Aulsebrooks building to be demolished

Press, 13 March 1985, Page 9

Aulsebrooks building to be demolished

An old Christchurch landmark, the Aulsebrooks building at the corner of St Asaph Street and Montreal Street, will be demolished in June.

The three-storey brick and concrete building would be demolished for safety reasons, said Mr David Smart, the development manager of the Goodman Group, which owns it.

Designed by the prominent Christchurch architectural firm of Armson and Collins, it was built for Aulsebrooks in 1879.

However, Mr Smart said, it was no longer sound.

Some time ago concrete plugss weighing several tonnes fell from the roof, and staff and production were moved to another building on the site which will not be demolished. The company decided it was not feasible to restore the building and it would be demolished in the first week of June. In 1975, it was added to a Christchurch City Council historic building classification, which requires three months notice of demolition to enable a historic and photographic record to be made.

The Goodman Group has no plans for the site. When the building has gone the section will be levelled and backfilled. The Historic Places Trust would be sorry to see such a landmark demolished, but was powerless to stop it, said Mr Don Donnithorne, chairman of its Canterbury regional committee. “We will try to persuade the owners to retain it, but it is a valuable piece of land and we have to be realistic,” he said. An old flour mill on the site will also be demolished.