Kensington Park Grandstand Whangarei- Design by Edward Bartley

Grandstand Interior. Image Prana Art Project for BFA 2017

In April 1902 the Whangarei Agricultural and Pastoral Association resolved to purchase Kensington Park ground as a permanent home 1. A government subsidy of  £500 was received in October 1902. Meanwhile the Association joined forces with the newly formed Whangarei Racing Club. Together they decided to develop the park with upgraded facilities-including a new grandstand. Edward Bartley was appointed as architect for that part of project 2.

Bartley worked over a wide geographical area - from Gisborne northwards. In the cities he was best known for his ASB banks, churches and commercial buildings. In rural areas it was mainly in his role as architect to the Auckland Charitable Aid Board that led to introductions. In Whangarei his donation of plans and supervision to the hospital, along with his Council work and commercial clients in Bank St, meant his bowler hat and dust coat were often seen. He also had strong links with both the racing fraternity and the A&P Association. Those links began in the early 1870's when the NZ Pedigree Stock Association and A&P and Farmer's Associations began to erect permanent buildings in the Auckland region.

The design which was settled on for Whangarei was a barrel roofed grandstand. It was very similar to, though smaller than, the design for Avondale Racing Club where Bartley had been engaged. That stand was opened in February 1902. No doubt members of the Whangarei Racing Club  inspected it at first hand during the 1902 racing season.

Avondale Racing Club Grandstand AWN 22 Sept 1904

There was plenty to be done before the new building could get underway. A new entrance and drive were constructed first. New cattle pens and other show facilities were a top priority. The re-siting of the race course took time to resolve and implement and the unsafe old stands were demolished.

So it was not until September 1903 that Edward Bartley advertised tenders for the Whangarei stand.

NZH 15 Sept 1903

Matters proceeded quickly once a figure was agreed on and the building was finished in a matter of months for £1200.

The side elevation closest to Kensington Park. The associated booths are original. Image BFA 2017

Edward Bartley designed a similar grandstand for the Ohinemuri Racing Club (later the Paeroa Racing Club) at Paeroa in 1904. That one no longer survives. It burned down in the 1980's after years of neglect.

 Kensington Park grandstand nearly met the same fate. Fortunately it was relocated and restored for  the Northland Hockey Association. A more recent renovation in 2009 brought the building up to modern fire safety standards - modifications Edward Bartley would certainly approve of. His many designs for public amenities and institutions were characterised by the latest advances in fire safety, a personal as well as professional interest of his.

AWN 19 Oct 1922

This is a comfortable grandstand for viewing, even by modern standards. The barrel roof acts as an early form of climate control. A careful calculation of the angle and depth for the overhanging verandah means that no one is ever looking directly into the sun. The worst of mid-summer glare is shielded from spectator's eyes. Kauri and steel posts are spaced well apart, considering their load. This allows for good visibility and flow of 'traffic' entering and leaving the stand.
These days one is more at risk from a flying hockey ball than a pressing crush of racegoers.
The grandstand is now situated on the Northland Hockey Association grounds, Park Ave Whangarei -on the outskirts of Kensington Park.

The building is listed Category 1 with the Historic Places Trust.3

1. AS19020424
2. AS19020920, NZ19020911
3. Refer http://www.heritage.org.nz/the-list/details/3829

Whangarei Public Library, Reading Rooms and Municipal Chambers Designed by Edward Bartley

The new Municipal Building & Pulblic Library designed by Edward Bartley SCCSC-510 1903

In 1902 the state of the Post Office and Council offices on Bank St were under discussion in Whangarei. The make-shift appearance of these public premises was felt to be inconsistent with the town's progress, as well as being unsatisfactory for their intended purpose. The County Council offices were still the original premises erected in 1878.[i]

Northern Advocate 19 June 1902

The town was more than fifty years old. Facilities needed to be improved. Yet the Borough Council had several other calls on its resources.

The urgent need for drainage in the town would have to be met from borrowed funds. 

Young people had no means to self improvement without access to library or reading room facilities; fire service and fire fighting equipment required purpose built premises; postal services, county and borough offices were all inadequately housed.

At first it was suggested that all of these accommodation issues could be resolved in a single stroke, by a brick building serving as headquarters for all these borough services.[ii] That proposal was both expensive and unrealistic for the size of the Bank St site.  It would require further borrowing for land purchase and construction.

There was another snag. County Council owned the land. Any development would have to wait until the legalities of ownership of any improvements were ironed out.

Northern Advocate 6 September 1902

At the public meeting held on 8 September the views of the ratepayers were clearly expressed. The Mayor’s proposal for a 4 storey building, housing all services, had no support.

The gathering heard from other councillors. Endowment money was available from the Cummings estate, specifically set aside for library facilities.

There was no objection to dual- use office facilities housing both county and borough councils.

The meeting was virtually unanimous in its support for premises jointly owned and operated, provided library and reading room were included.[iii]

Northern Advocate 13 September 1902

In October 1902 Counsellors inspected plans by Edward Bartley. [iv]There were obvious financial restrictions uppermost in their minds. Bartley’s plans satisfied those by limiting the building to two stories, in brick construction as specified.

After some discussion it was agreed that the ground floor position of the library and reading room was the best. Council meeting rooms and offices were to occupy the first floor.

Affairs moved quickly after that point. The plans were signed off and tenders called for by the end of October.[v]

NZ Herald 27 October 1902

The Municipal Offices and Public Library were completed and opened in July 1903.

The building as it is today Image BFA 2014

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[i] Northern Advocate 11 September 1902

[ii] Ibid 28 July 1902 report of Borough Council Meeting

[iii] Ibid 11 September 1902

[iv] Ibid 10 October 1902

[v] NZ Herald 27 October 1902

Edward Bartley - Whangarei Hospital and Nurses Home

In the late 1880’s Whangarei had no general hospital. The district had a sparse and widespread population.

People were unwilling to seek medical attention for illness because if they needed hospital care they would be sent to Auckland. Travelling times and rough conditions could prove fatal- taking people away from their family and homes. Sending patients away was expensive for the local council too. They were billed the full cost of transport and care for ailing residents - £800 in 1899.

A cottage home for aged poor people opened in February 1900. Almost immediately there was talk of extending the cottage to make a hospital ward.

About this time the Auckland based architect Edward Bartley was in Whangarei, consulting with a client over a commercial building design for Bank St. He had considerable experience in the design of medical facilities, as he was architect to the Auckland District Hospital and Charitable Aid board.

Mr Bartley met the local MP Mr Thompson and inspected the Old People’s Home. He advised that an add-on there was not a satisfactory solution in the long term.

Urging the MP to approach the Government for funding, Bartley offered to design a suitable complex free of charge. He suggested a nurses’ home and boiler house be included in their plans.

The need was so urgent that he also offered to supervise the construction for free and donate to the subscription fund immediately.

This generosity and enthusiasm galvanised the district into action.

A ladies committee took charge of fund raising. Council applied for- and eventually got- a Government subsidy of thirty shillings for every pound raised toward the project, up to a £1000 limit. Mr Keyte put in the successful tender for the construction and building got underway.

When the complex opened in April 1901, the Government Inspector of Hospitals, Dr McGregor, was quoted in The Northern Advocate, calling it “the best hospital, considering the cost, in New Zealand.”

The Hospital was originally designed for a population of 10,000 people. At the time it was proposed, critics said it was a white elephant that would take 10 years to fill. In fact, it was an asset right from the start, saving lives across the region. 

Edward Bartley in Whangarei, Northland - Bentley's Pharmacy

Image from Postcard collection, Bartley Family Archive

Edward Bartley was at the peak of his career in the late 1890’s and into the first decade of the Twentieth century.

In early 1899 he came to Whangarei where he was engaged for Mr Bentley, whose premises had been one of several destroyed in a catastrophic fire. 

NZHerald 30 Jan 1899

Edward Bartley was experienced as an insurance assessor as well as an architect. Both the land owner, Mr Mann and Mr Bentley were fully insured. A full clearance was ordered and a new design drawn up for the site in Bank St, next to the BNZ building. In discussion with his client, another fire resistant brick building was decided upon. 

Tenders were called within days of the fire.

Northern Advocate 28 January 1899

 There was keen interest from both Auckland and Northland builders. Building began promptly in March of that year.

Northern Advocate 25 February 1899

Bentley was a pharmacist and stationer. The two storey building which opened in September 1899 showed a sophisticated frontage to Bank St. The detailing in Portland cement and plate glass windows were complemented by interior fittings which reflected Bartley’s long experience in designing for retail pharmacies in Queen St, Auckland.

Designing in the Classical idiom for which he was well known, Bartley placed three arches above the verandah line, with fluted columns delineating the outer edges of the facade.

Premises were let to a dental practice on the upper floor, which were reached by a separate entrance and ornamented stairway from Bank St. Additional space on the ground floor was occupied by medical practitioners, accessed through the pharmacy.

In total, the enterprise offered Whangarei residents a modern, purpose-built medical centre.

Bank St, image from Postcard collection Bartley Family Archive

New Base for Bartley Archive

BARTLEY FAMILY ARCHIVE

Meg Bartley, Archivist

 homestead51@gmail.com

During May our household moved to Northland. 

Bartley Archive is now based in the Whangarei District. The project is a volunteer one, begun in 1998, providing research assistance to private individuals and public organisations.

While this move was a lifestyle choice, it provides a good opportunity to increase our knowledge of the Bartley connections to the region.

Family members settled in Silverdale, Kaipara, Whananaki and other areas of the mid-north, with connections extending to the Bay of Islands.

Donations to the archive of images, genealogical data and ephemera are gratefully received, on the understanding that materials will be shared with other researchers.