Terrace not open for Christmas
Bars and restaurants on Christchurch’s new The Terrace hospitality strip will open next year, dashing hopes of a pre-Christmas launch.
Most of the 17 hospitality operators moving into the $140 million riverfront development are fitting out their premises now, aiming to have doors open in February or March.
Some small upstairs venues will be ready earlier, but the majority say they will need several weeks after the holiday period to get their premises to the required standard for public access. This means they will miss the bulk of the lucrative summer trade.
Owner Antony Gough has spent several years building the complex. After several stops and starts, steady progress led to hopes the bars and restaurants would open this year.
One office tenant, insurance company Sovereign, moved into the complex several weeks ago.
Richard Sinke, owner of Dux Central in the innovation precinct, aims to open his new bar on The Terrace by late February.
‘‘It would’ve been great to be in for Christmas, but it won’t be happening. We just have to relax about it,’’ Sinke said. ‘‘The main build took longer than expected, so we’ve had to delay.
‘‘We are in there now working hard, but we’re running into the holiday period and these days there are a lot more consents and regulations to follow.’’
Sinke said extensive internal fitouts were needed at The Terrace to add character because the buildings are new. He was spending $1.3m fitting out his new bar. His ground-floor business, facing Oxford Tce, will be called Terrace Tavern.
Also preparing to open at The Terrace next year is the Vieceli family who will run two adjacent businesses, including restaurant Bangalore Polo Club.
Louis Vieceli said they hoped to catch some of the latesummer trade.
‘‘Obviously, this is a difficult time of the year to start fitting out a bar.
We’re aiming for late February, but realistically it’ll be
March.
‘‘We want to get it right rather than rush. If you want to survive in this environment you have to have a good product, that’s the challenge.’’
Vieceli did not know how much their two venues would cost to equip, but hoped it would be less than $3m. They have not yet named their second business, a bar and restaurant.
‘‘The whole complex has been a long time in the works and we’ve had a couple of false dawns, but clearly it’s happening this time. The place is looking wonderful.
‘‘I’m not aware of anything else of this size in Christchurch.’’ Other new businesses going into the complex include Velvet Burger, Glass Goose, Sal’s Pizza, plus Mexican and Japanese restaurants and a lounge bar. Most of the tenants, including Sinke, Vieceli and fellow operator Clive Weston, are experienced in the hospitality business.
Gough began planning after the 2011 earthquakes to replace the row of restaurants and bars called The Strip on his Oxford Tce land. Construction began in 2013 and he brought in several family members to help fund the project. Gough did not return calls this week. The design includes several buildings at street and first floor level, overlooking the river and four laneways with balconies, air bridges and a rear courtyard.
A seven-storey office building for tenants Westpac and KPMG is due to be finished on the Cashel St corner by February or March. A car parking building will be added on Hereford St next year. Eventually the complex will connect to the BNZ Centre. Building materials such as timber, black aluminium, glass and rustcoated steel have been used. Next door a new building has opened housing Fat Eddies plus a cocktail bar and restaurant Original Sin.