The Central Otago District Council yesterday decided, based on engineering advice, the facade of the Roxburgh Entertainment Centre will be demolished.
The council said in a statement that while an engineering assessment had shown the building’s facade, which was still standing after the devastating fire on February 6, could possibly be retained, in practical terms the work required to make the facade safe would drain a significant portion of the insurance funds and cause ongoing major disruption to the community and immediate neighbours.
The council said any remediation costs would significantly take away from the rebuild, and because of the many unknowns about the state of the facade and the substructure, the decision was made to clear the site completely.
Other costs — such as roading as a result of diverting traffic from SH8, especially heavy traffic — were also a factor in the decision.
Cr Sally Feinerman said the right decision had been made.
"People are distraught as it was the centre of much of what happened in Roxburgh. But it was unsafe and was impacting neighbouring properties. Half of the state highway was closed and you have to pay for that," she said.
"It was a shame, but in the end a pretty clear-cut decision.
"Everyone has been in shock. Obviously now we have to move to what is the next stage — what are the options for the future."
Roxburgh Entertainment Centre and Improvements committee chairman Curtis Crawford said he understood the decision.
It would be unwise to spend a significant part of the insurance money to keep the facade.
Maybe the bricks could be retained, he said.
"All the locals love the building and it is a bit sad. But it is not safe and too expensive to fix," he said.
"We had been working hard on the building in the past few years ... I thought we were nearly getting there and I could retire and pass it on to the next generation.
"But now we have got all this to do."
The committee was planning an outdoor screening of a movie for late next month. It might be in the centre carpark although that depended on safety issues. It might have to be in a council building or church.
The community though remained positive, he said.
"The building was insured. Everyone who comes and sees me are champing at the bit to do something. Do whatever it takes to get it back ... we have to think positive and push forward."
