Where is vogel house

Vogel House was gifted to the Crown in NZ Herald reporter based in Wellington. Owners of a heritage building previously used as the official residence of the Prime Minister are asking for a rates remission so they can renovate the multimillion-dollar property. Vogel House in Lower Hutt was owned by the Crown for more than 50 years until late last year, when the property was sold back to the Vogel family.

The historic building was the subject of a High Court battle when the government decided it was no longer needed as a Crown property, and decided to sell it on the open market.

Tim and Geoff Vogel, grandsons of the original owners, took the matter to court and argued their emotional connection to the property meant the house should be offered to them. The partnership between Heathcote Helmore and Guy Cotterill began in Based in Christchurch, both men had attended Christ's College, served articles under Cecil Wood, and then travelled to England in On their way to England they stopped at New York, and due to a delay were able to travel to Yorkstown, Virginia where they saw examples of American Colonial architecture.

Both of these events influenced the later architectural direction of Helmore and Cotterill, who, when they returned to New Zealand, began to design houses that were neo-Georgian in style but built from timber, like the American Colonial Georgian houses, rather than the English brick.

Their partnership ended with Helemore's death in This historic place was registered under the Historic Places Act The land on which Vogel House is now located is part section 25, Hutt District. In a Crown Grant for this section was issued to Edward Daniell. He arrived in Wellington in and was a member of the Committee for First Settlement, the first governing authority for the newly established New Zealand Company settlement. Within three years he had acquired over hectares of property mostly in what is now known as the Wellington suburb of Ngaio.

In Daniell and his family moved out to their estate in the Hutt Valley. In he and Georginia immigrated to New Zealand. James established himself as an accountant, and was later appointed the first Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce In he was elected to represent the Town of Wellington in the first General Assembly, and in he represented Wellington City on the Wellington Provincial Council. In James purchased section 21 in the Hutt District, adjacent to the land that his wife Georginia was to purchase a year later.

When James retired the couple moved into a house named Tredenham that had been constructed on section James died in , leaving the bulk of his estate to Georginia. Georginia sold the house and section 21 in , but retained section It is likely that not long after James' death, Georginia went to reside in the small cottage now known as the 'Gatehouse' on section It is not known exactly when the cottage was built but some features, such as the decorative elements over some of the windows, suggest that the cottage may date to the s.

She remained there until her death in , after which her estate was left to Nina Riddiford, the child of Nina Olive Kelham, the Kelhams only daughter who had married Daniel George Riddiford in One month after Georginia's death, the estate was sold to George Albert Chapman.

The property was again sold two years later to James Arnold, Lower Hutt engineer. There is some evidence that Arnold operated a small chicken farm and dairy on the property. In Arnold sold the property to James Vogel. The couple extended the property by acquiring a small piece of land from St James Church, while an area near Woburn Road was 'a gift of a Mr Bunny' a man who Jocelyn Vogel would have known as an Uncle.

The property was acquired to build a house for the newlyweds and was a gift from Jocelyn Vogel's parents - not as a wedding present but more as a place to live. The area was long associated with wealthy settler families, and in particular Jocelyn Vogel's family the Riddifords, whose large estate known as Woburn established in was to eventually lend its name to the entire suburb.

The Vogels' house was one of a growing number of large Woburn homes, many of which still exist today, although not necessarily with their original curtilages. The Vogels commissioned Christchurch architect Heathcote Helmore to design the house in It was a partnership that was to last until Helmore's death in Helmore and Cotterill gained a name for themselves for designing elegant houses for both the wealthy of Christchurch, particularly in the Papanui-Fendalton area, but also around the country, including Wellington and the Wairarapa.

Both partners favoured the Colonial neo-Georgian style, but also utilised other styles such as Spanish Mission and Art Deco. Carpenter Walter [Verran Dyer, of the firm Dyer and Halse] built the house and while construction took place, the couple lived in the cottage which had been renovated for their use. According to an article in the Weekly News, [Dyer] was the first person to receive an honorary degree from Massey University, and when he retired from the building trade he entered public life and was for many years chairman of Massey's Board of Governor's.

Helmore's design for the Vogels drew upon elements of the architect's preferred Colonial neo-Georgian style, popular with well-heeled New Zealanders of the s and 30s, as well as English Domestic Revival architecture. When completed the two-storey house had over 15 rooms with a large entrance hall leading to a terrace overlooking the garden and a large dining room and living room on either side. There were rooms for servants and, probably quite novel for the time, a built-in double garage.

Helmore continued his association with the house, as he was later to advise the Vogels on the redecoration of the dining room. Surrounding the house was a formal garden that had been laid out by Arthur Porter from to At the time the house was built there had been only two or three trees around the cottage. A number of trees and shrubs were brought from the Riddiford estate at Woburn located in the area on the western side of Woburn Road and now substantially occupied by Hutt Valley High School and suburban developments.

The cottage today also referred to as the gatehouse was used for the accommodation of domestic staff. James Vogel took over an importing company in Lower Hutt. During the war he served in the Middle East and was eventually promoted to lieutenant colonial, receiving an OBE in Following the war Vogel continued his business but also participated in the local community.

In the national election he unsuccessfully ran against Walter Nash for the Hutt seat. In late to early the Vogels decided to give the house and grounds including the cottage or gatehouse to the nation. Contrary to later reports the initial offer did not come with strict conditions for its future use. Instead the Vogel's offered the house for visiting VIPs 'but this is in no way an arbitrary condition if there is another use for it.

As a condition of the gift the property, which was handed over fully furnished, was to remain intact. The government accepted the offer on 13 July with one of the conditions being that the Vogels could remain in the property until their deaths. The deed of gifts included a number of chattels including a painting by Goldie and two paintings by Barraud. Special legislation had to be passed to exempt property from any estate, gift or tax duties. This was done through the Finance Act of The gift which is subject to the life interest of the donors, has been prompted by the desire of Mr and Mrs Vogel to leave to the people of New Zealand their home in which they have lived since their marriage, as a recognition of the long and happy association which both their families have had with this country since its pioneering days.

Both the Vogel and Riddiford names have been well known and respected from the earliest days of the colony, and the home of Mr and Mrs Vogel when it vests in the Crown following their life interest will always be a reminder of to the people of New Zealand of the influence those two pioneering families have had on the growth and development of this young country.

The gift is not subject to any restrictive trusts, but Mr and Mrs Vogel have expressed the wish that, if possible, the property should be kept intact, as an entity, for some appropriate private purpose. Much was also made of the fact that the property was gifted in the centennial year of parliamentary government in Wellington, given the role that the ancestors of the Vogels had played its formation.

As the Government did not expect that the property would come into their possession for a number of years, little thought was given to the future use of the building. At one point there was an idea that the house and grounds could be turned into a New Zealand Administration College, the extensive grounds providing ample room to construct the necessary buildings.

However, in the Vogels decided to leave the house for family reasons and retire to their residence in the Marlborough Sounds. This left the Government searching for a use for the property. The Vogels suggested that the Australian High Commission, who were looking for a temporary residency, would be a suitable tenant, and by mid the Government had entered into discussions with the Vogels over this proposed new use for the building. The Australian High Commission were known to be keen to secure the Vogel property as it adjoined the temporary American Embassy.

The Americans were not the only foreign delegation in the neighbourhood - the United Kingdom Trade Commissioner lived at 22 Myrtle Street, a property which backed on to the Vogel Residence and had loaned from the Vogels a piece of land on the boundary of the two properties. Due to the change of use the Vogels took the opportunity to change the deeds of gift - this time many of the chattels, which were to be gifted to the Government, were now regarded as on loan.

A new deed of gift was signed on 15 November The Vogels left the property on 30 November He and his wife, Lady Hicks, lived in the house until when a new high commissioner, Dame Annabelle Rankin, was appointed. On taking up the appointment, Rankin asked that a number of changes be made to the residence. These changes included the extension of the dining room by 2. The work was supervised by the Ministry of Works and mostly undertaken by T. Tregaskis and Company.

Later, in , a large brick entrance gate was built, again at the request of the High Commissioner, to improve the security of the grounds. They lived in the property until June when a new residency was completed in the Wellington suburb of Khandallah. As the Australian High Commission tenure drew to a close, thought was given to a new use and in particular the occupation of the house as a prime ministerial residence.

The idea that the Woburn Road property would be suitable for a Prime Minster's residence was suggested at the time the Vogels handed the house over to the Government by way of deed of gift. At the time Prime Minister Holyoake did not require the property, and later Prime Ministers were not considered due to the lease agreement with the Australian High Commission. Muldoon was very happy to accept on the condition that the entire property would undergo a complete renovation.

These renovations included the construction of a self-contained flat above an extended study and garage, the rearrangement of the remaining bedrooms to create guest and family suites and the provision of a conference room downstairs with associated cloakrooms.

After discussions at Cabinet level and involving the Leader of the Opposition, it was decided that the project was too expensive to be undertaken all at once and that the work would be undertaken in two stages with the essential work being carried out first.

The first stage of the work commenced in August This involved the construction of the flat, the extension of the study to provide a conference venue, refitting of the kitchen and redecoration of the dining and reception areas. The latter was undertaken in expectation that the Queen would dine at the house on her visit to New Zealand in This redecoration included a complete refurnishing of the house as there was very few furnishings left and those that remained were in need of replacement.

The only items that were identified as having any value were the eighteenth century grandfather clock that still stands in the entrance hall today, and a clothes press. The Ministry of Works supervised the work and the principal contractor was O.

Smith Ltd. In consideration was given to the future of the cottage. Three possibilities were proposed: maintain, restore or demolish. At the time the Muldoons' housekeeper occupied the house. Initially it was decided to undertake repairs including repiling and reroofing. A carport was added to the side of the building in In the shed behind the cottage was demolished to make way for a staff lunchroom and toilets for the public to use during garden parties.

This work was completed by January Stage two of the work on the main house commenced at the end of and involved renovation of the bedrooms and the modification of the downstairs kitchen, servery and staff accommodation. A new bedroom was built in the roof space above the original maid's quarters and a porte-cochere added to main entrance. All the work was undertaken under the supervision of Ministry of Works and Development architect, John Rowe and cost c.

Rob and Thea Muldoon moved into Vogel house at the beginning of and lived at the Woburn Road property for nearly seven years.

During this time the property became officially known as Vogel House. The Muldoons entertained a number of people of note including the Queen and Prince Philip and the Prince and Princess of Wales The Muldoon's younger daughter was married in the garden. The downstairs facilities provided a suitable venue for confidential conferences, particularly at budget time. During the Muldoon era local charities would use the lawn of the house for fundraising and horticultural and garden societies also visited the property.

Muldoon was a keen gardener and was particularly keen on orchids, which he reputedly used to grow in the flower room under the stairs of Vogel House.

Another space well used by Muldoon was the study in the upstairs flat. It is said that Muldoon used this room to write his speeches. After last year deciding it no longer needed the property, a battle ensued between the Vogel descendants and two charities named as beneficiaries in Jocelyn Vogel's will - the SPCA and the Vogel Charitable Trust - as to who had rights to it. The Vogel descendants said they had conversations with their grandmother shortly before her death in during which she said she hoped the property would be returned to the family once it was no longer needed.

However, the Crown has now decided to sell Vogel House on the open market and pocket the proceeds itself. Tim Vogel's great-great grandfather, Julius Vogel, was New Zealand's eighth prime minister - or, as it was then known, premier - and introduced the first women's suffrage bill to Parliament in Vogel House, which was built in , is a Category One Heritage building, meaning a 'place of special or outstanding historical or cultural significance'.