One of Ōamaru’s most recognisable buildings is receiving some TLC to ensure it is still going strong in another 100 years.

The Ōamaru Opera House is a prominent piece of Waitaki architecture and is receiving some upgrades from the inside out to maintain this valuable piece of local history.

Officially opened 116 years ago in 1907, the building is largely in its original condition. 

It was previously restored in 2009, and in 2010 won the Southern Architecture Awards and the 2011 NZIA Heritage Award for Heritage Conservation.

Waitaki District Council property manager Grant Rhodes said the Opera House was a significant piece of not just local, but national architecture.

“Maintaining this beautiful building is so important both locally and on a national scale.”

Before the “beautification” works could commence, the council property team needed to conduct some structural repairs to ensure the integrity of the timber structure supporting the dome.

This included the removal of hundreds of kilograms of pigeon droppings and debris from the ceiling, engineering and designing a catwalk, and increasing timber support within the ceiling area.

Given the specialist nature of the work required, Carolina Izzo, who had overseen the restoration of the Isaac Theatre after the Christchurch earthquakes, was appointed conservator after being recommended by former Isaac Theatre chief executive, the late Neil Cox.

Carolina was also involved with the renovation of Forrester Gallery’s ornate main gallery ceiling a few years ago.

Opera House director Frances McElhinney said Carolina’s “wealth of experience” was critical to retaining the beauty of the structure.

“We’re thrilled to have Carolina Izzo and her team working on the interior of the dome. This work includes restoring the dome to the original colours and gold leaf work.”

Grant said in November 2019, Carolina and one of her staff assessed the condition of the dome to ascertain what would be required to repair and restore it.

Throughout the last few years, repair work had been taking place and the last stage of the dome restoration project was now being completed.

The Ōamaru Opera House is undergoing maintenance work to keep it operational going forward. PHOTO: Ashley Smyth

Scaffolding went up in the interior in December with Carolina and her team starting work in early January.

In February, scaffolding went up on the south side of the Opera House for the start of exterior maintenance work.

Council projects and assets officer Toby Armour said the southeast exterior of the building had a coating applied to the Ōamaru stone, while the rest was “raw”. 

“It is time for some maintenance to the coating in this area which helps seal up and protect the stone.”

Double-pivot sash windows also needed to be removed and repaired, which would be done in-house, after the council purchased a second-hand specialist combination saw, Toby said. 

“The irony of doing heritage work with heritage gear is not lost on us. We love to recycle and reduce where we can, and it’s fantastic to apply this to the tools we use too.”