Another setback for Wellington's national music centre
Monday, 24 June 2024
Yet another setback has impeded progress on plans for Wellington’s national music centre, which was once described as the Lincoln Center of the Southern Hemisphere.
On Monday morning a cloud of uncertainty was again thrown over the project when it was confirmed that two floors of the redeveloped Wellington Central Library, that were earlier this year proposed as a new location for Victoria University’s NZ School of Music, had, in fact, been found to be unsuitable for the school’s requirements.
According to an emailed statement from the university, after extensive investigations, it was found that levels three and four of the redeveloped library had physical constraints with its floor plate and stud height that made the spaces unsuitable.
The finding means it’s back to the drawing board in the search to find a new home for the school ‒ but suitable options in the Civic Square precinct, where the national music centre was supposed to be located ‒ are far and few between.
Despite Monday’s news the three parties involved in the project ‒ the university, the NZ Symphony Orchestra and the Wellington City Council ‒ said they were all firmly committed to the centre’s realisation.
The initial plan was for the national music centre to comprise the redeveloped Town Hall, the quake-prone Michael Fowler Centre, and several floors in a new development to be built by Willis Bond next to the Michael Fowler Centre, which was also to become the permanent home of the orchestra.
The music school was to occupy part of the ground floor and level one of the Willis Bond building. The space was to be fitted out with modern offices, state of the art classrooms, and collaborative spaces for students and musicians.
The orchestra’s administrative staff also planned to shift into the new building, which would contain sound proofed practice and ensemble rehearsal rooms and a performers’ lounge.
The redeveloped Town Hall, meanwhile, slated to reopen in 2027, will include an auditorium, world class acoustics, a refurbished organ, and other rehearsal, performance and teaching spaces.
The original vision was to have the university’s music school students mingle with NZ Symphony Orchestra musicians in both the Willis Bond building and the Town Hall to supercharge education, community and artistic outcomes. The buildings and the Michael Fowler Centre together were supposed to create a new, world class creative quarter and precinct of musical excellence in the heart of Wellington.
However late last year, in a major u-turn, the orchestra said it was exploring other options for its new home after the university put its involvement with the national music centre project on hold due to its own financial woes.
“This will be our first ever permanent home and, ideally, as close as possible to Wellington Town Hall. We continue, in consultation with [the council] and [the university], on where that new home will be,” former NZSO chief executive Peter Biggs said. “Ideally,” he added, the orchestra would share a building with the school, “or be close by”.
In February this year, the university recommitted to the project, and announced the Wellington Central Library would be the new home of the music school. But it’s unclear why the new Willis Bond development was ruled out in favour of the now-scrapped library plan.
The university declined to answer questions on Monday about whether it was reconsidering the initial plan and, if not, why the Willis Bond development was no longer an option, or if it was considering sites outside Civic Square. Willis Bond was approached for comment.
A fundraising campaign led by former Wellington mayor Kerry Prendergast had raised $22 million for the project, with another $10m in the pipeline, as of earlier this year.