Napier’s former courthouse, Conservation House, sold to mystery buyer

The “sold” sign has gone up on 150-year-old Napier beachfront landmark and former courthouse Conservation House.

But details of the sale or future plans are not yet available, although Department of Conservation operations manager Grant Bennett says the DoC lease runs out on March 2, space in Hastings St has been secured as temporary offices and the department’s Hawke’s Bay conservancy will move into permanent premises in Wakefield St, in the Onekawa Industrial District, later in the year.

The two-storey wooden building on the corner of Marine Parade and Browning St was built in 1874-75 and served as the Napier Courthouse for 113 years until new halls of justice were opened in Hastings St in 1988.

Crown-owned and land-banked for use in Treaty of Waitangi claim settlement, it has been the front-window of DoC in Hawke’s Bay for more than 30 years, and ownership passed to Napier-based post-settlement governance entity Mana Ahuriri Trust as part of the Ahuriri Hapu Claims Settlement enacted at the end of 2021.

The site was placed on the market three months ago by Trust asset company Mana Ahuriri Holdings Ltd, and independent chair Mike Pohio told Hawke’s Bay Today it is hoped some details will be announced next week.