Mountaineer unveiled - press release

2 Apr 2009 -

The big ‘reveal’ for iconic Mountaineer building

An iconic Queenstown building originally designed and built in the late 1880’s is showing off its new ‘face’ this week. Hessian screens dressing the Mountaineer building in the heart of the resort town are coming down to reveal its restored historic façade on Rees and Beech streets.

Originally designed by architect Frederick W Burwell in 1884, the new-look Mountaineer has been four years in development by Queenstown-based company Westwood Group Holdings Ltd, which owns the building.

The new building, designed by Walker Architects of Auckland, draws on the original historic façades but gives them a very modern ‘twist’. Walker Architects describes it as a “modern response” to the historic building that is not a replica, but a natural progression of the concept set in place 100 years ago.

Ground floor window sizes have been increased to give the building a light and airy look and feel, while new vertical columns support glass and steel sun shades to protect passersby from the elements. Two new floors have been added to the upper level, and a new basement for ground floor retailers.

The historic landmark has been masked since December 2007 by a life-sized pictorial representation, printed on hessian, of how the building will look in its restored state.

Westwood Group Holdings Ltd director Johnny Stevenson said he was delighted to see the protected building restored to its former glory and finally ‘revealed’ to the community.

 “This is a significant milestone in the redevelopment of the Mountaineer and we feel privileged to have added such a quality building to the central Queenstown retail and office environment,” he said.

The company worked closely with builders Rilean Construction and Heritage Architects Oakley Gray to follow a conservation plan throughout the project.

“The building is looking simply stunning, with its very distinctive original window frames on the first floor carefully restored and double glazed, and much of the original stone walls preserved for future generations,” said Mr Stevenson.

“We’re on track to open The Mountaineer in winter 2009 and we’re thrilled with how it’s looking.

“The redevelopment has married the old with the new to deliver what we consider to be one of the finest buildings in New Zealand. It will house a number of prestigious retail outlets and quality office space that we’re sure will make it a ‘must see’ destination.”

Scaffolding on part of the building (Shotover St/Rees St) came down last weekend. Rilean Construction crew took down the hessian sheeting covering the historic part of the building (Beach St/Rees St) today (Thursday April 2), and anticipate that scaffolding will be down within two more days.