Reach high, take on challenges and dig deep to overcome fear. Never let anyone or any experience bring you down.
The owners of two quake-damaged historic buildings in the central city are being given extra time to complete the restoration works required to access previously approved grants from Christchurch City Council. In February 2020, the Council approved a Central City Landmark Heritage Grant of $600,000 for the former State Insurance Building at 116 Worcester Street….
A charitable trust that is working with Christchurch schools to populate parts of the former red zone with native plants is getting a $61,400 grant to expand its operation. The money will come from the Red Zones Transitional Use Fund that was set up by Christchurch City Council to provide support to projects and events…
A new project alongside the Ōpāwaho/Heathcote River – immediately downstream of the Tunnel Road Bridge – aims to restore the site’s saltmarsh and coastal bush habitat. The area was partially filled decades ago during construction of the motorway and more recently by earthquake liquefaction. A series of arson attacks have since burnt more than half…
Christchurch City Council is raising concerns about draft legislation set to replace the Resource Management Act. Elected members considered a submission on the exposure draft of the Natural and Built Environments Act (NBA), released by the Government last month, at today’s Finance and Performance Committee meeting. Make a submission Individuals and groups wanting to make…
Christchurch City Council’s decision to change the design direction for the Canterbury Multi-Use Arena has sparked significant public debate. Here we answer some of people’s questions about that decision. When did the Council become aware the $473 million budget for the arena would be insufficient for a 30,000 seat arena? This only became clear in…
People biking in Christchurch are being encouraged to invest in a good quality bike lock. “Bikes are a great way of getting around the city, but unfortunately low quality locks make them an easy target for thieves. It really pays to invest in a decent lock, if possible’’ says Christchurch City Council Transport Operations Manager…
New housing growth in Christchurch is at a 20-year high. An analysis of Christchurch City Council building consents shows that in the past 12 months Christchurch gained 2792 new dwellings. That is up 12 per cent on the previous 12 months and the highest annual gain in housing in Christchurch since 2000. Housing gain is…
A multi-media touring exhibition and a dance performance in a suburban pool are just two of the projects that have been helped by Creative Communities Scheme grants. The scheme assists a wide range of activities including craft, dance, literature, Ngā Toi Māori, music, film, Pacific arts, theatre and visual arts. Funding applications for the Christchurch…
Canterbury Museum has been given resource consent to proceed with a proposed multimillion-dollar redevelopment of its Rolleston Avenue buildings. The consent was granted by Christchurch City Council on Monday following a hearing in June. “We’ve been developing our redevelopment plans since May last year, when we asked Cantabrians what they’d like to see in a…
Pedestrian safety is behind changes to restrict goods vehicle access along Oxford Terrace and Cashel Street. New bollards will be installed, starting from this Sunday, at the Hereford Street end of Oxford Terrace to stop vehicles entering the busy pedestrian area outside of permitted times. Earlier this year Council consulted on changes to the traffic…
Christchurch City Council staff want to gauge the market’s interest in developing an empty piece of land in the city’s Performing Arts Precinct. They are bringing a report to the Council’s Finance and Performance Committee meeting on 29 July that recommends the Council run an expressions of interest process to see who might be interested…
Improvements are being made to the Te Nukutai o Tapoa-Naval Point area to prepare for the SailGP racing series being held at Whakaraupō-Lyttelton Harbour in January 2022. Christchurch City Council is assessing what work can be carried out to roads and pedestrian access ways it owns and manages to and from the site, as well…
Christchurch City Council has approved a new design direction for the Canterbury Multi-Use Arena in an effort to minimise a multi-million dollar cost increase to the central city’s final anchor project. “The design direction we have approved today provides a clear way forward and will result in Christchurch getting a fit-for-purpose covered arena befitting the…
Christchurch has been included in TIME’s 2021 World’s Greatest Places list. The magazine’s annual travel guide includes 100 destinations “offering visitors an extraordinary experience that’s unlike any other”. It is the third year the New York-based magazine and news website have published the list. “Our third annual list of the World’s Greatest Places is a…
The paddocks between Cuthberts Road and the oxidation ponds in Bromley are gradually being transformed by the addition of thousands of native trees and plants. “In a few years’ time this strip of land will be thick with native vegetation that will improve the biodiversity of the area and provide an important habitat for native…
Christchurch’s newest museum will open to the public in October. The Ravenscar Trust has officially gifted the newly constructed Ravenscar House, on Rolleston Avenue, to Canterbury Museum, which will operate it as a house museum on behalf of the Christchurch and Canterbury community. It will open to the public in October. The museum will be…
One of Christchurch’s riverside gems has its sparkle back. Contractors have finished restoration work on the Thomas Edmonds Band Rotunda, which was built in 1929 as a gift to the city from businessman and philanthropist Thomas Edmonds, of Sure to Rise baking powder and cookbook fame, to mark his 50 years of business in the city. Sited…
Christchurch’s response to the mosque attacks on 15 March 2019 has earned the city and its citizens a rare representative Gold Medal Bravery Award from the Royal Humane Society of New Zealand. It is the second time the people of Christchurch have been given the celebrated award. The first time was in recognition of the…
Now in its 30th year the annual KidsFest holiday programme continues to be popular with many sessions fully booked. Tūranga Central Library is playing host to daily workshops including those run by Imagination Station, where kids design and build their own remote controlled car using LEGO Technic and motors. Imagination Station Manager Anna Ross says…
A new exhibition at Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū reflects on how we cope with trauma and the ways it can transform a community. All of the featured artists have documented the aftermath of traumatic events using photography, moving image and graphic design. Several of them explore the years following the 2010 and…
The Christchurch City Council Animal Services team’s focus on retraining dogs for adoption has resulted in almost all dogs being rehomed last year. “Working with Christchurch Bull Breed Rescue and Dogwatch Sanctuary Trust is a key part of our focus on rehoming dogs,” says Council Animal Services Manager Lionel Bridger. Have you registered your dog?…
A two day expo at Christchurch’s new convention and exhibition centre, Te Pae, is set to strengthen the city’s growing reputation as a hub for innovation and technology growth. The 2021 Smart Christchurch Innovation Expo scheduled for 31 October and 1 November will be one of the first events at Te Pae that will be…
Abutment piling of the new pedestrian and cycle bridge at Avondale started this week as the first of two crawler cranes arrived on site. The piles will be driven 40m deep on each side of the river. Christchurch City Council’s Head of Parks, Andrew Rutledge, says the cranes will then lift two 40m-span steel arches…
The Christchurch City Council Animal Shelter is reminding dog owners to take advantage of its free microchipping service offered every Wednesday from 11am to midday. Manager Animal Services Lionel Bridger says with the dog registration period currently open it’s a timely opportunity for dog owners to check and make sure their four-legged friend has been…
A five-year University of Canterbury photography project provides a window into the people and environments of Christchurch during a period of rapid change. Currently showing at Tūranga Central Library, We Stand Here: Celebrating Five Years of the Christchurch Documentary Project is a selection of images from more than 1500 taken by student photographers between 2014…
A $74 million project to develop a new wastewater scheme for Akaroa is under way. Christchurch City Council approved a hearings panel recommendation to develop the Inner Bays option consulted on in August 2020. The new system – the Akaroa Reclaimed Water Treatment and Reuse Scheme – will reuse treated wastewater to irrigate new areas…
A mushroom-themed education, play and foraging area has officially opened in the Ōtākaro Avon River Corridor Regeneration Area. More than 50 adults and children attended the Fungi Farm’s official opening this afternoon, complete with hearty, wild mushroom soup, and mushroom-themed sweets and savouries Located on the corner of Evelyn Cousins Ave and River Road in…
Christchurch City Councillors will decide at an extraordinary Council meeting on Thursday the design direction for the preliminary design phase for the Canterbury Multi-Use Arena (CMUA). The recommended direction of the CMUA features a U-shaped concourse and 25,000 seating capacity (36,000 in concert mode), with space for a ‘stage pocket’ at the northern end of…
Plans for a State Highway 1 flyover and changes to busy intersections through Rolleston, south of Christchurch, are ready for the first round of public feedback. The $125m project is being delivered as part of the Government’s $6.8 billion New Zealand Upgrade Programme Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency has pop-up events planned over the next…
This month is the anniversary of the divisive and controversial 1981 Springbok tour and Christchurch City Libraries want those who were at the protests to share their memories. The South African team arrived in Auckland on 19 July to a country deeply divided about whether the tour should have gone ahead. Protests had been ongoing…