THE former Ōpōtiki News building is undergoing a makeover for its next incarnation as the home of ICE Systems.

Beacon Media Group managing director John Spring has sold the former Ōpōtiki News building to Ōpōtiki businessman and district councillor Steve Nelson who has upgraded and earthquake strenghtened it.

“It’s a serious upgrade and we enjoy doing it,” Mr Nelson said.

“The upgrade will lift the profile so people can enjoy the building – it’s in a beautiful part of town.”

The building’s new tenant is electrician Marcel Huth, who has three staff working for him in his business, ICE Systems.

“This is a major upgrade, both for the building and me,” he said.

The building has a new roof, asbestos has been removed and it is undergoing a total interior refit. It will run off-grid, powered by solar.”

Originally from a small town outside Berlin, Germany, Mr Huth came to New Zealand for a working holiday in 2010 – and never left.

“I’ve lived in Ōpōtiki since 2014, working as both an auto electrician and an electrician,” he said. “I’ve been self employed since 2020.”

Having previously worked out of a smaller building on Church Street, Mr Huth said his new base offered several advantages, including the opportunity to sell products and separate the retail area from the workshop. “We will be able to have a shopfront from which we can sell electrical parts and items such as heat pumps and hot-water cylinders,” he said.

“We’ll be doing whiteware repairs and this requires a bigger space. Having equipment lying around with electrical components exposed creates a risk, and by having the storefront isolated from the workshop, the safety will be much better.”

He expects the new storefront to be ready within a couple of months.

The ICE team, all from Ōpōtiki, provide a wide range of services including solar systems, refrigeration, heat pumps, new wiring, renovations and planning.

Mr Huth has one staff member that is about to become a qualified electrician and an apprentice. He also has a trainee doing a pre-trade course, working there one day per week.

“She will move on to be an apprentice in the near future,” Mr Huth said.

He has not been back to Germany since moving to New Zealand. “I love living in Ōpōtiki,” he said. “Driving in Tauranga and Auckland is diabolical. There are no traffic jams in Ōpōtiki and people are nicer.”