Bank of New Zealand Building, Akaroa

The Bank of New Zealand in Akaroa has a history here that goes back to 1863, when it first had an agency on the corner of Rue Lavaud and Rue Benoit. The bank bought this specific site at 73 Rue Lavaud in 1864, but didn't build right away. They came back to town in 1873, operating from the de Malmanche family's private home.

Between 1874 and 1875, a one-story timber building in the Italianate style was built here, but it had to be torn down in 1904 because of water problems. This building, designed by England Brothers of Christchurch, opened in 1905. It's a two-story timber structure, on a rectangular plan with a hipped corrugated-steel roof. You can see the Italianate style in the entrances with pediments and arches, the arched windows with ornamental keystones, corner pilasters, and the decorative scrolls under the eaves. The ground floor was for bank offices and the manager lived upstairs. It also had some restoration work after the 2010 and 2011 Canterbury earthquakes.