Wellington’s old air traffic control tower for sale

Aviation enthusiasts may be scrambling to make an offer on the latest residential property to go up for sale: Wellington’s former air traffic control tower.

The property at 36 Tirangi Rd is not what most people would think of when buying a home.

It has a narrow floor plan, narrow stair access to all four levels, little natural light in many areas, and has only one bathroom.

The tower still has many of its original design features from 1957, but the kitchen is described as “posh from around 2000.”

It also comes with a list of renovation needs, including asbestos removal and earthquake strengthening.

But vendors said the views from the top deck were “phenomenal,” stretching from Evans Bay to Lyall Bay and beyond. There is also almost a quarter of an acre of land.

Airways, which sells the tower, claims it is the only air traffic control tower in the world that has a residential address and its own mailbox.

Opened in 1959, the old tower was home to Airways air traffic controllers who managed flights in and out of Wellington Airport for 60 years. The new control tower was opened further down Tirangi Rd in 2018.

The old tower has become a local landmark, Airways CFO James Young said.

At the opening ceremony of the new tower, residents shared stories of how they lived and grew up nearby. The old tower was affectionately known by some neighbors as “Arnold”.

“It’s settled there on the hill and has served us well for 60 years, so we’ll have some mixed feelings watching it go,” Young said.

“While we know that the property is more likely to be bought by a developer and licensed to build new homes, it’s nice to imagine the old tower being given new life through some great creative design.”

The land on which the tower sits has recently been rezoned to allow its use for residential development.

It is being sold by Tommy’s Real Estate of Wellington, and the commission from the sale will be donated to the Wellington Children’s Hospital Foundation.

Agents Billy Bell and Jess Platt said it was the most unique property they had ever listed.

“We have had unusual looking houses, but never anything like this, so it is exciting to participate,” they say.

The commission raised from the sale will go towards furnishing and furnishing the interior of the new Wellington Children’s Hospital.

The tower is listed for buyer’s consultation for over $ 895,000 and is expected to sell for something above that price.

Airways’ head of service delivery for the towers, Sophia Healey, said the building was “very unique,” but thought it unlikely anyone would buy it to live in, given the amount of work that had to be done.

“It would be really nice to imagine some developer giving the place a new lease of life … but realistically there is a lot to do to bring it up to standard.”

Removing asbestos and strengthening the earthquake would be a “pretty extensive” job, and there was still a lot to do to make the property comfortable to live in.

“You would face a great job to do.”

A potential buyer would have to be “up for a big challenge.”

Someone was more likely to want to tear down the tower to make way for more housing for Wellingtons amid the housing shortage.

Healey hoped there would be “mixed feelings” in the community if the tower was brought down.

Today is the first day the tower goes up for sale, and Airways expects a lot of interest from developers and aviation fans.

“I’m sure there will be a lot of genuine interest in terms of what to offer and what can be done with it.

“We have mixed feelings about letting it go, but it will be good to put the land and especially the building to good future use.”