By RNZ

The former leaseholder of Chateau Tongariro, which closed earlier this year, says it will share its seismic assessment of the building with the Department of Conservation when ongoing negotiations finish.

The historic hotel has been closed indefinitely after Kah New Zealand withdrew in February, handing stewardship to DuC.

Kah’s 30-year lease expired in April 2020, but it continued running the chateau until this year.

When doing due diligence about a possible lease renewal it sought a seismic assessment, which found concerns.

D0C has not seen the report and has commissioned its own review. Meanwhile, it has been treating the building as a seismic hazard.

In a statement to RNZ, the senior vice-president of commercial and digital strategy for Kah’s Singapore-based parent company, Bayview International Hotels and Resorts, Kevin Peeris, said Kah would share its report with DoC “once all negotiations, which are ongoing, have been concluded”.

“The most recent seismic assessment found that underground shifts over time have meant some of the hotel infrastructure no longer meets current safety standards,” he said.

“To ensure the safety of everyone at the hotel the decision was made to close the property.

“This decision has also been influenced by other factors including the significant cost of ensuring long-term site safety from seismic risk, Ruapehu Alpine Lifts falling into voluntary administration and related uncertainty over the future of the ski resort upon which the Chateau Tongariro Hotel depends, and off the back of recent poor snow season conditions.”

Peeris said because the chateau was closed he was unable to say if it was still a viable business.

DoC has confirmed it has received inquiries from parties interested in running the chateau. It has said it would be in touch with them when it was able to discuss the hotel’s future.

Meanwhile, DoC was doing ongoing maintenance to the building and property.

- Jimmy Ellingham, RNZ