Auckland City Council is making a late bid to keep the sheds on the venue marked out as "party central" for the Rugby World Cup.
The Government and Auckland Regional Council (ARC) bought Queens Wharf in downtown Auckland last year with the intention of turning the former storage area into a public space.
Last week Rugby World Cup Minister Murray McCully and ARC chairman Mike Lee proposed the two sheds on the wharf be knocked down and be replaced by a temporary structure which would serve as "party central".
Mr Lee has said the sheds were cheap and nasty when they were built and that they were now old, cheap and nasty.
The Historic Places Trust and the Auckland Architectural Association had earlier said the sheds should be kept as they provided a link to earlier maritime activity in the city, and today Auckland City Council made a resolution to commit $26 million for a possible revamp of the sheds.
"Not withstanding the blind disregard for the restoration of the historic sheds on Queens Wharf, the Auckland City Council hope the owners will accept this as an 11th hour bid for common sense," Auckland City Mayor John Banks said.
He asked the Government and the ARC to reconsider its proposal, rather than "turning them into firewood and replacing them with a temporary quick fix".
"I am committed to preserving this city's architectural heritage and this is part of that commitment. I acknowledge some of the public do not have a problem with pulling down the old sheds but once they are gone, that's it."
Mr Banks and Mr Lee previously clashed vigorously over the wharf's future when Mr Banks and Auckland's other territorial mayors refused to fund a permanent cruise ship terminal.
The mayors said the decision on Queens Wharf should not be rushed but rather made following a full consultation process and as part of wider planning for Auckland's waterfront.
Mr Lee accused the mayors of a failure of leadership over that issue.
The $9 million temporary structure planned for the Rugby World Cup will be 160m long, 30m wide, 12m high at its highest point and cover about 20 percent of the wharf. It will have a capacity of about 7800.
