Newspaper Article 2003 – Old brewery buried

Old brewery buried

A little bit of history in Hastings is disappearing truckload by truckload as the former Leopard Brewery (pictured) is demolished to make way for a huge new store for Mitre 10.

The site has been vacant since Leopard Brewery closed down in the early 1990s.

Originally the St Aubyn Street site was used for a soft drink factory, but was later bought by the Newbegin [Newbigin] family for a brewery.

The Newbegin family interests sold the brewery to a Malaysian brewery and it eventually became a wholly owned part of the Lion Nathan chain.

Farmland Trading Society chief executive John Newland, one of the last Leopard Brewery managers, said one of the appealing aspects of the site for a brewery was the quality of artesian water that was available there.

Mitre 10 plans to build a 4540 sq m retail store, 1170 sq m timber yard with dual drive-through access and an 870 sq m outdoor garden centre on the site.

Nearly 150 on-site car parks will also be provided.

When the development opens later in the year it will create up to 50 jobs.

HBTODAY PICTURE: ANDREW LABETT