- A century-old Hataitai boatshed is for sale, seeking offers above $175,000.
- The property has been much loved by the owner’s family for over 30 years.
- Council rules mean the shed cannot be used for accommodation.
A tiny boatshed built when steamships ruled the waves has hit the market for sale.
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The 26sqm slice of history at 141 Evans Bay Parade, in Hataitai, is looking for buyers with over $175,000 to spend.
Helen and Guy Scott bought the boatshed in 1992 and have built up decades of family memories at the picturesque spot.
Helen believes the boatshed is more than 100 years old, citing an ink drawing from 1913/14 that shows the Union Steam Ship Company’s wharf with her boatshed in the background.
The property was initially sited across the road from the water but was moved to its current location, most likely after the seawall was built in 1922.
The Scotts have enjoyed more than 30 years at the shed, which has been a launching pad for their water adventures. Photo / Supplied
When the boatshed was first built, Wellington Airport didn’t exist and steamships ruled the waves. Photo / Supplied
“At some stage it had its own mooring,” Helen said. “And I believe a boat called the Nomad used to be on it.” That was most likely a 22ft classic wooden catboat/gaff sloop of that name built by Edwin Bailey in Wellington and often seen in Evans Bay.
Helen said the boatshed was a special place for her family and her late husband, who died in 2024.
“My husband, Dr William Guy Scott, and I moved to Hataitai over 50 years ago. He always wanted a boatshed because he’s always been close to the sea and fished and sailed. So, we sub-rented one until this one came up, and we’ve had it since 1992,” she told OneRoof.
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“It’s the Scott whānau house. We used to keep my husband’s Phase 2 Laser at the yacht club, but we used to sail it there.”
The couple’s children, Matthew and Andrew, also made use of the shed, storing their windsurfing gear, kayaks and dinghy there.
“We painted it, fixed it up inside, and it needed a bit of flooring done. We re-piled. We lifted it. My next-door neighbour painted it about three, four years ago at mates’ rates.”
Helen said Guy enjoyed visiting the boatshed in his final years. “When my husband was ill, I used to wheel him down in his wheelchair and help him down the steps. He could sit in the boatshed and have lunch and watch all the boating, and the shag that used to come and dry itself.” Other winged visitors include terns, gulls and even penguins.
Helen and her late husband, Guy, enjoyed visits to the boatshed in his final years. Photo / Supplied
When Covid brought Matthew and his family back from the UK to Wellington, Helen’s grandkids got to swim in the sea for the first time in their lives. “My mokopuna had never been to the sea,” Helen said. “They’d only been in swimming pools.”
It’s a peaceful place with great neighbours, Helen said. “Nick on the south side has a jazz group that meets down at the shed occasionally on the weekends. So, you can get some music coming through, which is very nice.” Other neighbours know each other.
Sadly, no one in the whānau has the time to take the boatshed on currently, which is why Helen is selling.
She pays an annual fee to Wellington Regional Council for the licence to occupy and pays the local Britannia Sea Scouts for fresh water.
Tommy’s listing agent Wayne Sampson said most of the sheds on the strip changed hands privately, so there had been a lot of interest in the Scotts’ shed since it hit the market. “Lots of emails,” he said.
“Usually there’s word of mouth through the cognoscenti. [Owners and neighbours] often do a deal between themselves, and they don’t come to market. The [boatsheds] slip sideways between friends.”
Sampson noted in the listing that owners were not allowed to use the boatsheds as accommodation, including short-term or overnight stays. “There is no bedroom. [The property is] licensed for water-based activities and recreational use/storage rather than residential living.”
- 141 Evans Bay Parade, Hataitai, Wellington, is for sale, enquiries over $175,000
