Why is this place significant?

Why is this place Category 1 / Category 2?

Early history of the site The Hobsonville Peninsula is of significance to Te Kawerau a Maki who occupied the site before European arrival. The area has numerous middens around the coastline which was used for its access to the Waitemata Harbour and sources of food. There were major inlets and water sources which were important to the iwi/hapū that occupied the area during fishing and food gathering expeditions. The lands were suitable for the planting of kumara. Across the harbour channels, to the east and north were the permanent kāinga and pā. The Crown purchased the peninsula from Tairua and Tinana of Ngāti Whatua in 1853. The RNZAF Institute Building is situated within the former RNZAF Air Base on Hobsonville Point. The site formed part of Allotment 12 Waipareira Parish for which the Crown grant was issued to David Bruce. Bruce was a Presbyterian minister associated with St Andrews Church on Alten Road, the first Presbyterian Church established in Auckland. In 1891 he subdivided Allotment 12 and the majority of the lots were purchased by two sons of Rice Owen Clark, the founder of the Clark pottery south of Allotment 12 at Limeburners Bay. Rice Owen Clark and his family were the first settlers to move to Hobsonville in 1853. In 1895 Lots 1-6 DP 961 were owned by Henry Clark and Lots 8-13 DP 961 were owned by Rice Owen Clark Junior, expanding the family’s land holding at Hobsonville. Henry Clark farmed his land until 1925 when the lots were purchased by the government for a land and sea base for the newly established New Zealand Permanent Air Force. RNZAF The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) was first established as the New Zealand Permanent Air Force in 1923 as a branch within the military. An air force base was established at Wigram in 1923 and in 1925 the Hobsonville site was chosen for a land and sea base as it was very flat and had frontage onto the Waitemata Harbour. The water access at Hobsonville enabled the NZPAF to use seaplanes intended for naval cooperation. By August 1928 construction was well underway at Hobsonville with a jetty, slipway, hangars, garages, offices and cottages in place by the following year. With the onset of the Great Depression in the early 1930s, government spending was curtailed including on military installations. The NZPAF was renamed the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) in 1934 following assent from the King. In 1936 it was increasingly evident that a war was imminent and improvements and developments in aircrafts led the government to commission the Cochrane Report to advise on organisational changes to update the Air Force. Following this report, the RNZAF was re-established as a separate branch of the military. Cochrane also recommended an expansion of the air force facilities around the country. New bases were constructed at Whenuapai and Ohakea and later at Woodbourne, and the facilities at Wigram and Hobsonville were greatly expanded. Hobsonville’s status was changed to an exclusive military base and it became a Repair and Equipment Depot and Seaplane base. In 1936, to accommodate the required changes to the air base, the government purchased multiple lots to the east of the established air base. This land was owned by Rice Owen Clark Junior until his death when it passed to his widow who subdivided and sold the lots to William McGarvey. Most of the lots were owned by McGarvey at the time of the governments purchase with a few being owned by local businessmen such as James Walter Sinton. With the expansion of the base a new building program was embarked on that included the Institute Building to provide for the social life of the airmen who lived and worked at the base. Royal New Zealand Airforce (RNZAF) Institute Building By definition, an Air Force base is a ‘self-contained community’ which has accommodation for work and domestic purposes, its own power and water reticulation, and recreation facilities. Recreational facilities were, and remain, an integral part of base life, allowing personnel and their families the opportunity to relax and unwind. As the base cinema, the Institute Building at Hobsonville was the first dedicated amenity building on the base and it was called the Institute in the tradition of the British military recreation facilities which were also named Institutes. While the base was being made war-ready, buildings seen to be essential were prioritised due to the ensuing lack of materials and manpower. The Institute had been identified as an essential building by the government as the lack of social facilities was found to be a contributing factor in the high numbers of men taking their discharge from Hobsonville in the 1930s. The Hobsonville Institute Building was designed by Government Architect John Mair and constructed from the same plans as were used for a similar social building at Wigram Airbase (now demolished). It was smaller than the one at Wigram as it was missing one bay. It was also reversed and reoriented for the Auckland site. Institute Buildings are also understood to have been constructed at Woodbourne, Te Rapa, Ohakea and Whenuapai. The Institute Building at Woodbourne fell into disrepair and was replaced by the Delta Lounge in 1996. The Te Rapa base closed in 1992 and the site was cleared as part of The Base shopping centre redevelopment. The Institutes at Ohakea and Whenuapai were part of larger buildings which provided for multiple aspects of life on base. Construction of the Hobsonville Institute building did not start until after the declaration of war in Europe. The successful tender by of £7629 John R Simpson was accepted in September 1939 and the work was reported to have been completed by March 1940. The Institute Building included a hall of 3,300 square feet (306m2) of floor space, a stage, a projection box for the theatre, a canteen, attendant’s quarters, a hairdresser and a shop. The Hobsonville base was used extensively for the construction and testing of military aircraft during the war. The Institute was one of the primary locations for social events on the base during this period. Regular newsreel films were shown in the Institute Building in addition to a wide variety of popular films starring such screen icons as Humphrey Bogart, Merle Oberon and Laurence Olivier. Dances and concerts were regularly held there during the time the base was operational. The most memorable concert was by famed British actor, playwright and composer of popular songs - Noel Coward, who was touring the world entertaining Allied troops. After the original construction of the RNZAF Institute Building, it was found that the provision for ladies’ toilets was not sufficient and impractical for regular use. In 1940 lavatory additions were built on the southern elevation of the building adjoining the dressing rooms. The contract price of Messrs. G. Windsor Allen Limited, Mt. Roskill was £108. Post office facilities were also constructed for personnel at this time and included posting slots, mailbox facilities and a telephone box. This work was overseen by John Mair, Government Architect. The Institute Building was able to accommodate about 140 seated at tables, 200 seated in 'lecture' format, or up to 300 standing for drinks. In 1961 a fan was installed in the projection room of the Institute Building cinema to remove carbon dust generated by the films; and a hand basin and plumbing was installed for the Barber’s Shop. The Institute was also re-roofed and the hipped roof was extended to cover part of the surrounding annex which was originally constructed with a flat roof. This resulted in the windows on the western side of the building to be enclosed by the roof. By 1962 the Hobsonville base was being used less by the air force as the replacement aircraft that were being purchased were land based and water access was no longer a requirement, although a respite came with the purchase of Iroquois and Sioux helicopters. The Institute Building (Former) continued to be used throughout this time. In 2000 the Government announced that Hobsonville was no longer required for defence needs and would progressively be closed. The helicopters were sent to Ohakea, and Hobsonville ceased to be an operational base. The Institute Building, renamed Sunderland Lounge after the seaplanes based at Hobsonville in the 1940s and 1950s, was re-purposed as a community hall available for one-off events and regular bookings. By 2005, the majority of the land had been transferred to Housing New Zealand with a wholly-owned subsidiary, the Hobsonville Land Company being established to develop the former base for residential purposes. In 2014 the Institute Building and the nearby Headquarters Building were selected to be transferred to council for community purposes for the new development and in 2016 the land parcel was surveyed off and vested in Auckland Council.

Current Description Context RNZAF Institute Building (Former) is located at Hobsonville Point, Auckland. Hobsonville Point lies in the north west of Auckland beside the Upper Harbour Highway and is being redeveloped as a residential suburb. It retains some of the original buildings from the RNZAF base and some earlier buildings related to the clay works in the area. Other buildings in the immediate area include the RNZAF Headquarters Building (Former) to the west of the Institute, the Catalina Barracks, Catalina Hangar, Sunderland Avenue houses, Marlborough Crescent houses and Oval, and the Mill House. Recorded archaeological sites at Hobsonville Point include middens around the coastline. The Site The RNZAF Institute Building (Former) site is generally rectangular in plan, and lies on the north side of Hudson Bay Road. It contains a substantial timber building in the centre of the lot with a concrete path leading from the door on the west side to a neighbouring car park. The building is surrounded by grass on the northern, southern and western side of the building with a concrete access way running along the eastern side. Exterior The Institute is a timber framed utilitarian building with weatherboard cladding. The building consists of a rectangular double height hall with a single height annex around the north and west sides of the hall. The 1940 toilet block extends from the south side of the building and the projection room is located above the northern section of the annex on the roof. A corrugated steel hipped roof covers the majority of the building, including the hall and the western section of the annex and the projection room. The northern section of the annex, surrounding the projection room, and the 1940 toilet block have flat roofs. The eastern elevation has a concrete driveway running alongside leading to the adjacent carpark and is the main elevation viewable from the road. It has a number of high windows and two sets of doors. The northern entrance is within a porch which leads into the kitchen. Above the porch is a doorway to the projection room, which is only accessible from the roof. The southern elevation has a stepped solid gable and the western elevation is largely obscured by a number of plants and trees planted around the pathway which leads to the foyer entrance. The ramp entrance to the building is accessible from this side, starting from the northern end and leading to a second entrance to the north of the foyer. The hipped roof of the annex encloses the original windows on the western side of the hall. The northern elevation has three windows as well as a door and there is evidence the positions of the window has been altered since the construction of the building. The 1961 vents on the projection room are located on this side on the wall above the annex. Interior The Institute is comprised of a number of rooms including a foyer, three bathrooms, a bar, a kitchen, a supper room, storage rooms, the main hall, and a projection room. The foyer is located halfway along the annex on the west side of the building and leads to the main hall. The two larger bathrooms are on the south side of the foyer in the annex. The main hall is the largest room in the Institute and has a large parquet dance floor in the centre of the room with carpeted areas on either side. There is an open partition along the west side of the hall allowing for movement of patrons during events where the dance floor is in use. The ceiling has been lowered to different heights and now covers the windows enclosed by the roof on the west side. On the east side the high windows extend from the dado to the lowered ceiling and still retain the original fittings. The room can be partitioned to create smaller spaces for use. The 1940 toilet block opens off the southwest corner of the hall. The tiled bar counter opens off the main hall, with a second bar counter opening to the supper room. The supper room is located in the north end of the hall in the annex beside the kitchen. A service window opens from the kitchen to the main hall and a similar service window opens to the supper room. The projection room is not accessible internally with the only entrance being from the roof.

Information Sources

Other Information

A fully referenced New Zealand Heritage List report is available on request from the Northern Region Office of Heritage New Zealand. Please note that entry on the New Zealand Heritage List/Rarangi Korero identifies only the heritage values of the property concerned, and should not be construed as advice on the state of the property, or as a comment of its soundness or safety, including in regard to earthquake risk, safety in the event of fire, or insanitary conditions.