Papanui RSA sells buildings for $1.8m, before decision to close

Thursday, 30 October 2025

BJ Clark, president of Christchurch’s Papanui RSA, says it is with “great sadness” that he will be leading the closure of the club. (File image)

A $1.8 million property sale failed to plug mounting financial losses at Christchurch’s Papanui RSA, which is set to close next week after more than a century of service.

The organisation sold its Harewood Rd property last year, but financial pressures persisted, with Papanui RSA president BJ Clark saying it “has been struggling over the last year”.

“The property was sold in December last year,” Clark told The Press.

“We had an arrangement with the purchaser that allowed us to continue using the building for 12 months or as negotiated.”

Clark declined to disclose the sale price, but according to a real estate listing, 55 Bellvue Ave sold for $1.8 million on December 16.

The large property sits behind shops at the northern end of Papanui Rd and the southern end of Harewood Rd.

Clark said selling the building was not enough to save the Papanui branch, but any remaining funds would go into a trust account “to ensure that we support the veterans and that's why the RSA was formed many years ago to support veterans’ health”.

Papanui RSA sold its Harewood Rd property December. The Harewood Rd property has a commercial zoning.

The branch would settle its finances, ensure staff and creditors were paid, and explore options with Christchurch RSA about a potential combined future, he said.

Clark said the closure was the result of “very difficult trading conditions” over the last year, and the RSA, established in 1923, had long provided “a safe and comfortable venue for veterans and their families and associates to meet”.

The club’s executive and members tried to turn things around, but “it became too difficult to continue trading, and continuing losses just wasn’t fiscally responsible”, said Clark, who has been Papanui RSA’s president since September.

“I was part of the group who purchased the building and we renovated it ourselves to what it is today. It was 1992 that we originally opened it at the current location.

“And it’s with great sadness that I’m going to be the one leading the closure of it.”

Veterans are applauded during a commemoration ceremony by Canterbury members of the Korea Veterans Association to mark the 60th anniversary of the cease fire in the Korean War, held at the Papanui RSA. (File photo)

The club’s most recently filed financial statements, for the year to June 2024, show a $125,000 loss - which came on the back of a six-figure loss the previous year.

Total income rose to about $150,000 from $100,000, while expenses remained largely unchanged at $270,000.

The year before (2022-23), the club reported a loss of $170,000 after expenses rose $75,000. That followed a $53,000 deficit in 2021-22.

The Papanui RSA, established in 1923, will close on November 8.

The closure follows Christchurch Memorial RSA in the central city having to sell its Armagh St headquarters when its restaurant business, Trenches, collapsed after amassing large debts.

Christchurch Memorial RSA then moved its meetings and social events to the Richmond Club.

Royal New Zealand RSA president Sir Wayne ‘Buck’ Shelford said in December 2024 that many of the country’s remaining 186 RSAs were struggling financially, with declining membership and ongoing deficits leaving some “about ready to fold”.

Papanui RSA’s finances by the numbers

The club’s income came from bar and food sales, subscriptions, gaming machines, and rent.

Revenue from trading activities was mixed. Bar sales made $25,000 in the year to June 2024, down from $28,000 the previous year, while gaming machines generated nearly $5000 compared with nearly $6000 in 2022-23.

The canteen posted a $7500 surplus after a $26,000 loss in 2023.

The RSA’s assets fell to just over $700,000 from about $800,000, while liabilities dropped to $220,000 from $450,000.

Trust funds closed the year at $490,000.

Proceeds from Anzac Day poppy sales and other donations were spent on welfare for current and past service people and their families.

The Poppy Trust Fund reported a deficit of $1700, down from a $31,000 surplus in 2023. But Clark said the trust fund’s role was “not to grow money, but to collect and then distribute it to veterans and their families for needs such as medical bills and optometry”.

A deficit, he added, simply showed the fund was doing its job: “They were paid out to veterans, and that’s exactly what the fund is for.”

Tauranga RSA is set to merge with Mt Maunganui at the latter’s site in February

Papanui RSA will close on November 8, with a Last Post service to mark the occasion at 5pm.