A piece of Raglan history has gone with the dismantling of the historic Moon House on the corner of Bow and Gilmour Streets. Until a few weeks ago, George Moon’s house stood little changed from when it was built in kauri around 1900. At that time George Moon was the owner of the Harbour View Hotel in central Bow St. The former Moon house was a private residence from the day it was first built.
As the historic house was not listed in the Waikato District Plan, the property owner was free to demolish it. The Waikato District Council had proposed to add the house to the heritage list in its failed ‘Variation 15’. A pine construction frame is now going up on the site at 53 Bow St.
Many early historic buildings in Raglan remain unprotected due to lack of action by the Waikato Council. The most notable of these is the 1892 Courthouse Cottage at 1 Wi Neera St and the surrounding Raglan Redoubt and Te Awa-i-taia whare area.
Is it time for Museum and Community Board to run a meeting to press for protection of what’s left? We lost the wharf 3 years ago, the other houses on Wi Neera St not long before and the remaining house seems vulnerable. Council clearly don’t value heritage, but it’s election year, so an opportunity to raise it as an issue.
What a crime!