Concert-goers and lovers of the theatre, both old and young, will be relieved that the promised restoration of the historic St James Theatre on Queen Street in Auckland is underway, with the survey of the existing areas and assessment of the scope of works currently being carried out. The project, which emerged onto the drawing board 12 years ago in 2003, has had plenty of changes and several owners along the way.

Initially opened in 1928, the theatre has been closed since 2007 as a result of a fire in a neighbouring building.

Happily, current owner Relianz Holdings recognised the signifiance and value of the St James when they bought the site in October 2014 and confirmed it would restore the theatre, including the heritage-listed bell tower. 

Alongside the theatre, the St James Suites, a 40-story residential tower designed by architect Paul Brown, a 3,000m² retail precinct and 195 car park spaces will be constructed by Elemental Construction Solutions (ECS). Soft demolition of the current cinema complex that the apartment tower will be built upon is already underway, with hard demolition planned to commence in three to five months time.

Work is already in progress in the theatre itself, with the lobby now boasting a café and the ground floor open to public. At the NZIOB Northern Chapter conference held in the St James foyer on 18 June, ECS project manager and quantity surveyor Mike Gibbon stated that unlike previous plans there was no expansion for the theatre planned, with the emphasis instead on restoring and upgrading. 

Gibbon commented that the team would work on maintaining original features of the theatre while also making compliance-worthy upgrades. The existing old, dangerous lights will all be upgraded to LEDs, and there will be new fire exits for the theatre and the apartment block. The roof and upper floor will be replaced, and the curved canopy above the main entrance recreated.

Approximate timeframe for the completion of the theatre is within the three-year period, around the same time as the apartment complex is estimated to be finished. Gibbon stated that “regarding this very visible project, which many of the public feel strongly about, the most important thing is that all stakeholders and the public are happy. We want to satisfy as many people as possible.”

An important aspect to getting this historic theatre back on her feet is strengthening and safeguarding against any potential earthquakes. Speaking at the NZIOB conference was also Barry Davidson of Compusoft Engineering, who stated that the St James has high heritage value with no seismic provisions, and is earthquake-prone.

Davidson and his team at Compusoft are working to address various structural issues in this retrofit, which includes strengthening and modifying the building using seismic isolation. The seats in the upper circle will be replaced and non-fixed seats will be installed in the lower circle to ensure space for standing concerts.

Importantly, Relianz Holdings have confirmed that the top of the historic bell-tower will be restored and left free from the planned apartment block, safe-guarding that well-known sight up Queen Street, and allowing the St James the recognition it deserves.