The Wellington City Council Heritage Inventory notes the women's rest room was under the dome at the north end with wash areas and toilets in the body of the building, while the men's toilets occupied the south end. The building was used as public toilets until it was closed in January 1964. It was reopened a few months later following much protest, but it lasted only another two years before finally closing as toilets in 1966, when it was offered for lease for other uses. Downstage Theatre, located across the road, used it for storage and workshops from 1971 until 1977. Then it was used for a time as an art gallery and restaurant. At some time in its post-toilet life (prior to 1997) a window has been added to the south end.
Author David McGill mentions some colourful incidents in its history – a ‘pray-in’ student capping stunt in 1953 for example. There was also a capping stunt in 1967 as a photograph in the Alexander Turnbull Library collection shows. When it closed in 1966, there were many suggestions for alternative uses for the building – converting it into a ‘begonia house, a hanging gardens, an SPCA centre, wine shop, restaurant, gramophone museum, love shop, amusement parlour, historical display and art gallery, Girl Guide headquarters, you name it.’ A Nevile Lodge cartoon of a decade later was drawn at the time Downstage had vacated and the council was seeking new tenants for the building. It has housed the Taj Mahal restaurant, The Dome Bar (a queer bar), Traffic Wine Bar, Scorpio’s Welsh Restaurant and is currently occupied by the Welsh Dragon Bar. It was a popular beat (a sex on site venue) for men interested in men when it was open as a public toilet. When the building was undergoing renovation for the Dome, graffiti was found under numerous layers of paint that pointed to its historical use as a beat.
The ‘Taj Mahal’ has become a Wellington city landmark, not only for its distinctive design of rounded ends and roof domes but also for the many uses that it has seen (or have been proposed) since it closed as public toilets in 1966. It has social, historical, aesthetic and architectural significance.
List Entry Information
Status
Listed
List Entry Status
Historic Place Category 2
Access
Private/No Public Access
List Number
1434
Date Entered
25th November 1982
Date of Effect
25th November 1982
City/District Council
Wellington City
Region
Wellington Region
Extent of List Entry
Extent includes part of the land described as Legal Road as coloured red on SO 18457 (NZ Gazette 1927, p. 3270; D WN67/266), Wellington Land District, and the building known as 'Taj Mahal' Public Toilets (Former) thereon.
Legal description
Legal Road as coloured red on SO 18457 (NZ Gazette 1927, p. 3270; D WN67/266), Wellington Land District
Location Description
Located on the road median between Cambridge and Kent Terraces (north end), Wellington
Status
Listed
List Entry Status
Historic Place Category 2
Access
Private/No Public Access
List Number
1434
Date Entered
25th November 1982
Date of Effect
25th November 1982
City/District Council
Wellington City
Region
Wellington Region
Extent of List Entry
Extent includes part of the land described as Legal Road as coloured red on SO 18457 (NZ Gazette 1927, p. 3270; D WN67/266), Wellington Land District, and the building known as 'Taj Mahal' Public Toilets (Former) thereon.
Legal description
Legal Road as coloured red on SO 18457 (NZ Gazette 1927, p. 3270; D WN67/266), Wellington Land District
Location Description
Located on the road median between Cambridge and Kent Terraces (north end), Wellington
Construction Professional
Name
Fletcher Construction Company
Type
Builder
Biography
Fletcher Construction Company was founded by Scottish-born James Fletcher (1886 - 1974), the son of a builder. Six months after his arrival in Dunedin in 1908, Fletcher formed a house-building partnership with Bert Morris. They soon moved into larger-scale construction work, building the St Kilda Town Hall (1911), and the main dormitory block and Ross Chapel at Knox College (1912). Fletcher's brothers, William, Andrew and John joined the business in 1911, which then became known as Fletcher Brothers. A branch was opened in Invercargill. While holidaying in Auckland in 1916, James tendered for the construction of the the Auckland City Markets. By 1919 the company, then known as Fletcher Construction, was firmly established in Auckland and Wellington. Notable landmarks constructed by the company during the Depression included the Auckland University College Arts Building (completed 1926); Landmark House (the former Auckland Electric Power Board Building, 1927); Auckland Civic Theatre (1929); the Chateau Tongariro (1929); and the Dominion Museum, Wellington (1934). Prior to the election of the first Labour Government, Fletcher (a Reform supporter) had advised the Labour Party on housing policy as hbe believed in large-scale planning and in the inter-dependence of government and business. However, he declined an approach by Prime Minister Michael Joseph Savage in December 1935 to sell the company to the government, when the latter wanted to ensure the large-scale production of rental state housing. Although Fletchers ultimately went on to build many of New Zealand's state houses, for several years Residential Construction Ltd (the subsidiary established to undertake their construction) sustained heavy financial losses. Fletcher Construction became a public company, Fletcher Holdings, in 1940. Already Fletchers' interests were wide ranging: brickyards, engineering shops, joinery factories, marble quarries, structural steel plants and other enterprises had been added the original construction firm. Further expansion could only be undertaken with outside capital. During the Second World War James Fletcher, having retired as chairman of Fletcher Holdings, was seconded to the newly created position of Commissioner of State Construction which he held during 1942 and 1943. Directly responsible to Prime Minister Peter Fraser, Fletcher had almost complete control over the deployment of workers and resources. He also became the Commissioner of the Ministry of Works, set up in 1943, a position he held until December 1945. In 1981 Fletcher Holdings; Tasman Pulp and Paper; and Challenge Corporation amalgamated to form Fletcher Challenge Ltd, at that time New Zealand's largest company. Williamson Construction Company - main contract
Name
WCC Engineers Dept.
Type
Engineer
Biography
No biography is currently available for this construction professional
Construction Details
Start Year
1928
Finish Year
1929
Type
Original Construction
Start Year
1966
Type
Other
Description
Ceased use as a public toilet
Type
Modification
Description
Conversion to subsequent uses
Period
Post-1966
Construction Materials
Concrete
Construction Professional
Name
Fletcher Construction Company
Type
Builder
Biography
Fletcher Construction Company was founded by Scottish-born James Fletcher (1886 - 1974), the son of a builder. Six months after his arrival in Dunedin in 1908, Fletcher formed a house-building partnership with Bert Morris. They soon moved into larger-scale construction work, building the St Kilda Town Hall (1911), and the main dormitory block and Ross Chapel at Knox College (1912). Fletcher's brothers, William, Andrew and John joined the business in 1911, which then became known as Fletcher Brothers. A branch was opened in Invercargill. While holidaying in Auckland in 1916, James tendered for the construction of the the Auckland City Markets. By 1919 the company, then known as Fletcher Construction, was firmly established in Auckland and Wellington. Notable landmarks constructed by the company during the Depression included the Auckland University College Arts Building (completed 1926); Landmark House (the former Auckland Electric Power Board Building, 1927); Auckland Civic Theatre (1929); the Chateau Tongariro (1929); and the Dominion Museum, Wellington (1934). Prior to the election of the first Labour Government, Fletcher (a Reform supporter) had advised the Labour Party on housing policy as hbe believed in large-scale planning and in the inter-dependence of government and business. However, he declined an approach by Prime Minister Michael Joseph Savage in December 1935 to sell the company to the government, when the latter wanted to ensure the large-scale production of rental state housing. Although Fletchers ultimately went on to build many of New Zealand's state houses, for several years Residential Construction Ltd (the subsidiary established to undertake their construction) sustained heavy financial losses. Fletcher Construction became a public company, Fletcher Holdings, in 1940. Already Fletchers' interests were wide ranging: brickyards, engineering shops, joinery factories, marble quarries, structural steel plants and other enterprises had been added the original construction firm. Further expansion could only be undertaken with outside capital. During the Second World War James Fletcher, having retired as chairman of Fletcher Holdings, was seconded to the newly created position of Commissioner of State Construction which he held during 1942 and 1943. Directly responsible to Prime Minister Peter Fraser, Fletcher had almost complete control over the deployment of workers and resources. He also became the Commissioner of the Ministry of Works, set up in 1943, a position he held until December 1945. In 1981 Fletcher Holdings; Tasman Pulp and Paper; and Challenge Corporation amalgamated to form Fletcher Challenge Ltd, at that time New Zealand's largest company. Williamson Construction Company - main contract
Name
WCC Engineers Dept.
Type
Engineer
Biography
No biography is currently available for this construction professional
Construction Details
Start Year
1928
Finish Year
1929
Type
Original Construction
Start Year
1966
Type
Other
Description
Ceased use as a public toilet
Type
Modification
Description
Conversion to subsequent uses
Period
Post-1966
Construction Materials
Concrete
Historical and Associated Iwi / Hapū / Whānau
Completion Date
19th November 2012
Report Written By
Vivienne Morrell
Information Sources
Evening Post
Evening Post, 27 Jun 1919, p.7.
McGill, 1980
David McGill and Grant Tilly, In Praise of Older Buildings, Auckland, Methuen, 1980
Other Information
This place was identified as significant under previous legislation with different information requirements. It remains significant under the current legislation. There is opportunity under our legislation and policies to add to this information. Further information about this place may be available from the Central Regional Office of Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga. A fully referenced proposal summary report is available from the Central Region office of NZHPT. 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.
Historical and Associated Iwi / Hapū / Whānau
Completion Date
19th November 2012
Report Written By
Vivienne Morrell
Information Sources
Evening Post
Evening Post, 27 Jun 1919, p.7.
McGill, 1980
David McGill and Grant Tilly, In Praise of Older Buildings, Auckland, Methuen, 1980
Other Information
This place was identified as significant under previous legislation with different information requirements. It remains significant under the current legislation. There is opportunity under our legislation and policies to add to this information. Further information about this place may be available from the Central Regional Office of Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga. A fully referenced proposal summary report is available from the Central Region office of NZHPT. 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.
Current Usages
Uses: Trade
Specific Usage: Pub/bar/tavern/public hotel
Former Usages
General Usage: Civic Facilities
Specific Usage: Public Lavatory
General Usage: Civic Facilities
Specific Usage: Rest rooms
General Usage: Trade
Specific Usage: Restaurant/cafe/tearoom
General Usage: Trade
Specific Usage: Retail and Commercial - other
General Usage: Trade
Specific Usage: Warehouse/storage area
Themes
Rainbow List
Current Usages
Uses: Trade
Specific Usage: Pub/bar/tavern/public hotel
Former Usages
General Usage: Civic Facilities
Specific Usage: Public Lavatory
General Usage: Civic Facilities
Specific Usage: Rest rooms
General Usage: Trade
Specific Usage: Restaurant/cafe/tearoom
General Usage: Trade
Specific Usage: Retail and Commercial - other
General Usage: Trade
Specific Usage: Warehouse/storage area
Themes
Rainbow List
Location
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