Quake threat dooms historic buildings | Wairarapa News | Local News in Wairarapa

Two historic Masterton buildings face the wrecker's ball after having been declared a risk to life in the event of a moderate earthquake.

The old Opera House on Lincoln Rd, now Mick D's Auctions, and a red-brick block in Queen St that started life as part of St Patrick's School are owned by Masterton Trust Lands Trust and earmarked for demolition.

News of the pending demolition of the old Opera House came as a shock to auction-rooms tenant Jeanie Hagger, who has run her business out of the masonry building for 12 years.

She will hold her last auction in it today.

Ms Hagger said she found out only yesterday that the building had to go and did not have time to take it all in, or make a decision on whether she would relocate her auction and second-hand dealer's business.

"I will have to sit down and think about the future," Ms Hagger said.

"But what I do want to say is a big thank you to everyone in Masterton who has loyally supported me over the years."

The building started life in 1897 as a purpose-built town hall after the town's first - near where the ANZ Bank now is - burned down in the early 1880s.

Wairarapa archivist Gareth Winter said that when the existing Masterton Town Hall was built, at about the time World War I broke out, the Lincoln Rd hall switched roles to become the Opera House and picture theatre.

It was badly damaged by an earthquake in the 1930s and again during the big 1942 earthquake.

In later years it become home to NZR Road Services before Peter Colvin started an auction rooms there.

Also to be wrecked is a red-brick block at the northern end of Queen St that was once part of St Patrick's School and has been used until recently by UCOL.

It was built in 1927 and is said by the trust to be suffering the advanced stages of concrete cancer.

Both buildings are uninsurable, being unreinforced masonry structures.

Trust chairman Alan Sadler said the decision to seek Masterton District Council consent to demolish the two buildings was made this week at the trust's first board meeting since receiving structural engineering reports.

"As a community-owned organisation and landlord we have a responsibility to remove serious safety risks to both people and property posed by both these buildings," Mr Sadler said.

The old Opera House met just 7 per cent of the seismic performance standard for new buildings, well under the 33 per cent minimum threshold, and the St Patrick's block reached 10 per cent of the required strength. Mr Sadler said while the trust recognised the heritage significance of the buildings "if a moderate earthquake struck tomorrow these buildings could kill and injure people and damage surrounding property".