A historic and picture-postcard Wellington boat shed is for sale

Friday, 1 November 2019

One of the 15 historic and picture-postcard timber boat sheds on Evans Bay in Wellington has been placed on the market for sale.

Boatshed 140 is being sold as part of an estate and has been in the same ownership for 30 years.

Marketing agent Ethan Hourigan of Bayleys Real Estate said the boat sheds rarely came up for sale on the open market and most were sold privately.

Boatshed 140 in Evans Bay is all of 56.16 square metres including the jetty. Interior walls and floors are original.

It would be sold by auction on Thursday December 5 where its value would be determined. He said his colleagues remember one being sold for about $195,000 about four or five years ago.

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A feature in the Life and Leisure magazine about the Evans Bay boat sheds mentioned one selling a few years ago for $210,000. The feature shows that some of the owners use the boat sheds as places to relax and chill and enjoy the sea and scenery and hang out with friends.

Boatshed 140 was just 56.16 square metres and that included the jetty. It contained a consented toilet, shower and kitchenette with hot water cylinder. Interior walls and floor were original. Exterior walls were timber and iron-clad and it had a corrugated iron roof, Hourigan said.

It was perched on timber and concrete piles above the water and located about half way along the picturesque line of boat sheds tucked in close to the old Evans Bay concrete sea wall and the footpath of Evans Bay Parade.

The regional council does not allow people to live in the boat sheds.

Tenure was by way of a licence to occupy through a coastal permit issued by the Greater Wellington Regional Council.

The permit did not allow people to live in the boat sheds.They were originally built to store small boats and boating materials.

Usage, occupation and development were governed by rules in the Regional Coastal Plan. Preferred usage was for water-related activity, Hourigan said.

'The boat sheds can be repaired and maintained, but must not be physically extended or altered externally without first obtaining council consent and building permits.'

The existing coastal permit expired in September 2020 and the seller understood that once renewed it was likely to be valid beyond 2030. It was in the process of being renewed and the licence to occupy was transferable to a new owner, he said.

The boat shed listing was placed on the internet yesterday and 'it's been going off', Hourigan said.

A document, Coastal Historic Heritage of The Wellington Region, complied for the regional council, says they were probably built between the late 1920s and early 1930s after the completion of the seawall.

The boat sheds were similar to other clusters of boat sheds in the wider region- at Onepoto, Titahi Bay and Paremata for instance - but were rare around Wellington's inner harbour and provided a colourful and picturesque edge to a part of Evans Bay.

They were significant for their long existence on the western side of Evans Bay which had been a focus for sailing and boating in Wellington Harbour.

And they had strong architectural value 'for their picturesque and colourful qualities' and were a true example of the 'New Zealand do-it-yourself' culture.