The remains of the fire-razed Roxburgh Entertainment Centre will be demolished, the Central Otago District Council has announced.
The centre — home to New Zealand’s oldest cinema — was gutted in a fire last week, leaving little more than the façade of the building standing.
At the time, a hotel and another nearby building were evacuated as smoke billowed from the building on February 6.
The cinema opened on December 11 in 1897 and could seat 258 persons.
Today, Central Otago District Council said an engineering assessment showed the practical work to make the façade safe again would drain a “significant portion” of insurance funds, and cause “ongoing major disruption” to the community.
It also acknowledged any remediation costs would “significantly take away” from the rebuild.
Due to the many unknowns about the state of the façade and substructure, the decision was made to clear the site completely.
Other costs such as roading as a result of diverting traffic from State Highway 8, especially with heavy traffic, was also a factor in the decision, the council said in a post to social media.
“Councillors discussed what the loss of the town hall and entertainment centre meant for the Teviot Valley community.
The facility included the town hall, supper room and 258-seat auditorium and boutique cinema — one of the oldest in the world. (Source: 1News)
“Councillors noted the Millers Flat Hall is on the list of divestment in the upcoming Long-Term Plan and would like the loss of the Roxburgh meeting place to be strongly considered when final options are presented after the consultation closes.”
The building, which also housed the town hall, had received more than $100,000 of upgrades last year, including a new movie theatre sound system and screen.
The destructive fire ripped through the building a month after it “narrowly” avoided serious damage during a fire on January 3.
Fire investigators were still working to determine the cause.
