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Deconstruction
Norman King Building 2025
OVERVIEW:
Our Journey in Northcote: The Norman King Building
The Norman King Building project has truly been a milestone for us at TROW Group. As one of our largest projects of 2025 to date, this two-storey 1,200 sqm deconstruction was completed in just under four months. It followed the successful completion of Northcote Block 1 and our work near the iconic AIM Café, reinforcing our ongoing commitment to sustainability within the vibrant Northcote community.
Honouring the Past, Present, and Future
Before any work began on site, we had the privilege of attending a blessing for the Norman King Building, our third project in the Northcote area. This ceremony, hosted by Eke Panuku Development Auckland and led by Mahuika Rawiri and Zaelene Maxwell Butler (Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki), held deep significance for our team.
At TROW Group, it’s essential that we take time to pause and acknowledge the land, the people, and the history of the spaces we work within. The blessing served not only as a way to honour the whakapapa of the site, but also as a moment to seek guidance and protection for our workers before the mahi began.
These ceremonies are a powerful reminder that every site carries a story. Recognising that story helps ground our work and aligns with our kaupapa of respecting the whenua, the community, and the materials we salvage. Each item we recover has a past, a purpose, and potential to contribute to a new future.
A Continued Commitment to Sustainability
Sustainability sits at the heart of everything we do. With the Norman King Building, we partnered once again with our trusted collaborators at Localised to ensure that the majority of the furniture and materials from the site were upcycled and repurposed rather than sent to landfill. This partnership was key to us reaching our minimum target of 80 per cent waste diversion, a standard we consistently uphold across all TROW Group projects.
Before
During
After
Engaging with the Community: Onepoto Primary School
Community engagement is at the core of everything we do. While leading the deconstruction of the Norman King Building in the heart of Northcote, we were fortunate to collaborate with Eke Panuku on a meaningful educational initiative with Onepoto Primary School. It was an opportunity to not only share our kaupapa around sustainability and circular practices but to connect directly with the next generation growing up in the community we were working within.
Our Communications Coordinator, Jayda, facilitated an interactive session designed to introduce tamariki to Para Kore (Zero Waste). She developed a hands-on activity using real salvaged materials from the deconstruction site. These were turned into jigsaw puzzles, allowing the students to piece together concepts of reuse, repurposing, and environmental responsibility in a tangible and fun way.
“It was incredibly rewarding, especially being able to co-facilitate the activity right next to our live project site. I created jigsaw puzzles from salvaged materials, allowing the kids to explore how common construction waste can be given a new purpose. It sparked curiosity, creativity, and meaningful kōrero around sustainability.” – Jayda, TROW Group
The experience was not just about learning. It was about planting seeds of environmental awareness and showing young minds that what we often see as waste can become something new. It also gave us the chance to reflect on the responsibility we have, as deconstruction professionals, to share knowledge and empower others to care for Papatūānuku in their own way.
We are always mindful that we are manuhiri, visitors in the communities we work in. That understanding brings with it a duty to give back meaningfully and respectfully. Whether it is through educational initiatives, cultural engagement, or visual storytelling, we aim to leave more than a deconstructed site behind. We want to leave a positive and lasting impact.
A heartfelt thank you to Roxanne and the team at Eke Panuku for making this connection possible. Your continued support helps us grow our kaupapa while deepening our connection to the communities we serve. We look forward to future collaborations that help embed sustainability and local engagement into every step of our projects.
Looking Ahead: Resource Recovery Statistics
As we wrap up the Norman King Building project, we are finalising the total diversion data. We’re proud of the mahi completed so far and look forward to sharing the final statistics. Watch this space as our full resource recovery report is coming soon.
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