SCOPE Group contractors demolish the Te Kūiti railway sheds.
CARVER Garry Paki takes a dim view of the hurried destruction of the former goods shed at Te Kūiti railway station, saying it is an irreplaceable resource that will be largely going to the tip. The wood is heart rimu, from ancient trees of a size that are not seen today, but were still available in the 1870s when the goods shed was built. “I’m confounded how they can actually get rid of that building, because it’s so old,” he said. “My cousin and I have extracted a window out of it and on the bottom of the window it’s got ‘joinery 1872’,” Garry said. “I’m not sure when it was originally built. Apparently they were made in Whanganui and transported up by train. “The houses down Te Kumi were pre-built in Frankton and brought down in railway wagons the same way.” The goods shed being demolished has some really ancient timber in it, Gary said. “I’m pretty sure there’s over a million dollars worth of timber in there, but what I don’t extract out of there, they are going to throw away,” he said. “They were just going to smash it to bits and level the place so they could make room for car parks for their 150th celebration on December 4. “So it’s a big rush to get rid of that building and make carparks where it stands. “That wood’s priceless. I’m a carver. I place big value on wood, especially ancient wood. “To me that wood is sacred, it comes from a time gone by. “To me it’s like a dinosaur, and I wants as many of those dinosaur bones as I can get my hands on. “I don’t want it trashed and thrown in the rubbish dump as if it was a worthless piece of wood, because it’s not, they are treasures. “If they were real dinosaur bones belonging to a dinosaur, they wouldn’t be doing that. “But they can’t see that it is actually a dinosaur, of a type.” “I’m really disappointed with the tribe. To me they should have scaffolded it and disassembled it piece by piece.” King Country News understands title to the land was only handed over with the Maniapoto settlement passed in Parliament in September.
