Cathedral Square plan due Wednesday should end long costly wait
A redesigned Cathedral Square is an anchor projects in the central Christchurch rebuild blueprint created following the earthquakes.
Plans for the redevelopment of Cathedral Square will be released on Wednesday, six years after the project was announced as part of Christchurch's rebuild blueprint.
The long-anticipated ideas follow nearly $1 million worth of publicly-funded planning and consultation.
Property owners in the Square have called for action on its public spaces for years. Some owners have delayed developing their sites because of the uncertainty.
Fencing in Cathedral Square by the Old Post Office building.
Regenerate Christchurch, the Crown-council planning agency tasked with designing the project, has indicated the work will be staged. This is because while the repairs and rebuilds of some buildings in the Square are completed, others will remain building sites for years.
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A possible scenario is that Regenerate will release designs for the northeast section of the square opposite the Novotel hotel and the nearly completed library Tūranga, and perhaps the southeast corner where the Distinction Christchurch hotel, Heritage hotel and OGB bar are open.
Likely to be left until later is the northwestern corner of the square, near the Convention Centre, where construction will continue until 2020.
A green, family-friendly space was included in the draft designs for Cathedral Square released last year.
A 2016 plan for the Square was shelved because of uncertainty over other anchor projects.
A draft concept was released by Regenerate last July, with the agency saying it wanted the first stages completed within a year. Its aim was to create a destination, not a thoroughfare, and to stimulate private development.
The draft proposed three main spaces with temporary buildings to help "activate" and shelter larger areas.
The World Buskers Festival was in action in Cathedral Square this summer.
Post Office Place on the southern side would hold up to 10,000 people for public events such as festivals, concerts and sports fan zones.
Library Plaza in front of the new library would be youth-friendly with flexible street furniture, designed for smaller events for 5000 people.
Cathedral Gardens east and south of Christ Church Cathedral would be a series of landscaped gardens with water features, intended as a "tranquil, family-friendly refuge".
Part of last year's draft design for Cathedral Square, which aims to make the space a destination instead of a thoroughfare.
Through traffic, except for public transport like the tram, would be curtailed. New forms of transport such as light rail, electric shuttles or an aerial gondola were possibilities. Surrounding laneways would be upgraded.
Following the release of the concept, 84 per cent of those providing online public feedback either wholly or partly supported the ideas. Most popular were more greenery and less traffic. Heritage proponents expressed concern that the Square's original cruciform shape could be lost in the redesign.
The next step would be a finalised plan containing details of design and costs.
In February, Greater Christchurch Regeneration Minister Megan Woods called for momentum on the project and said she wanted to see the plan done.
Private developments under way in the Square include the new Spark building on the former BNZ site, and the Aotea Gifts building about to go on the old ANZ site. Awaiting repair are Christ Church Cathedral and the Old Post Office building, while vacant properties include the old Press, Heritage tower, Grant Thornton, Warners hotel, and Regent Theatre sites.
- Stuff
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