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The Red House in Takapūneke, Akaroa was built in 1924 and its current owners have lived there for 40 years.
An Akaroa house located on one of New Zealand’s most culturally important land is for sale and could be purchased by the Christchurch City Council.
The Red House, which has a rating valuation of $ 1.2 million, is surrounded by the Takapūneke Reserve, an area of great importance to Ngāi Tahu.
The Banks Peninsula Reserve is classified as a wāhi tapu (a sacred place) by Heritage New Zealand.
The 2,864-square-meter house and surrounding garden will go up for auction on December 10, and the council held a special meeting Thursday to decide whether to bid.
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The authority has not released its decision, which was taken behind closed doors.
However, a management plan for the reserve adopted by the council in 2018 states that and / or Ōnuku Rūnanga should get The Red House if the opportunity arises.
The plan said it could be used as a place for activities including education, community gatherings or activities, and a cafeteria or restaurant.
But Harcourts real estate agent John Moyle said the council had the opportunity to buy the property about 18 months ago but withdrew because councilors did not approve the deal.
Victoria Andrews
Takapūneke on the Banks Peninsula is considered wāhi tapu (a sacred place) by Heritage New Zealand.
The house, built in 1924, is owned by an 80-year-old couple, and Moyle told the council about eight months ago that they planned to sell it.
But he said he didn’t hear anything until the property was put up for sale.
“They had a lot of caveats.”
Members of Ōnuku Rūnanga and Akaroa Civic Trust asked the council on Thursday to purchase the property.
Rik Tainui from Ōnuku Rūnanga said the council had the opportunity to chart a new path for future generations.
“We cannot change the past, but we can change the future. We can make sure we don’t make the same mistake again. “
The Red House is built on land that was once part of an important Ngāi Tahu flax trading village of chief Tē Maiharanui, who traded whaling ships from Europe, America, and Sydney in the mid-1820s.
In 1830, Tē Maiharanui boarded a British ship in port and was captured and later killed by Te Rauparaha, who landed at Takapūneke and slaughtered the unsuspecting inhabitants of Ngāi Tahu.
The massacre has a direct link to the British claim to sovereignty over New Zealand.
However, over the years a number of offensive developments have been built in the Takapūneke Reserve, despite the objections of Ōnuku Rūnanga and Ngāi Tahu.
TINA’S LAW / Things
The Akaroa wastewater treatment plant is moving away from Takapūneke, a culturally sensitive site.
A sewage treatment plant was built in 1964, a move that one historian later described as “the latest in modern cultural oppression.”
In 1979 a disused garbage dump was established on the reservation and in 1998/99 the Banks Peninsula District Council planned to subdivide the land behind the Red House into 61 residential sections, a move deemed abhorrent by Ōnuku Rūnanga.
The subdivision plan was eventually abandoned and in 2006 the area was considered a reserve.
The city council also plans to relocate the wastewater treatment plant.
Akaroa Civic Trust Chairman Mike Norris said that Takapūneke offers a unique opportunity to educate current and future generations about the circumstances in which modern New Zealand was founded.
If the property remains privately owned, it could possibly become the site of activities that might not align with the reserve’s cultural and historical significance, he said.
“Continued private ownership of the Red House could delay the orderly and proper development of the Takapūneke Reserve for decades.”
