22 August 2001

The Board of Lambton Harbour Management Limited has now selected one of the three proposals it has been actively considering for the restoration and redevelopment of Shed 22 and the Odlins Building. These are adjoining heritage buildings in the Taranaki Wharf area.

The company has now entered into a contract with Willis Bond & Co Limited in respect of Shed 22. This building will, following its restoration, become a specialised working brewery, with a restaurant/bar/café complex on the seaward side of the building, and office accommodation on a mezzanine level. The property will house the regional office of Lion Breweries.

A contract has also been entered into with the same company, Willis Bond & Co Limited, for the restoration of the Odlins Building. This will house large, open, office floor plates on its upper levels. At ground level, the waterfront side of the building will have a public colonnade to provide sheltered public access and natural light to a large restaurant/bar space. The ground level, on the Cable Street side, will house café, gallery and retail spaces.

The plans for the restoration of both buildings are by Athfield Architects Limited.

Both contracts with Willis Bond &Co Limited are subject to resource consent being obtained. The contract for the Odlins building has other conditions attached to it, and these will be worked through, and hopefully resolved, speedily.

The other two proposals, which ultimately were not selected, were from Kernel Investments Limited and from the Starline Newport Group.

The Kernel Investments scheme proposed that the ground floor of Shed 22 be developed into an emporium-marketplace. The scheme also contained an option to add two levels of apartments to that building. The ground floor of the Odlins Building was intended as an extension of the emporium-marketplace proposed for Shed 22 and allowed space for food and wine tasting facilities, a bar and café, a restaurant and a packaged food sales section. Above ground, the building would have housed apartments.

The Starline Newport Group proposed that Shed 22 would become a 5-star luxury boutique hotel. The proposal entailed additional floors to the existing building in order to accommodate 90 rooms. The ground floor of the Odlins Building would become a blend of exhibition, shopping and dining, with sections for speciality breads, produce and so on. The Cable Street frontage would house two large exhibition spaces. The upper floors of the building would contain office spaces.

“We had three very fine proposals before us” says Chairman of LHML, David Gascoigne. “We considered all of them very carefully. In the end, all three applicants had linked their proposals to both buildings. In other words, each ultimately sought the right to deal with both buildings, and not just one or the other.”

“In our evaluation, we considered a number of criteria. These included: alignment with the new waterfront framework, design quality and respect for heritage values, suitability of use, the nature of the tenancies and the interests of the public, the outcome of the consultation with interested parties, commercial terms, and the price offered for the right to restore and redevelop and then take a lease.”

“On balance, we came to the view that the proposals put forward for the two buildings by Willis Bond & Co Limited were to be preferred.”

“As part of the decision making process, consultation was carried out with a number of stakeholders and other interested parties. Feedback from the various forums we held is largely supportive of the proposals we have chosen”.

“We are pleased that we have reached this stage of what has been a long and complex process”, Mr Gascoigne added. “We admire the quality of the design. And the uses proposed for the buildings, when restoration is completed, will bring another dimension to the life, colour and vibrancy of this pivotal area of the waterfront.”

Ends..

LAMBTON HARBOUR MANAGEMENT LIMITED