Premier House

Premier House, at 260 Tinakori Road, Thorndon, Wellington, New Zealand, is the official residence of the Prime Minister of New Zealand.A private house purchased for the Prime Minister's official residence when government shifted its base to Wellington in 1865, it was first greatly expanded then, as its wooden structure deteriorated, shunned by the more modest political leaders on learning the cost of repairs.It was leased to private individuals for six years in the late 1890s then returned to use as an official residence for the Prime Minister until the Great Depression when a new government in 1935 wished to avoid "show".For more than half a century generations of children came to know the building as their Dental Clinic until it was renovated and recommissioned as Premier House in 1990.HistoryConstructionThe original house was built in the early days of the New Zealand colony in 1843 for Wellington's first Mayor, George Hunter. This house, or at least a portion of it, is still located at the southern end of the current building. It has been greatly expanded over the years. Later the residence of Nathaniel Levin the house was bought for use by the country's Premier in 1865. A Wellington newspaper, elated by the city’s new status, thought the £2900 price "cheap". An Auckland paper called it a "monstrous waste of public money".