$30m east frame park set to open
Housing in Christchurch’s east frame may still be a way off, but the $30 million public space inside it is about to open.
From tomorrow, the fences will progressively be removed from the central public park stretching the five city blocks of the frame.
Called Rauora Park, the public space forms a 660m-long strip. It runs northsouth through the frame, which is bordered by Lichfield, Armagh, Madras and Manchester streets.
The park features a wide paved cycleway and walkway, garden areas, trees, seating, lighting, small grassed patches and pocket parks.
A half-basketball court and table tennis tables are at the northern end. A temporary street art space that looks like giant spray cans is at the southern end.
The park runs through what is eventually planned as a community of 900-plus apartments and townhouses. The Crown bought the land at a cost additional to the development costs.
Contractor Fletcher Living has begun building the first batch of homes, with the first block due to be finished in September and the last not likely to be built until the mid-2020s. It is expected between 195 and 200 homes will be built by mid-2019.
Some of the spaces earmarked for future housing, will be grassed and available for the public to use in the meantime. Other parts of the east frame are being used for car parking. Already installed underground are wiring and pipes for the frame’s eventual housing.
Albert Brantley, chief executive of Crown company O¯ ta¯ karo which is building the frame, said it was worth people coming for a look.
‘‘The important thing is, it’s a public space for everybody,’’ Brantley said. ‘‘It’s about getting people into the area and using the park.’’
He said the spaces would be ‘‘an enjoyable place to take a break from the busy central city’’ and ‘‘a Christmas present for the city’’.
Roads running east-west through the park have been kept as slow roads with cycle lanes.
O¯ ta¯ karo’s chief landscape architect, Peter Matthews, said the spaces were designed for individuals and for small public events.
The public area has 9000sq m of grass,
2300sq m of paving, 14,000 plants, 312 trees, 31 bike stands, 32 seating benches,
80 lighting poles, 11 litter bins, and 1600sq m of drainage pipes.
The former M.E.D building at the Armagh St end of the park has been left intact and will be reworked for a mixture of uses, probably by a private developer.
An official public event to open Rauora Park will be held late next month.
"The important thing is, it's a public space for everybody. It's about getting people into the area and using the park."
Albert Brantley, chief executive of Crown company O¯ ta¯ karo