Bank of New Zealand – Te Aro Branch

• 1912 - 1912
• Building constructed (00053:0:9424)
• 1964 - 1964
• Additions and alterations (00058:348:C14941)
• 1984 - 1984
• Alter and reinstate building - refurbishment and minor strengthening (00058:0:C64205)
• 1989 - 1989
• Office building additions and alterations. Note: Addition of window on the firstfloor of the Cuba Street facade. The window restores the BNZ Chambers to reflect the original drawings by Thomas Turnbull. (00059:361:E19432)
• 1991 - 1991
• Alteration to floors 1 and 2 of the BNZ Chambers, creating store room. (00059:400:E20664)
• 1995 - 1995
• Commercial alterations (00061:137:14429)
• 1996 - 1996
• Disabled toilets (00078:27:23700)
• 1996 - 1996
• Restaurant fitout – Burger King (00061:179:15712)
• 1997 - 1997
• Strengthening (00078:57:28010)
• 1997 - 1998
• Two new floors of apartments added
• 2010 - 2010
• New take away coffee shop and new canopy (00078:3555:215741)

• 1912 - 1994
• Bank of New Zealand
• 1913 - 1913
• Jas Slattery, accountant (Wises 1913)
• 1916 - 1916
• NZ National Provident Fund, Jackson Herbt NZ National Provident Fund, Jackson Herbt (manufacturers agent, the Friendly Society of NZ (Wises 1914)
• 1917 - 1917
• Gordon Cox (bookseller and stationer, NZ National Provident Fund, the Friendly Society of NZ, TEK Burgess (dentist) (Wises)
• c.1930 - c.1939
• The shop was occupied by a hairdresser
• c.1950 - c.1959
• The shop was occupied by a tobacconist
• c.1960 - c.1969
• The shop was used by BNZ as the Assistant Manager’s Office
• c.1960 - c.1979
• The second floor was leased, the majority by Baldwin Heal and Co, and the smaller south west portion by Fouhy (dentist).
• 1990 - 1990
• First floor: Jasmad (later Jasmax) Architects Ltd took out a 12 year lease.
• 1996 - 2012
• Burger King Burger King (ground floor

Not assessed

The former BNZ is a stately neo-Classical building finished in 1913, and is remarkable as much for its excellent use of its corner site, elegant proportions, rich decoration and high street appeal from the parapet down, as it is for the poorly designed roof-top apartment addition above the parapet line. The original BNZ building makes a good use of its corner site with two essentially identical principal façades articulated around a chamfered corner containing the main entrance. The low base is deeply rusticated; above this giant-order fluted Corinthian columns rise two stories to a richly detailed Corinthian cornice with prominent dentils and consoles. At the extreme end of either façade secondary entrances are housed within shallow Doric porticos that are proud of the main line of the façade. The ground floor windows to the double-height banking chamber are arched; the first floor windows are square-headed. Both sets of windows have moulded architraves and keystones. Above the cornice, the second floor forms part of the entablature of the building. It has square-headed windows similar to the first floor and is surmounted by an elaborate parapet which features central triangular pediments to each façade. The modern apartments loom above this. Their poor design, which has little to do with the building they are on, and their poor quality of materials detracts greatly from the high quality of this otherwise magnificent building and of the streetscape as a whole.

The building interior is also notable for its banking chamber, particularly for the wall panelling, floor finishes, decorative plastered ceilings, and for the doors and columns that were left intact when the fittings and furniture were removed in 1994.

The building is sited on a prominent corner at the intersection of Cuba and Manners Streets and is one of three key Cuba Street buildings that are made more prominent by their lack of a verandah. The other two buildings are the former National Bank on the corner of Vivian and Cuba Streets, and the Workingmen’s Club that is now disfigured by a modern steel and glass verandah with little aesthetic or heritage value.

The exterior is clad in rendered brick masonry. The construction is steel framing with reinforced concrete. Concrete beams support the reinforced slab bearing onto stanchions encased in concrete, exposed on interior walls. Internal columns are of steel encased in concrete. The original interior fittings were to be of Sydney cedar.

The steel frame construction technology employed in this building is significant. The technique was advanced for its time, and its use in this building has been described as “state of the art...and to the highest standard”. This gives the structure distinct technical value in a city where the frequency and strength of earthquakes was a serious challenge to building designers.

This building has considerable townscape significance, occupying a prominent corner site at the intersection of Manners Street and Cuba Street. The immediate area has a heterogeneous mix of buildings of different ages, scales, types and styles which assemble to create a varied and interesting streetscape.

The building is flanked to the north by a pair of compact three-storey masonry buildings originally built in 1987: the TG Macarthy building with a largely original façade; and the former Manchester Unity building, with a much altered façade. The two buildings are of the same scale and share a party wall.

On the other side of the street James Smiths and Civic Chambers book-end an important group of early Edwardian buildings.

• Architectural

  Does the item have architectural or artistic value for characteristics that may include its design, style, era, form, scale, materials, colour, texture, patina of age, quality of space, craftsmanship, smells, and sounds?

  Architecturally the building is notable for its excellent use of its corner site, elegant proportions, a richly-ornamented facade designed in the Edwardian Baroque style, and an impressive banking chamber, largely intact. The poorly conceived two storey apartments at roof level detract from the aesthetic value of this fine Edwardian building.

• Group

  Is the item part of a group of buildings, structures, or sites that taken together have coherence because of their age, history, style, scale, materials, or use?

  This building is part of a group of buildings built for the BNZ in Wellington, including: Old BNZ Buildings 1 & 2, 1904 (233-247 Lambton Quay), Old BNZ Building No.3, 1883-84 (98-102 Customhouse Quay), Old BNZ Building No.4, 1903 (29 Hunter Street).

  This building is one of several Edwardian commercial buildings on Cuba Street which makes a strong positive contribution to the Cuba Street Heritage Area.

• Townscape

  Does the item have townscape value for the part it plays in defining a space or street; providing visual interest; its role as a landmark; or the contribution it makes to the character and sense of place of Wellington?

  This distinctive building has high street appeal and makes a strong contribution to Cuba Street. The building has considerable townscape significance, occupying a prominent corner site in what is a major focal point within the city.

• Association

  Is the item associated with an important historic event, theme, pattern, phase, or activity?

  This building is associated with the strong growth and development of Cuba Street during the Edwardian period, which resulted in the building of many fine commercial buildings.

• Association

  Is the item associated with an important person, group, or organisation?

  The Bank of New Zealand Te Aro branch has historic significance as the second oldest surviving BNZ building in Wellington after the former BNZ Head Office buildings. It served as a BNZ branch for over 80 years and played a significant role in the commercial life of Te Aro in that time. The BNZ has been one of New Zealand’s most significant trading banks since its foundation in 1861. The building also has historic value for its association with William Turnbull, a prominent Wellington architect.

• Archaeological

  Does the item have archaeological value for its ability to provide scientific information about past human activity?

  Central City NZAA R27/270. It is known that there has been pre-1900 human activity on the site; hence this site has potential archaeological value.

• Technological

  Does the item have technological value for its innovative or important construction methods or use of materials?

  The steel frame construction technology employed in this building is significant and was advanced for its time. The building has technical value for this.

• Identity/Sense Of Place/Continuity

  Is the item a focus of community, regional, or national identity? Does the item contribute to sense of place or continuity?

  This building is part of a group of Edwardian commercial buildings on Cuba Street which contribute to the sense of place and continuity of the Cuba Street Heritage Area.

• Public Esteem

  Is the item held in high public esteem?

  The building is held in high public esteem and this can be seen by the furore that followed its proposed demolition in the mid-1980s.

• Authentic

  Does the item have authenticity or integrity because it retains significant fabric from the time of its construction or from later periods when important additions or modifications were carried out?

  The façade of this building remains largely intact with a high level of original building fabric, despite modifications and the addition of two modern storeys.

• Representative

  Is the item a good example of the class it represents?

  The building is also strongly representative of the architecture and history found in Cuba Street.

• Importance

  Is the item important for any of the above characteristics at a local, regional, national, or international level?

  This building has local significance as a landmark and for its association with the Bank of New Zealand.

Not assessed

• Cochran, Chris. Turnbull House Conservation Plan. Wellington: Department of Conservation, 1991.
• Gatley, Julia. BNZ Te Aro Branch: Cultural Heritage Assessment. Unpublished report for 79 Manners St, Wellington, 1996.
• “History,” Bank of New Zealand, accessed September 28, 2012,
• Historic Places Trust, “Turnbull, Thomas - Architect”, Professional Biographies, accessed September 25, 2012,
• Historic Places Trust, “Turnbull, William (1868-1914) - Architect”, Professional Biographies, accessed September 25, 2012,
• Kelly, Michael, and Russell Murray. Cuba Street Heritage Area Report. Wellington City Council: Unpublished report, prepared for Plan Change 48, 2006.
• Murphy, Peter. Bank of New Zealand Te Aro Branch: A century of Service 1876-1976. BNZ Archives, 1976.
• Wellington City Council, “79-85 Manners Street, Bank of New Zealand, Te Aro Branch,” Wellington Heritage Building Inventory 2001: Non-Residential Buildings. (Wellington City Council, 2001), MANN 1.
• Wellington City Council Records, “Heritage building - 79 Manners Street - Old BNZ Building, Te Aro Branch”, 1041-06-MAN79, Wellington City Council Records.

• Inventory Report

Not available