12 Boating New Zealand
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F
rom the outside, the old Vos boat shed
is a decaying building covered in rusty
corrugated sheets peppered with holes. But
step inside and you’re instantly transported
back to a rich, colourful era of New Zealand’s
wooden boatbuilding.
The building – owned by the Council’s
development arm Panuku – has been earmarked
for restoration as part of a strategy to preserve
Westhaven’s maritime heritage. It is Auckland’s last
surviving boat shed of many that were dedicated to
wooden boatbuilding.
Rod Marler – Panuku’s director of Design and
Place – says the restoration will take place in two
phases, and that $4.6million has been earmarked
for the first of these. “Stage one begins next year
and focuses on stabilising and repairing the basic
structure. Stage two will tackle the interior and the
slip-way servicing the shed.”
Overall budget for the project is $6.2 million,
and the work will strive to retain as much of the
old structure as possible to retain its feel and
authenticity. Stabilising the building, adds Villy
Kotze – the restoration’s project manager – willsee a steel portal erected over the building for
support and strength.
“We have to remove the asbestos sheeting on
the roof but, like the sides of the building, this will
be replaced with corrugated sheeting treated and
coloured to mimic the shed’s true age.”
The completed project will be a “working asset,”
stresses Marler.
“The idea is to restore not only the building
but also the ‘trade’. This will see the slipway and
shed servicing classic vessels – and there are
plenty of them around the Waitemata harbour.
There will be a skeleton crew to operate the slip,
but a lot of the owners of the old launches like
doing repair and maintenance work themselves.
“We anticipate the boats coming in for a few
days at a time – and where necessary, outside
contractors will come on site to tackle more
specialist jobs. But it’s envisaged that the shed
will become a kind of showcase for traditional
boatbuilding and woodworking skills.”
For the public, he points out, the facility will
offer a fascinating insight into how boats were built
a century ago. “There are lots of period artefacts in
the shed, as well as a few clinker boats dating back
many decades. These will be part of an extensive
and informative exhibit designed to tell visitors
about not only area’s maritime heritage but also
New Zealand’s.”
He adds that the venue will also be hired out
for social functions, all part of the plan to ensure
“it pays its way.”CLASSIC HAUL-0UT
A dilapidated, Westhaven boat shed
built in 1937 is to be restored to
its former glory, serving not only
as a haul-out facility for classic
boats, but also as a themed, marine
heritage tourist attraction.