Monday.
It will allow geotechnical engineers to carry out a detailed assessment of the bank behind the Dunedin City Council-owned site, to see if stabilisation work is needed in the long term.
The work is expected to take about a week to complete, depending on weather conditions, and is part of the DCC’s commitment to support the Port Chalmers Foundry Trust’s plans to redevelop the historic site into a multi-use arts and community space.
The DCC will also consider how best to replace the pines with plants that are more appropriate for the area and better suited to the site conditions.
The building, also known as the Sims building at the corner of Beach St and Macandrew Rd, has been lying dormant for decades.
It was constructed in 1880, with an additional section built in the 1930s.
The business played a large part in Port Chalmers’ creation and development, originally making simple appliances.
It later became the most up-to-date plant engaged in ship building and repairing in New Zealand.
As well as undertaking some of the southern hemisphere’s biggest ship repair jobs, the company manufactured gold dredges for the Otago goldfields and constructed and fitted out ships for World Wars 1 and 2.
In 1989, the DCC took ownership of the building from the Port Chalmers Borough Council. Initially, the site was earmarked to become a carpark until the Port Chalmers Foundry Trust stepped in, driven by an alternative vision that celebrates history and invests in a creative future for Dunedin.
A memorandum of understanding between the city council and the trust was signed in 2022 to secure the future conservation and refurbishment of the heritage site.
Under the agreement, the DCC has committed to remediate the site and stabilise the neighbouring bank, while the trust raises funds for its plans to refurbish the building for community use.
