‘Saddened' by demolition, but ‘safety is paramount'
An image taken during the drone inspection of the chimney stack shows significant cracks. PHOTO: DUNEDIN CITY COUNCIL
The decision to pull down part of the Dunedin Gasworks Museum is a sad but necessary one, a museum trustee says.
On April 16, the Gasworks Museum was closed while its 25m-high brick chimney stack was assessed after structural changes were noticed during a routine visual inspection.
On Tuesday, the Dunedin City Council announced part of the chimney would be "deconstructed'' as it posed an "imminent risk'' to public safety.
Work was expect to begun next week.
Gasworks Museum Trust manager Glynn Babington said the trust was hopeful reconstruction might be possible after the emergency work was done.
"We are saddened ... but safety is paramount.
"The remaining part of the chimney will be accessed, maintenance will be done as required and, if required, strengthening options will be investigated.''
Covered storage options, including council facilities, were being explored for the removed bricks, which would be catalogued for possible reconstruction.
The site is a category 1 historic place owned by the council, which assists the trust with maintenance and refurbishment.
Council property services group manager Anna Nilsen said costs for the emergency work, carried out by Naylor Love, were not yet available.
"The emergency provisions of the Resource Management Act allow for deconstruction in these circumstances.''
Once work began, the council's property services team, as landlord, had seven days to notify the council, the resource consent authority, work was under way, she said.
An application for resource consent also needed to be submitted by property services to the council, within 20 working days of work starting.
"We expect the application will be lodged in the coming weeks.''
ruby.shaw@odt.co.nz
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Otago Daily Times
2 days ago
- Otago Daily Times
Felling of protected tree opposed
Belleknowes property owners Adam and Anna O'Byrne have applied for resource consent from the Dunedin City Council to remove a protected silver beech tree. PHOTO: GERARD O'BRIEN The felling of a protected Dunedin tree in "undisputed" good health has been opposed by a council planner. Belleknowes couple Adam and Anna O'Byrne have applied to the Dunedin City Council for resource consent to remove a 17m-tall silver beech tree from their Preston Cres property. The tree is protected by the council's Second Generation District Plan and 16 of 21 submissions were against removal — one submitter called the tree a taoka (treasure). Its fate will be considered at a committee hearing later this week and council graduate planner Finn Campbell recommended the application be declined. However, he said there was a "pathway available to the committee to consider granting consent". In their application, Mr and Mrs O'Byrne said their tenants living in a consented garage and studio unit below the tree felt unsafe, particularly in high winds when they saw branches dropping. During the October floods last year, the tree's root system prevented water draining and contributed to flooding of the unit and "a large insurance bill". Their plumber suggested a surface sump, the couple's preferred option, or a sump and pump to manage drainage. In his section 42a report, Mr Campbell said it was "undisputed" the tree was in good health and posed no immediate threat to people or the unit below it. Submissions opposing the application consistently mentioned the tree's visual amenity and removing the tree would have a "moderate" negative effect on local amenity values. The proposed drainage works would compromise the health and integrity of the tree and while Mr Campbell agreed a drainage solution was needed, he said the options had not been exhausted. More investigation was needed before consent to remove the tree was granted. The hearing will be held on Friday in front of a panel made up of commissioner Kirstyn Royce and councillors Sophie Barker and Steve Walker.
Otago Daily Times
6 days ago
- Otago Daily Times
Dog Rescue gives Alfie new leash of life
Back in the day, Alfie's goose would nearly be cooked by now. The black Labrador-cross was found wandering around Dunedin recently, looking a little worse for wear and without a chip or a tag. Most dogs found wandering around the community get picked up by the Dunedin City Council, and under the Dog Control Act, they are kept for seven days, so their owners can retrieve them. DCC animal services team leader Cazna Savell said council officers also make attempts to find the dog's owner by scanning for a microchip or looking for dog tags. "And if the dog is registered and a first-time wanderer, our officers will first try and return it home. "But if the dog is not registered, or for some reason the microchip isn't scanning properly, and we're unable to find out where the dog has come from, or if it's a regular wanderer, then it will be taken out to our pound while we try and find where the owners have come from." Before 2011, if the officers could not find the owners after seven days, most dogs like Alfie were put down, she said. But since 2011, the DCC and Dog Rescue Dunedin have been working together to find new homes for dogs that are impounded and not claimed. So far, they have been able to re-home about 550 dogs, and Alfie was one of the most recent to have been adopted. Ms Savell said Dog Rescue Dunedin had been "absolutely fantastic". "If we don't have an adoption request directly through to DCC, Dog Rescue Dunedin come and assess the dogs, and they then adopt them and usually find fosterers, so the dogs get to go to homes. "And Dog Rescue Dunedin have just hit the 550 mark, so that's something to really celebrate. "Euthanasia is now a last resort, used only when a dog is assessed as unsafe or unsuitable for re-homing." Dog Rescue Dunedin volunteer Cait Stewart said Alfie was fostered for a while with a young couple that were also fostering a bunch of kittens for Cat Rescue Dunedin. "He fit right in with their crowd and he never left. They adopted him straight from fostering, which is really great." While it was difficult to pinpoint what breed Alfie was, she said he was a "very typical" puppy that you would find at probably any family home. "As for his breed, honestly, your guess is as good as mine. "We think maybe a bit of Lab, maybe greyhound. "At the pound, we call dogs like Alfie a 'pound special' because we can't identify him. "But what we can say is, he's boisterous, he loves to play, he loves his food — and he's a very, very friendly dog."
Otago Daily Times
6 days ago
- Otago Daily Times
Wandering dog finds new home thanks to charity
Back in the day, Alfie's goose would nearly be cooked by now. The black Labrador-cross was found wandering around Dunedin recently, looking a little worse for wear and without a chip or a tag. Most dogs found wandering around the community get picked up by the Dunedin City Council, and under the Dog Control Act, they are kept for seven days, so their owners can retrieve them. DCC animal services team leader Cazna Savell said council officers also make attempts to find the dog's owner by scanning for a microchip or looking for dog tags. "And if the dog is registered and a first-time wanderer, our officers will first try and return it home. "But if the dog is not registered, or for some reason the microchip isn't scanning properly, and we're unable to find out where the dog has come from, or if it's a regular wanderer, then it will be taken out to our pound while we try and find where the owners have come from." Before 2011, if the officers could not find the owners after seven days, most dogs like Alfie were put down, she said. But since 2011, the DCC and Dog Rescue Dunedin have been working together to find new homes for dogs that are impounded and not claimed. So far, they have been able to re-home about 550 dogs, and Alfie was one of the most recent to have been adopted. Ms Savell said Dog Rescue Dunedin had been "absolutely fantastic". "If we don't have an adoption request directly through to DCC, Dog Rescue Dunedin come and assess the dogs, and they then adopt them and usually find fosterers, so the dogs get to go to homes. "And Dog Rescue Dunedin have just hit the 550 mark, so that's something to really celebrate. "Euthanasia is now a last resort, used only when a dog is assessed as unsafe or unsuitable for re-homing." Dog Rescue Dunedin volunteer Cait Stewart said Alfie was fostered for a while with a young couple that were also fostering a bunch of kittens for Cat Rescue Dunedin. "He fit right in with their crowd and he never left. They adopted him straight from fostering, which is really great." While it was difficult to pinpoint what breed Alfie was, she said he was a "very typical" puppy that you would find at probably any family home. "As for his breed, honestly, your guess is as good as mine. "We think maybe a bit of Lab, maybe greyhound. "At the pound, we call dogs like Alfie a 'pound special' because we can't identify him. "But what we can say is, he's boisterous, he loves to play, he loves his food — and he's a very, very friendly dog."
