Restoration of the Old Tauranga Post Office (1999)

Grasshopper Properties completed the restoration of Tauranga’s Old Post Office Building in 1999. It took around 12 months to complete the $1.5 million upgrade of the old building, which had been empty since 1987 when the Ministry of Works moved out. Grasshopper’s involvement came after years of debate on the building’s fate. Built in 1905 on an elevated Willow Street site, the Post Office has a Historic Places Trust classification and is one of the most notable examples of Edwardian Baroque architecture in the country. However attractive the building might have been, its construction did not meet modern earthquake safety standards and it was in desperate need of restoration. Grasshopper bought the building from the Tauranga City Council and set about bringing the building’s exterior back to its original condition and up to safe occupation standards.

Historical features such as the trusses, balustrade, stairs, stairwell and the courtroom were retained and the rest of the building was converted into modern offices. While the developers and their architects had a lot more freedom in redesigning the interior of the building to cope with modern working requirements, the exterior had to replicate exactly the building as it was in 1905. A good deal of research was needed to find out such details as its original colour scheme, which was ultimately determined with the use of paint scrapings.

History

When first built, the structure was known as Government Buildings and housed not only the Post Office, but also the local courts and the Lands and Survey Department.

In 1903, tenders were called for two buildings to house a Post Office and a Court House. No satisfactory tender was received and on 24 June the following year tenders were called for a revised plan – a single building to house all central government departments.

The description of the building was reported in the Bay of Plenty Times as:

“...of brick with red Marseilles tiles... which would match the dull red cement compo finish of the lower half... and the creamy yellow upper storey.”

The Postal Department was to occupy the ground floor, with its entrance on the eastern face of the clock tower. The Court and its offices would be situated upstairs. The report concluded:

“The building standing on the commanding site overlooking the harbour will form an even more noticeable object from the waterfront than its predecessor.”

That predecessor was the Mission Institute, built in 1862, at one time New Zealand’s second largest wooden building. Intended as a focal point for mission activities and as a boarding school for Māori students, it was later used as a commissariat, hospital, and government offices. It was destroyed by fire in 1902, along with all local and central government records.

By 14 July 1905, Auckland contractor W.E. Hutchinson was making progress on the new foundations. By April 1906, the building was complete, save the fittings. Interior walls were plastered light green with a dado of a darker shade — a government office colour scheme that would persist for years. The completion of the interior fit-out took another two months and on 29 June the departments took occupation under the supervision of Lieutenant Colonel John Mackintosh Roberts, Stipendiary Magistrate.

In 1874 Tauranga had a population of 579; by 1916 this had trebled to 1,685. Historian Jinty Rorke notes the increased paperwork soon necessitated extensions, built in 1916 with rimu from Omanawa Sawmills. At that stage, electric lighting was also installed, supplied by the Borough Council’s new Omanawa Falls Power Scheme. The townspeople viewed the extensions as:

“proof of the desire of the Government to push on the development of the district by providing a permanent home for their officials.”

In December 1938, the Post Office became the first department to vacate the building, moving to new premises on the corner of Spring and Grey Streets. Although other departments soon filled the vacated space, the slow drift away had begun. A new Courthouse opened on Cameron Road in November 1965. Eventually the Ministry of Works was the sole occupant, until it too departed in 1987, leaving the Old Post Office empty.

By 1972, the once-busy and much-feted building stood silent, echoing only to the scuttle of mice. All that remained were memories of letters and telegrams sent and received, cases heard and judgments handed down. Many Tauranga citizens, saddened by its closure, mounted an active campaign to have the building restored and reopened. Despite their best efforts, more than a decade would pass before their hopes were realised.

Clock

From the time tenders for the new Government Buildings were let, Tauranga townsfolk had been agitating for a proper town clock. A letter in the Bay of Plenty Times of 20 October 1905 complained:

“The need for a public clock that will keep better time than the whrligig which does duty for one in the present Post Office was well shown yesterday morning when the said box of cogwheels was no less than 23 minutes behind time at 8 o’clock in the morning — a time when many people like to be able to set their watches.”

The Bay of Plenty Times opened a subscription fund and its proprietor, G.A. Ward, made the first contribution. The Borough Council made a further donation of £25, and the Mayor petitioned the Postmaster General for a pound-for-pound subsidy. At a meeting on 1 October 1906, councillors agreed the clock should be erected as a memorial to Premier Richard Seddon, who had died that year.

The clock, made by the celebrated clock manufacturers Dent & Co. of London, arrived on 20 October 1906. Installation was delayed until January 1907, when Shepherd Smith carried out the work. The clock featured a five-foot dial and a three-hundredweight bell. Once installation was complete, Smith was retained to wind and maintain it for 12 shillings and sixpence per month.