Background

The purpose of the Robert McGregor Heritage Fund is to enable the Art Deco Trust, in co-operation with the Napier City Council to provide financial assistance to owners of heritage buildings and in doing so, continue to support the preservation and restoration of this critical element of the Napier story.

It is proposed, in 2017 that the Art Deco Trust and the Napier City Council each make an annual contribution to the fund, which is distributed in the subsequent 12 months. It has been agreed that the Napier City Council will disestablish their existing fund in order to support a contribution to the newly established Robert McGregor Heritage Fund.

This page outlines the nature of the fund and how it will be administered by the Trust and in conjunction with the Council.

Type of Funding Assistance

A fund award in the form of a grant may be made in part or in full.

There is no minimum assistance with an average grant size of $5000 per project.

Art Deco Trust and the Napier City Council collaborate with the community and foster enduring relationships. The community is encouraged to make use of experts within Council and the Trust that may be able to provide assistance directly. Where a grant is not possible, applicants should act proactively to identify individuals, groups or organisations that are willing to partner in order to add value to their heritage project

Approved use of Funds

The fund is intended to assist with physical works for heritage buildings only. Funds will not be awarded for other objects, natural vegetation, habitats, cultural or archaeological sites. Heritage buildings may have protection under the Historic Places Act or District Plan, and be in private ownership.

At this stage, applications can be made only for minor restoration and painting work. Unfortunately due to the limited funds available, more significant work such as earthquake strengthening, major restoration and adaptive re-purposing cannot be considered. The Art Deco Trust encourages building owners who are undertaking projects that do not fit within the funding criteria, to still consult with us, as we can provide connections to people that can assist in other ways.

Who can Apply

Applications for the fund can be made by individuals, trusts, or companies providing they are the owner of the building concerned or have written authority from the owner to make the application.

Only one application, per year, per building can be made however an approved application does not prohibit an applicant from making future applications the following year or on-going.

The building must be a group 1 or 2 heritage building and/or a building of the Art Deco era within the Art Deco Quarter / Napier Heritage Precinct as defined by the district plan.

Funding Rounds

It is expected that there will be two funding rounds a year, in the months of February and August. While it is anticipated that a portion of the fund will be available for each funding round, this is not guaranteed; one funding round may be oversubscribed and the fund exhausted within the funding year. The amount of funding available for each funding round and within each financial year is variable and not guaranteed.

Who Makes the Funding Decision on Applications

Art Deco Trust has assembled a heritage working group consisting of members of the community and including individuals from a range of backgrounds and expertise relevant to heritage and Art Deco specifically. In addition to providing the on-going heritage work of the Trust, this working group will review applications and make recommendations for final approval by Napier City Council.

What Information is required for an Application

A basic business case must be submitted with your application, including the following

• A brief summary of the project and reasoning as to why a grant should be awarded in line with the criteria of the fund
• A detailed plan for the project including an approved colour scheme (if applicable), timeframe for completion and any third party stakeholders, suppliers or contractors
• A letter of support from Heritage NZ for any work other than painting
• Obtained necessary building and resource consents (if applicable)

Criteria

All applications will be considered on their own merits and on a case by case basis. The criteria is made up of a points system, combined with a list of considerations.

Points System

Category 1 – Historic/Heritage Significance

Up to 10 points can be awarded under this category across the following elements

• Architectural Period
• Settlement Heritage
• Cultural Elements
• Architectural Integrity

Category 2 – Physical Elements Weightings

Up to 20 points can be awarded under this category across the following elements

• Area of Façade
• Height of Façade
• Design Detail
• Colour Scheme Cost
• Colour Scheme Complexity

Category 3 – Impact Within Local Area Weightings

Up to 10 points can be awarded under this category across the following elements

• Location
• Size/prominence of building
• Proximity to key entry corridors
• Effect on precinct

Considerations

• Does the proposed project align with and give effect to the city vision strategy
• Has funding been sought from the Heritage Fund in a previous funding round
• Has the applicant sought funding from alternate sources or has funding been obtained from alternate sources? (e.g. charitable trusts, regional or district authorities, business or corporate enterprise)
• Can lesser award be given to enable completion of a specific part or stage of the overall project
• Urgency of the work required
• Risk analysis – what are the impacts on the heritage value of the building if nothing is done
• Is there a wider community benefit through enabling this project
• Is the Art Deco Trust able to access the building for the purposes of promoting tourism

Terms and Conditions

General details from successful applications will be reported to Napier City Council as they relate to the Council contribution to the fund

• Successful applicants may be used as part of on-going publicity for the purposes of promoting the fund and heritage within the district
• Grants will only be awarded based on the submission and approval of detailed specifications as to colour scheme and design, the subsequent work must comply fully with the approved elements
• Once complete, no modifications are to be made to the work completed other than any maintenance required within 3 years of receiving the grant without the written consent of the Art Deco Trust. Failure to comply with this condition will require the grant amount to be refunded in full

Accountability

• Funds will be paid within 10 working days of the final invoice and accountability report being received and approved by the Art Deco Trust.
• As funds are paid following completion of the works, the building owner must complete an accountability report within 1 month of the completion of the project.
• Art Deco Trust will conduct a visual inspection of the building once the accountability report has been received
• Any issues arising from the report or the inspection that are considered to be outside the scope or contrary to the approved purpose for the funds will be raised with the building owner directly in the first instance with a view to resolve the issues amicably
• If the issues cannot be resolved to the satisfaction of both parties then Art Deco Trust reserves the right to withhold any grant in full or in part from the building owner until such time as the issues are resolved to the satisfaction of the Art Deco Trust in its’ own absolute discretion.

Other funding opportunities

The National Heritage Preservation Incentive Fund, administered by Heritage New Zealand, provides financial incentives to encourage the conservation of nationally significant heritage places in private ownership. Priority is given to places of national significance which need conservation work and heritage places of national significance where consideration is planned and could be improved through extra funding. For more information please visit Heritage New Zealand’s website heritage.org.nz (link to external website, new window).