PHOTO:  NICHOLAS BOYACK/STUFF – Wellington developer Ian Cassels and Lower Hutt Mayor Ray Wallace celebrate Cassels’ purchase of the former BNZ building.

Lower Hutt’s struggling central business district has received a vote of confidence from Wellington developer Ian Cassels.

On Thursday, the council announced Cassels had purchased the former BNZ site on High St for $1.5 million.

Cassels hopes to put a craft brewery in the bottom floor and turn the earthquake-prone building into apartments.

In-mid 2015, the council bought the site in for $2.8m from developer Raman Sarin who had resource consent to build a $25m hotel and apartment complex.

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