Work on the Kaipara Butchery has been going all Summer and the exterior is all but finished. The awning has been replaced along with new fascia and tie-rods, which hold the awning up. It was revealed that the roof and framing were too rotten to withstand the force so many timbers and the roof itself have had to be replaced. The work means that the appearance of the Butchery is protected for the future so future generations of residents and visitors can appreciate the charm of the oldest remaining link to the village shops of the past.

We are very grateful to the following people who have given their time and effort to help with this project and the Companies who have donated materials..

Kaipara Flats Sports Club and the Kaipara Flats Village Fayre committee for their support

+ to all the other people in the community who gave hours of help, encouragement, support… and sausages.

We have started the long process of an application to Auckland Council for a heritage listing – to ensure the building is protected in perpetuity .

Now, about the inside…

On Tuesday 1st November, work started on the repair of the old Butchery, with Treescape removing the large Wattle tree which has been damaging the floor and sub-structure. With three-point traffic control affecting the junction in the middle of the village it made the place look really busy! The guys did a great job, working directly above the Butchery and preventing the falling branches from doing any further damage to the vulnerable roof awning.

Now work can begin on repairing and replacing some of the rotten timbers..

Visit the Kaipara Butchery Project to find out more about this local icon – and register to help.

One of Kaipara Flat’s most enduring icons is the old Butchery near the railway bridge. Having been closed for many years it is showing the ravages of time and is in danger of collapse. Owner Gail McDowell has agreed to work with a group of locals to fix it up – so that this charming link to the past can survive.

Kaipara Butchery was initially started by local patriarch Harry Mason over 100 years ago and was subsequently run by a number of other locals over the decades including Stan & Iris Phillips, Les Hallam and Bert and Pearl McMasters, who were the last to run it as a butcher’s shop before they started home-kills.  A slaughterhouse at the top of Thomson Road was used to feed the shop it’s product..

This was continued by Rupert Berger, and then John Fletcher – who was the last person to use the ship for processing in the early 1970s. John still lives in Kaipara Flats, but the Kaipara Butchery hasn’t sold a sausage for the best part of 50 years.

It remains one of the most identifiable and popular buildings in the whole area, so it’s great it will be prevented from disappearing.. and that it will still be there as something from the past for future generations of locals to enjoy.

The floor and timbers are in need of repair and the large tree which is damaging the foundations will sadly have to go. If anyone can help with materials or manpower on this worthwhile project please contact Brett Innes Email or donations can be sent to Sioux Anich Email.