Thames-Coromandel District Council Historic Heritage and Character Area Mapping

Prepared for Thames Coromandel District Council by Urban Opera NZ Ltd and Heritage Consultancy Services July 2010 Contents

SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION page

Background 3

Scope 3

Study Area 3

SECTION 2: METHODOLOGY

Project Approach 4

Historic Heritage and Character Area Definitions 4

Historic Heritage and Character Area Management 5

SECTION 3: HISTORIC HERITAGE AND CHARACTER AREA ASSESSMENT

Thames Coast 6

- Thames - - Te Mata - Wairotoroto - Coromandel Town - Colville

East Coast 16

- - - - - - Whangamata -

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Section 1: Introduction

BACKGROUND

The purpose of this report is to provide a summary of proposed historic heritage and character areas that are considered worthy of recognition, retention and management in the Thames-Coromandel District, potentially managed through the Thames-Coromandel District Plan.

The assessment was focused on the larger settlements of the District in particular, that may be impacted by potential growth aspirations associated with the Local Area Blueprint (LAB) process. The LAB process is being undertaken by the Thames-Coromandel District Council and their partners as part of the Blueprint, the region’s strategic framework for managing growth and sustainable development.

Preliminary recommendations have been provided within the report to give direction to the ways in which historic heritage values and character elements may be managed through the Thames- Coromandel District Plan and its associated mechanisms.

SCOPE

Prior to the historic heritage and character area mapping exercise, Thames-Coromandel District Council had commissioned work that evaluated the urban form, design and density of the eight reticulated settlements of the District and commissioned a detailed report on historic heritage values in the District. These studies underpin this historic heritage and character area assessment.

This assessment delineates areas broadly recognised for their historic heritage and character values, but is not an individual assessment of each site or building within that grouping. It is understood that further work will be undertaken, in consultation with local communities, to finalise the boundaries of each area. In addition it is not intended to provide definitive techniques for the management of historic heritage and character values, although recommendations have been made to address and ways in which to do this.

STUDY AREA

The study focuses on the main settlements designated for urban growth in the Thames-Coromandel District including Thames, Whangamata and Whitianga. However, in addition areas that may be at risk from redevelopment, including the smaller more accessible coastal bach settlements and those areas which are considered to be of value as future historic heritage and character areas have also been assessed.

Future historic heritage and character assessment of the small coastal communities to the north of Coromandel township is also recommended including: ; Tuateawa; Little Bay; Port Charles; Sandy, Stony and Fantail Bays; Otatu; Paritu and Port Jackson. These settlements are considered at this stage to be at a lesser risk of redevelopment but will require consideration through the District Plan process as to their historic heritage and character values.

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Section 2: Methodology

PROJECT APPROACH

The earlier character and historic heritage reports were consulted to provide a ‘first cut’ of potential areas for assessment. In combination with this, further research, discussion and fieldwork was undertaken to provide an overall sense of each settlement and its visual qualities and historic values.

Fieldwork included a visual assessment from public space of every property within the settlement areas of the District, in conjunction with the assessment of aerial photographs, historic plans and site information.

A hierarchy of value and typology was Individual Heritage Items developed to ascertain the status of each area and in essence create an overlay of Historic Areas potential protection and management within the Thames-Coromandel District Character Areas Plan, with individual heritage items having District Plan Zones the highest level of protection.

HISTORIC HERITAGE AND CHARACTER AREA DEFINITIONS

Historic heritage areas may be broadly applied to civic, commercial, residential, rural and rural residential areas and their associated landscape, built and natural features, spaces and places. They may be deemed worthy of protection if they represent and embody a range of heritage values, including, the landscape context, distinct settlement patterns and chronological development, building typologies and architectural styles, representative social values, making both tangible and intangible contributions to the underlying sense of place and identity. Collectively an historic area may contain a range of features, buildings and places that together addresses the interconnectedness of people, place and activities.

A character area in the context of this report may be applied to civic, commercial, residential, rural and rural residential areas and their associated landscape, built and natural features, spaces and places. They are identified by the unique combination of natural and built elements that contribute to the identity and amenity of the place. The elements that have been identified to assess the character areas of the Thames-Coromandel District include:

Location Open space structure & Activities/land use Building scale, location and site type characteristics

Topography/ Vegetation Street & block pattern Building types, styles and age landscape /plot characteristics setting/backdrop

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HISTORIC HERITAGE AND CHARACTER AREA MANAGEMENT

It is anticipated that, following due process, the areas that have been identified and confirmed as historic heritage and character areas will be incorporated into the District Plan review, potentially by way of historic heritage and character overlays. Within the hierarchy of objectives, policies, rules and other methods, individually scheduled historic heritage items should take precedence over historic heritage and character areas, recognised through the appropriate activity status applied. For example the demolition of a scheduled heritage item could be a prohibited or non complying activity as the retention and conservation of that item is considered of the utmost important. The activity status would then become more relaxed with the progression from historic heritage areas through to character elements. Through the course of the mapping, brief recommendations have been made in respect to management techniques for both areas and individual elements that should be addressed, particularly in relation to character areas.

Key techniques proposed for the management of heritage and character values include:

- District Plan objectives, policies, rules and criteria that address areas delineated as historic heritage and character areas within the District Plan maps. - The use of statutory and non-statutory design guidance. - Incorporation of objectives and reference to historic heritage and character values within the Council’s Code of Practice for Subdivision and Development to ensure recognition of open space environments, including street and block layouts and elements, significant vegetation etc. - Educational material for general reference and to raise the profile of historic heritage and character values within the various settlements of the District.

In addition there are a range of rules and criteria that are suggested for to recognise specific character elements important to each area. These include, for example, but are not limited to:

- Plot size to address traditional patterns of development and/or use, area density, recognition of topographical features, retention of or allowance for vegetation. - Site coverage to reflect density, building scale, retention of or allowance for vegetation. - Building height, scale and location. A general reduction in building height across many of the residential areas of the District is considered appropriate to acknowledge and maintain character and historic heritage values. - Built form including style, architectural elements and fenestration. - Inclusion and/or location of auxiliary buildings such as garages and boat sheds.

In addition it is considered that beyond the identified historic heritage and character areas, there should be some consideration of character values that apply more widely to a collective of areas, which are already and could be further addressed through District Plan provisions. For example: scale, materials and reflectance in beachside esplanade areas; Thames Coast strip developments, in terms of the relationship between development and open space; the openness of properties to public space generally as a result of a tendency toward low or no fencing across most of the settlements of the District and; the vegetated escarpments and hillsides of the settlement backdrops.

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Section 3: Historic Heritage and Character Area Mapping

THAMES AND THAMES COAST

THAMES HISTORIC AREAS

Thames has national, regional and local historic heritage significance on a number of levels, chief among them its history as a centre for gold mining and native timber extraction. The modern township is an amalgam of three 19th century colonial settlements, those of Grahamstown, Shortland and Parawai. Underlying the modern-day appearance and colonial heritage of all three is an important Maori settlement history and a history of Maori-European contact and accommodation.

Grahamstown Historic Area

The basis of this historic area is the 17 September 1869 survey map of Grahamstown undertaken at the request of Robert Graham. Bounded by the Moanataiari and Karaka Streams, to the north and south, the (west) and the regenerating bush of the Coromandel Ranges (east), the town of Grahamstown was at the centre of the Coromandel gold rush that began in August 1867. The area includes a diverse range of different types of buildings, including a large number of 19th colonial structures that retain a high level of authenticity. Civic, ecclesiastical, residential, governmental, industrial and commercial buildings and open spaces are to be found in close proximity with one another. The township continues to be identified as Grahamstown today even though the three foundation villages of Thames had merged into one by the early 20th century.

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Plan of Grahamstown 1869

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Shortland Historic Area

The settlement of Shortland, located immediately to the south of Grahamstown between the Karaka and Hape Streams, was founded in 1867 on the eve of the Thames gold rush. It was named for Willoughby Shortland, Governor Hobson’s Colonial Secretary, but was poor cousin to Grahamstown for many years as the latter was the centre of the gold rush. Shortland was laid out on the standard colonial grid and it is largely residential in nature with the exception of the continuation of retail and commercial activities along Pollen Street. The historic area takes in the eastern side of Queen Street and all of Pollen Street between the Karaka Stream and Richmond Street. It primarily contains commercial and residential buildings that span the 19th and 20th centuries. The commercial buildings in the Shortland section of Pollen Street are notable for their early-mid-20th century architectural styling, in contrast to the predominant 19th century character of the historic commercial premises in Grahamstown.

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Mount Sea Road Historic Area

This group of state houses, located in Currie and Martin Streets and on the north side of Mount Sea Road between Martin Street and the William Hall Reserve, are good examples of the mid-20th century building programme initiated by the first Labour Government to provide quality housing for low- and middle-income earners. The layout of the subdivision embodies the Garden City Suburb planning principles that underpinned the development of state housing by the Department of Housing Construction in the late 1930s and 1940s. The c.28 houses are recognisably related but also designed to convey some sense of individuality for each resident family. The hillside location in Parawai at the southern end of the township would offer many residents a wide vista overlooking the township and the Firth of Thames.

THAMES CHARACTER AREAS

Banks Street Character Area

Located on the flood plain adjacent to the River, the Banks Street Character Area consists of small groupings of consistent dwelling types, within a greater collective of dwellings that illustrate the first half of the 20th century residential development in Thames. The collective of the single storey 1910s villas to 1950s weatherboard bungalows appears to be the most intact representative group of this type within Thames and more widely in the District. Two of the corner dwellings are scheduled in the District Plan, their gardens and significant mature trees contributing to the quality of the character area. For the remainder of the sites there is generally small scale vegetation, but a degree of intimacy is provided within the environment by the relative proximity of many of the dwellings and openness of the sites to the street.

Recommendations: Design guidance, scale, setback and fencing.

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Moanataiari Character Area

Moanataiari is a highly intact and consistent post WWII coastal residential area, developed in two stages on reclaimed land, with some later, predominantly 1970s dwellings, to the west of the suburb. The distinct open space environment is provided by the combination of the grounds of Moanataiari School, wide streets in a predominantly grid pattern, large open sections with mixed small scale exotic and native vegetation, low or no fencing, with the orientation of buildings to, and well setback from, the streets. The dwellings are predominantly single story, illustrative of post WWII weatherboard and decorative brick bungalows on large individual sites, with relatively low site coverage, including auxiliary buildings and paving. The wider context is of the vegetated backdrop of the ranges to the east and Tikapa Moana (Firth of Thames) to the west. Recommendations: Design guidance, site size, scale, site coverage, building setback.

THAMES COAST CHARACTER AREAS

Kuranui Bay Character Area

The Kuranui Bay Character Area, including the south end of Tararu Bay, represents a collection of consistently small scale colonial cottages, weatherboard bungalows and simple fibrolite baches dating from the turn of the 20th century to 1950, which follow the curve of the coastline. The dwellings are oriented towards the coast on retained sites, within a dramatic landscape context, including the outlook across the Thames Coast Road to Tikapa Moana and the vegetated backdrop of the ranges. Many of the dwellings have some form of modification including additions and recladding and in conjunction with auxiliary structures such as caravans and garages, add to the complexity of the character area, but giving a sense of coherence through its diversity. Recommendations: Design guidance, scale, and site coverage.

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Te Puru South Character Area

Te Puru South Character Area illustrates the archetypal bach DIY quality of modifications and extensions. Built in traditionally simple forms, with mono pitch or low gable roofs, of fibrolite and weatherboard, the baches are elevated above the main coastal road. Located at the toe of the hillside and set into the context of the vegetated backdrop of predominantly native species, with sites open to the Thames Coast Road, the one and two story dwellings, dating from the 1930s to 1950s, are oriented to overlook Te Puru across to Tikapa Moana. Basement structures, incorporating garages, storage and living space further emphasise the way in which the kiwi bach is utilised and added to. The gardens are open to the street, with minimal on-site vegetation, reflecting the relaxed beach settlement lifestyle. Recommendations: Design guidance, building scale, site coverage, site size, fencing, setback, auxiliary buildings.

Te Puru North Character Area

The built character of Te Puru North is one of Thames Coast informality and continued small scale additions over time, leading to a feeling of diversity within the coastal context. The tiny, simple weatherboard and fibrolite cottages and baches, in conjunction with caravans and auxiliary buildings, are located in an almost haphazard way, within the limitations on space due to the narrow strip of land available for development at the toe of the vegetated escarpment. A high level of amenity results from the combination of the escarpment vegetation, the grassy open nature of the sites, hedges and small scale planting, retaining walls, informal access to the sites, and proximity to Tikapa Moana . Recommendations: Building scale, site coverage, permeable surface.

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Te Mata Bay South Character Area

Tucked into the base of the hills and enclosed at the end of the bay, the Te Mata Bay South Character Area is a tight cluster of fibrolite and weatherboard baches, with a consistent grain and scale, dating from the 1930’s. The simple rectangular building forms, sited lengthwise addressing Tikapa Moana, with their low gable and mono-pitch roofs, and have been modified over time incorporating sunrooms and decks, emphasising the function of each bach as a holiday retreat. The very open and direct relationship to Tikapa Moana, further contributed to by the open space environment of the Thames Coast Road, creates the sense of a singular open space. The single story dwellings are almost visually overwhelmed by the scale of the open space and high vegetated escarpment to rear of the sites. Recommendations: Building scale, materials, site coverage, fencing, setback

Te Mata Rivermouth Character Area

Contained within the river valley, the relationship to the open space of the river and the consequent building forms are important elements of the character area, in combination with the vegetated backdrop of the valley sides, Te Mata Creek Road, which follows the curve of the river and the Pohutukawa dispersed throughout the valley and at the road edge. In conjunction with the enclosure of the valley form, the openness of the sites to the river creates a definable settlement cluster of baches dating from the 1950s, with mix of ages to the 1970s. The predominantly single story dwellings are oriented to capture the views of Te Mata Creek, its mouth, bridge and Tikapa Moana beyond.

Recommendations: Building scale, site coverage, auxiliary buildings, permeable surface and fencing.

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