A nearly-$760,000 makeover is underway at Paeroa’s Returned and Services’ Association (RSA) building on Belmont Rd.
Earthquake strengthening work began on the historically-listed building on May 25. The work is expected to take around four months.
However, the ground floor will remain open for use throughout, apart from the main dining room.
Appearance-wise, the building’s exterior will remain much the same, with one exception – the RSA’s mural.
“Unfortunately [the wall] was not sealed properly before they painted it, so the water comes in through the wall and blisters all the paint off in the men’s toilet,” RSA president John Hallett said.
“It has to be properly cleaned and sealed, which means we lose our mural.”
Rather than try and restore the current painting, the association has opted to commission a new, commemorative mural from Auckland artist Brigita Botma.
It will be the last part of the repairs to take place, along with refurbishment of the displayed artillery.
The bulk of the strengthening work, meanwhile, will involve reinforcement of the building’s walls.
On the lower level, the walls will be pinned from outside using Python masonry screws, to strengthen and stiffen the double layer of concrete bricks within the building frame. The exterior walls will then be cleaned, replastered and repainted.
Upstairs, the work will be a little more intensive. A former hotel, the upper level currently has several small, dilapidated rooms. The level has been closed for many years due to a lack of safe egress in the event of a fire.
The builders will be removing most of the upper interior walls and strengthening the top level from inside.
The upstairs space will then remain unfinished for the time being, John said, although RSA members have been throwing around ideas for possible use like function rooms or offices.
“The main goal was to get the building sound, safe, and fit for the future,” he said.
“Next step will be to decide what to do upstairs. It will be a little bit of a blank canvas.”
Other repairs taking place during the refurbishment include reinforcing the building’s parapets, replacing the 100-year-old iron roof, installing new guttering and downpipes, and replacing the fire and burglar alarm systems.
The RSA has been fundraising for years to get the work underway, John said. In the past seven years, RSA fundraisers – mostly Bingo nights – have raised $160,000.
The association has also received a substantial number of grants, including $447,400 from the Lotteries Community Facilities and Heritage funds, $20,000 from the Valder Ohinemuri Trust, and $10,000 from the Hauraki District Council.
“I would very much like to acknowledge our sponsors,” John said.
“Once you get some momentum going with these things, it’s amazing how it builds. As soon as people heard we had that lottery grant, you could see the mindset change: ‘oh this could really happen’. I’m absolutely thrilled.”
