Strong heritage saves Wood Brothers’ Mill

The Wood Brothers’ Mill is firmly back in the frame to take the title of Christchurch’s most significant large-scale former industrial heritage site.

A mainstay of milling in Addington from 1886, the site is being reborn as a combination of office and hospitality space and grain store apartments.

Designed by architect J.C. Maddison for the Wood brothers, the four-storey mill building sits adjacent to a two-storey grain store in Wise Street.

The revitalised Wood Brothers’ Mill in Addington.

Initially steam-powered, the six-bay roller mill was serviced by the nearby rail lines, which delivered Canterbury-grown grains to produce flour and other cereal-based foodstuffs for export and local consumption.

By the mid-1930s, the Addington mill produced the largest output in the South Island – 33 sacks of flour per hour. The mill ceased production in the early 1970s before undergoing several changes to accommodate different uses.

Supported by a $900,000 Christchurch City Council heritage grant, the earthquake-damaged “highly significant” buildings have now undergone an extensive $7.6 million heritage-focused transformation, overseen by the site’s developer, Christchurch structural engineer Michael King.

The mill site includes an open space fronting onto Wise Street. This was originally a bowling green for the mill workers. A conservation covenant accompanying the Council grant protects this open space from development, and underpins the landmark value of the buildings.

Both buildings are rare examples of large-scale early industrial buildings in Canterbury.

The Wood Brothers’ Mill early last century.

Council Heritage Team Leader Brendan Smyth says both the grain store and the mill building are “very resilient structures, with massive brick walls and sizeable timber structural members designed to take huge loads”.

“The mill building was also designed to withstand substantial vibration from the milling process,” Mr Smyth says.

“These two factors seem to have enabled the buildings to survive the earthquakes without irreparable damage. Basically, the strength and stability of Maddison’s design reflects the engineering needs of the structure.”

The mill’s exterior walls are triple to seven-brick thick and the central interior columns are crafted from Australian ironwood. Among the other features are thick Oregon beams and kauri flooring.