The hackles of the New Zealand Historic Places Trust have been raised by a ‘‘flippant'' remark from Dunedin's mayor suggesting a bulldozer should be run through a category 1 historic Dunedin building in order to make a bigger cricket ground.
During his ‘‘state of the region'' speech in Dunedin last week, Mayor Peter Chin suggested, while discussing the redeveloped University Oval cricket ground, what would make it perfect would be ‘‘if someone would run a bulldozer through a certain building down there''.
The location of the former Logan Park Art Gallery is restricting the length of the boundary.
NZHPT Otago-Southland manager Graham Owen described the comment as unacceptable and intimidatory.
It had come as a ‘‘shock and a surprise'' that Mayor Chin was ‘‘advocating the destruction of the internationally significant . . . building'', Mr Owen said.
The building was constructed as the art gallery for the 1925 New Zealand and South Seas International Exhibition in Dunedin.
The gallery was believed to be the only surviving in-site exhibition building in New Zealand and was also a significant surviving piece of the international history of exhibitions.
It is a New Zealand Historic Places Trust category 1 building. The building had been ‘‘literally chipped away at'' for the past five years by sports and cricket ground development and ‘‘enough was enough'' from the NZHPT's point of view, Mr Owen said. ‘‘Once a heritage building is gone, that is it.
‘‘Mr Chin should be ashamed of his public comments, which just seem to show his true colours when it comes to our city's heritage.''
The comment also revealed the attitude of the city council, he said.
‘‘For a local authority which promotes itself on its heritage, Dunedin city seems ‘light years' away in its attitudes from being truly committed to sustainable heritage management.''
Mr Chin said his comment was ‘‘tongue-in-cheek'' and in no way indicated any covert decision by the council to remove the building.
That was a process that needed to be worked through properly and as far as he was aware had not begun yet.
He clearly remembered making the comment, and described it as an off the-cuff, flippant remark.
He had not thought any further about it afterwards. Mr Chin was surprised to hear Mr Owen was so upset by the remark and questioned why he had not called to discuss it personally.
‘‘If he's got nothing better to do than take all that time to write a press release, but he can't pick up the phone and call me - who's got the problem?'
