Previous report in the TRA Newsletter

https://www.thorndon.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/newsletters/TRA-Newsletter-Spring_2023o.pdf

Roads and bike and bus lanes, plus construction of buildings

Thorndon/Pipitea has been weathering traffic congestion and impeded ease of walking and biking due to the many construction sites in the area. This has been exacerbated by roads being dug up and re-routed while bike and bus lanes are constructed. Thorndon Quay is the present example of major road works and soon Mulgrave and Molesworth Streets and Wadestown Road will be disrupted as bike lanes are built. It should also be noted that footpaths and roads have been closed at times as materials and construction has been undertaken on the sites discussed below.

61 Molesworth Street

61 Molesworth Street continues to make good progress. The concrete core of the building has arisen first, followed closely by the structural steel that creates the framework for the office floors. These structural steel members are prefabricated offsite and putting them together is likened to a giant Meccano set. Another important element along with these two activities, is the suspended slabs that get poured to create the flooring system for the building. These are the main works that you would have noticed as you pass by the site, and these works will continue as construction moves up the building. Over the coming months, the first panels of the façade will be going onto the building which will mean the building is really starting to take shape. Precinct Properties specifically thanked the community for their ongoing support and patience.

1 Kate Shepherd Place

This design, at what is now the bus terminus, had been approved and initial works had begun. The construction company, Newcrest has decided to have new concept plans drawn up which will take approximately 9 months. They have confirmed that the design will include the buses moving on the Lambton Quay terminus underneath the structure. After plan approval, the construction of a high-rise building on this site will take at least 2.5 years.

48 Mulgrave Street

This site is next to Old Saint Paul’s. This property has consented plans according to the construction company, CMP Construction Limited. They are looking for a sale or a lease. The lease choice is an interesting one in these hard economic times. If there was a full lease, CMP would then build to the approved plans. In the meantime, spaces are leased for carparks. This site has been a dead space since 2016 when the Kaikoura earthquake damaged Revera House, beyond repair, and it was demolished.

2-12 Aitken Street

LT McGuiness is the contracted construction company building the new Archives New Zealand building. By the end of this year the piles for the two-way bridge between the National Library and the new Archives Building will be completed. The building is rising in height and is planned to be completed in 2026. There has been considerable inconvenience to residents and commuters through this area due to the many closures of Aitken Street.

This is the former site of Defence House, NZ Defence HQ. On 14 November 2016 that building was damaged in the Kaikoura earthquake event and later it was demolished because the cost of repairs were determined to be uneconomical.

Wellington Girls College Building Site

Additional short-term classrooms

The Ministry of Education is seismically upgrading WGC’s four-storey Pipitea Block. Once the upgrade is completed (early 2025), some work is also planned on Brook Block. To facilitate these works, a 14-building teaching village is being installed at the school’s Hobson Street entrance. This will allow teaching activities to be moved out of Pipitea Block for the duration of the work. A plan showing the extent of on-site works can be found at thorndon.org.nz

Work commenced on 27 May 2024. The contractor Modcom Portable Buildings Ltd (Modcom) has brought in the prefabricated classrooms for the temporary village. Modcom operated a mobile crane on-site to complete this work. Constructing the teaching village will take 12 weeks. A traffic management plan was confirmed ahead of the buildings being delivered. The movement of these prefabs onto the land was completed via an entrance off Hobson Street. Being winter this left considerable mud over the lower part of Hobson Street and Davis Street. The old Tower Block has been demolished.

Covering for Artificial Turf

The Ministry has recently closed tenders for replacement of the artificial turf tennis courts and an all-weather canopy to permit reliable use. The courts face onto Moturoa Street. Work will commence in October 2024 with completion likely early 2025.