Inner-city blight not fit for human habitation

Monday, 15 March 2021

The former High Flyers building is subject to a Dangerous Building notice, saying it's unfit for occupation.

A one-time symbol of Edwardian civic pride is continuing to blight inner-city Palmerston North, and police worry that amid the smashed glass and decay the former High Flyers building is a home for undesirable activity.

The former nightclub hot spot has been on a steady decline since High Flyers closed in 2013 and, then in 2017, the final tenant in the building, The Daily sports bar, moved from the property on the corner of The Square and Main St.

Developments on the site have long been planned, but nothing has eventuated and, instead, the building has been left to deteriorate, with windows boarded up or smashed, and the faded paint of days gone by peeling away.

In July 2016, the High Flyers-end of the crumbling edifice was slapped with a Dangerous Building Notice, saying it was unfit for occupation. It remains in place.

The sides and back of the building are an unsightly mix of broken windows and peeling paint.

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The inside of the building is as dilapidated as the outside.

But in the years since it’s become empty, amid the rubble and broken glass, are signs of rough sleepers and constant reports of people inside, defying concern for their safety.

It's also been under the spotlight since the body of Owen Charles Wildbore-Brumby was found in February in Te Marae o Hine-The Square. Stuff was told by a friend of his that items of his clothing were found in the old High Flyers building.

Senior policeman Inspector Ross Grantham has confirmed the site is of concern to the long arm of the law.

“Over time the derelict building has been significantly damaged with graffiti and broken windows,” he said.

Remnants of days gone by remain inside the building.

“The site is known to be used by rough sleepers, and it has also gained the attention of the city’s young people.

“There are concerns of the safety of those who access the site unlawfully, as the building structure has deteriorated.”

Police were often called to the site to remove people, and the wilful damage and debris created a risk to health and safety.

“Rough sleepers are trespassed and young people taken home or moved along.”

Despite the concern of police and council officials, they are powerless to force a large-scale cleanup. The building, the city’s post office from 1906-1988, is protected by heritage rules and cannot be demolished.

The building is owned by Palmerston Post. It’s director and major shareholder Alan Moyes, who lives in a palatial home in the Auckland seaside suburb of St Heliers, declined to comment on Monday.

Correspondence released under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act reveals that as well as the Dangerous Building Notice, the council has issued “notices to fix” for specific concerns, which were resolved.

This included one in 2018 about broken glass on the street front, threatening pedestrians.

“In late 2017, Palmerston North City Council wrote to you advising that there were broken windowpanes in the second storey of the building and [about] the potential danger this posed to members of the public passing by below,” a 2018 email from the council to Palmerston Post said.

“This matter has worsened. [There are] broken windows on three sides of the building and a danger of loose glass falling to the street below.”

Grantham said police had no legal power to force the landlord to provide better security.

“But we have spoken with the High Flyers building owner and he has taken positive action.”

Another city council email, from 2019, reveals the owner of the High Flyers building had plans to develop a boutique hotel, restaurant and bar and retail space.