Old Addington mill to be sold

Press, 25 February 1986, Page 6

Old Addington mill to be sold

By

SARAH SANDS

property reporter The Wood Brothers’ old flourmill in Addington will be sold less than 12 months after a hasty fundraising effort enabled its purchase. The building’s owner, Mr Clive Brooker, is moving to the North Island 'and has decided to sell the old mill. It will be auctioned on April 11. Mr Brooker bought the mill in 1982 after living in a second-storey apartment in the building for six years. He planned to con-

vert the mill’s two old buildings to eight apartments, business premises, and a theatre playhouse. Early last year, he was faced with making a final payment of $67,000 on the purchase price of $160,000 to the owner of the property then, A. G. H. Developments, of Auckland. The money came from two sources. The Riccarton Players bought the Mill Theatre for $40,000 and the balancce of the $67,000 was provided by a person Interested in the project.

Because the Mill Theatre is now owned by the Riccarton Players, it

will not be auctioned.

The auctioneer, Mr Phil Alexander, of Sherris and Robertson, Ltd, said the refurbishing programme was half finished. Six apartments had been built and rented and there was room for another 12. The person who bought the old mill would have to be able to pay for the building and continue the renovations, he said.

“There is a lot of work to be done but they will

have something that is worth it when it is finished.”

The Government Valua-

tion (1981) of the property is $179,000 (this includes the Mill Theatre). The land area (not including the theatre) is 46945 q m. Mr Alexander said that the land value alone was about $250,000. Although the mill building was almost 100 years old, it was built like a battleship with the masonry seven bricks deep

in some areas, he said. If the buyer demolished

the building, there was a requirement to erect a block fence between any new building and the Mill Theatre, said Mr Alexander. This would cost about $21,000.

A little more than half the area' was leased at present and was returning about $30,000 a year, he said. Once refurbishing was finished the yearly income could be $60,000.

Mr Alexander said that a specified departure on the site permitted a mixture of residential and industrial use.