It was a team effort to bring Altavady Barn back to life, farm manager Kate Faulks says.

Kate and her husband Adam took over the running of the 623ha Altavady farm at Awamoko about seven years ago, for dairy grazing and beef. At that stage there were discussions about demolishing the barn, which had seen better days.

“When we first came here, the goal was around farm operations. So the barn definitely wasn't part of that picture, it was actually almost in the way,” Kate says.

But after taking a closer look, she pressed pause on the demo plans.

“I came in and had a look at it, and it just had all the original floors and things. It looked in a state, but you could see it had potential.”

North Otago man Ted Aubrey obtained Altavady farm by ballot after World War One, and was behind the planting of the prominent ALTAVADY hedge on the Awamoko hillside, which the Faulks regenerated in 2021.

When Kate and Adam took over the farm in 2018, they kept in touch with former owners, Henry and Jude Aubrey, and learned about the barn’s history as a community hub, and party venue.

“I was like, let's just leave it. It might happen again.”

Before... Altavady Barn as it was when the Faulks took over the farm. Photo: Supplied

The couple, who have five children ranging in age from one to nine, didn’t touch the barn for more than five years, but once they had farming operations under control, the conversation turned to diversification.

They looked at the resources they had available - a worker of theirs at the time was a qualified builder, there is also a roofer and electrician in the family, and Kate’s father Simon is a handy joiner - restoring the barn seemed a no-brainer.

“So a lot of it was done pretty much in-house . . . and so we saw it as a relatively good opportunity to get it done cheaply and just see what we can make of it.”

They tried to source used corrugated iron sheets to replace the old cladding, but it was going to cost just as much as new, so that’s what they went with.

The windows have all been replaced, along with the doors.

“They were warped and all ruined and Dad made [the new ones] in his workshop,” Kate says. “So they're all macrocarpa.”

All the old door hinges were cleaned up and bent back into shape, except for one set.

Kate and Adam contemplating the task ahead. Photo: Supplied

“I was short two hinges, so Apex Engineering cut me some. It was great.” 

The restoration took about 18 months.

“You know, we had to still run the farm and then chip away at this as well.”

Progress was sped up by the impending wedding of Adam’s sister last December, and it was good to have the deadline to work to, Kate says.

Restoring the heart rimu floors was the biggest undertaking, and a lot of old floorboards had to be removed.

“And then it got replaced with macrocarpa, because we couldn't get the rimu. But it's kind of cool because when we were doing it, you could really tell where we've done the patch work . . . You can see the old barn and the new life we've added to it.”

Water damage had also warped some of the wood, so it had to be professionally sanded back, before being sealed and polished. 

The Aubreys told the Faulks’ they thought the barn was built between 1925-30, so it is close to 100 years old.

A bird's eye view of the completed renovation. Photo: Supplied

“It's built on lots of stone piles, because originally it was to store chaff bags. But then they said it really quickly just got used for parties.”

Kate says she is always talking to people who have memories of being at the barn.

“It's amazing . . . people I talk to in the shops, my accountant, people like the lawyers, everyone's got a story where they used to come up here for barn dances and stuff, and so I absolutely love that, and it's quite cool to be able to give it another lease on life.”

From 1917 to 1967 New Zealand’s licensed venues had to close by 6pm, and the barn became a “local watering hole”.

“They'd have beer tankers come in,” Kate says.

Barn dances were held with live music and relationships that began at the barn, blossomed into 60-year marriages, she has been told.

While it’s not an official venue for hire, people can get in touch if they have a private special occasion.

Kate and Adam are excited about the prospect of a new generation creating their own stories at the barn.

“We love to be able to welcome people onto the farm, that’s really important to us, because Altavady has got such a strong history - both the farm and the barn.”

The Faulks family (from left): Darcy (7), Sage (4), Kate, Rio (2), Hazel (9), Adam and Ray (1). Photo: Supplied