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Christchurch Central Recovery Plan
The Christchurch Central Recovery Plan, often referred to as the Blueprint, is the plan developed by the Fifth National Government of New Zealand for the recovery of the Christchurch Central City from a series of earthquakes, in particular the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. The Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Act 2010 required the Christchurch City Council to develop a recovery plan for the central city. The plan, known as Share an Idea, was presented to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery, Gerry Brownlee, in December 2011. Brownlee rejected the city council's plan, established the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA), and tasked that organisation with developing a plan based on the city council's draft. The Christchurch Central Recovery Plan was published in July 2012 and defined 17 anchor projects. All projects where a timeline was specified were to have been finished by 2017; none of the 17 projects have been delivered on time and some have not even been started yet.
The plan defined 17 anchor projects. There was tension between central government and the city council, the latter having had its Share an Idea plan rejected and the former imposing a very different plan. This tension culminated in Brownlee calling the mayor of Christchurch, Bob Parker, "a clown" in February 2012. Parker later revealed that receiving an apology from Brownlee stopped him from resigning his office. In August 2013, the city council then openly defied Brownlee's wish to have the Christchurch Town Hall demolished and a new venue built as part of the Performing Arts Precinct.
A frame was created to help define a central area known as "the Core", which was to be of a scale appropriate to current demand. The Frame (Māori: Te Tāparepare) was to be in three parts (north, east, and south) and was to allow for short to medium term expansion and development of central Christchurch. The development of the Frame was led by CERA.
The national Earthquake Memorial is the Crown's official memorial for those killed or seriously injured in the 22 February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. The memorial was envisaged as a place of local, national and international significance where individuals could reflect and large groups can gather. The recovery plan did not indicate a location for the memorial. The project was led by the Ministry for Culture and Heritage and the memorial was opened for the February 2017 earthquake anniversary.
A world class cultural centre was proposed for the north-west corner of Victoria Square on the site of the former Crowne Plaza. This centre was planned as a focal point for cultural celebration and diversity, and was to be led by Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu. Ngāi Tahu abandoned this project in April 2016.
The Avon River Precinct (Māori: Te Papa Ōtākaro and Te Papa o Ōtākaro in the initial version of the recovery plan) was the redevelopment of the Avon River corridor through the central city, from the Antigua Street bridge at Christchurch Hospital to the Fitzgerald Avenue bridge at the eastern border of the central city. The park zoning extended 30 metres (98 ft) from either side of the river and included a proposed redevelopment of Victoria Square. The project was jointly led by CERA and Christchurch City Council.
In a project led by Christchurch City Council, Cathedral Square was to be restored as the civic heart of the central city. CERA's regeneration plan proposed lower buildings on the north side to prevent shading (although when Christchurch City Council requested in 2019 that the Crown's rebuild agency take into consideration shading that would be caused by a proposed nine-storey hotel that is part of the convention centre, the request was denied) with little detail provided. The plan did mention the proposed central library and the convention centre, both planned as anchor projects for the north side of The Square, as well as space being "kept for a new cathedral", but was otherwise short on detail. The new library (Tūranga) opened in 2018; as of 2020, the convention centre is under construction, and the repair of the existing cathedral commenced in May 2020.
The development of the Retail Precinct was left to the private sector. By October 2011, private interests had combined and opened a temporary container mall known as Re:START, with Ballantynes, Christchurch's remaining department store, as the retail anchor. The project was a huge success and gained international attention for its quirkiness. In June 2014, about half the container mall moved to a different site to make way for a construction project. Re:START closed in January 2018.
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Christchurch Central Recovery Plan
The Christchurch Central Recovery Plan, often referred to as the Blueprint, is the plan developed by the Fifth National Government of New Zealand for the recovery of the Christchurch Central City from a series of earthquakes, in particular the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. The Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Act 2010 required the Christchurch City Council to develop a recovery plan for the central city. The plan, known as Share an Idea, was presented to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery, Gerry Brownlee, in December 2011. Brownlee rejected the city council's plan, established the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA), and tasked that organisation with developing a plan based on the city council's draft. The Christchurch Central Recovery Plan was published in July 2012 and defined 17 anchor projects. All projects where a timeline was specified were to have been finished by 2017; none of the 17 projects have been delivered on time and some have not even been started yet.
The plan defined 17 anchor projects. There was tension between central government and the city council, the latter having had its Share an Idea plan rejected and the former imposing a very different plan. This tension culminated in Brownlee calling the mayor of Christchurch, Bob Parker, "a clown" in February 2012. Parker later revealed that receiving an apology from Brownlee stopped him from resigning his office. In August 2013, the city council then openly defied Brownlee's wish to have the Christchurch Town Hall demolished and a new venue built as part of the Performing Arts Precinct.
A frame was created to help define a central area known as "the Core", which was to be of a scale appropriate to current demand. The Frame (Māori: Te Tāparepare) was to be in three parts (north, east, and south) and was to allow for short to medium term expansion and development of central Christchurch. The development of the Frame was led by CERA.
The national Earthquake Memorial is the Crown's official memorial for those killed or seriously injured in the 22 February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. The memorial was envisaged as a place of local, national and international significance where individuals could reflect and large groups can gather. The recovery plan did not indicate a location for the memorial. The project was led by the Ministry for Culture and Heritage and the memorial was opened for the February 2017 earthquake anniversary.
A world class cultural centre was proposed for the north-west corner of Victoria Square on the site of the former Crowne Plaza. This centre was planned as a focal point for cultural celebration and diversity, and was to be led by Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu. Ngāi Tahu abandoned this project in April 2016.
The Avon River Precinct (Māori: Te Papa Ōtākaro and Te Papa o Ōtākaro in the initial version of the recovery plan) was the redevelopment of the Avon River corridor through the central city, from the Antigua Street bridge at Christchurch Hospital to the Fitzgerald Avenue bridge at the eastern border of the central city. The park zoning extended 30 metres (98 ft) from either side of the river and included a proposed redevelopment of Victoria Square. The project was jointly led by CERA and Christchurch City Council.
In a project led by Christchurch City Council, Cathedral Square was to be restored as the civic heart of the central city. CERA's regeneration plan proposed lower buildings on the north side to prevent shading (although when Christchurch City Council requested in 2019 that the Crown's rebuild agency take into consideration shading that would be caused by a proposed nine-storey hotel that is part of the convention centre, the request was denied) with little detail provided. The plan did mention the proposed central library and the convention centre, both planned as anchor projects for the north side of The Square, as well as space being "kept for a new cathedral", but was otherwise short on detail. The new library (Tūranga) opened in 2018; as of 2020, the convention centre is under construction, and the repair of the existing cathedral commenced in May 2020.
The development of the Retail Precinct was left to the private sector. By October 2011, private interests had combined and opened a temporary container mall known as Re:START, with Ballantynes, Christchurch's remaining department store, as the retail anchor. The project was a huge success and gained international attention for its quirkiness. In June 2014, about half the container mall moved to a different site to make way for a construction project. Re:START closed in January 2018.