Fire fails to close tavern

Press, 15 May 1985, Page 1

Fire fails to close tavern

The public bar of the Marine Tavern in Sumner was open for business yesterday as local residents and insurance assessors sifted through the wreckage of the rest of the building, gutted by fire on Monday evening.

An accurate estimate of damage was not available, although it was thought repairs will cost well over $lOO,OOO. The centre and western sections of the building, particularly the upstairs staff quarters, were extensively damaged, although the public bar at the eastern end was undamaged. The manager, Mr Ken Sheard, was upstairs when the fire started shortly before 6 p.m. He escaped by climbing over a roof at the rear of the building. He said yesterday, while relaxing

with about 20 “regulars” in the public bar, that the building would be repaired. The white, roughcast shell of the building would be retained, although the interior would be remodelled. About 20 local residents helped Mr Sheard with cleaning up yesterday morning, and one local man lent his caravan to Mr Sheard and his family as a temporary home.

The Marine Tavern is a well known landmark in Sumner, having opened in 1869. It was known then as Morten’s Marine Hotel, and

was promoted as a seaside family hotel with “comforts unequalled in the Southern Hemisphere.” In 1929, a cave entrance behind the hotel was dug out, revealing many Maori artefacts and skeletons.