City heritage buildings mothballed

17 Christchurch City Council heritage buildings in need of money and a new purpose

The damaged Canterbury Provincial Chambers will remain mothballed for at least another 11 years as the Christchurch City Council cannot find the $204 million needed to fix the building.

Work was scheduled to begin last May, but was put on hold. Now the council plans to delay the repair until 2029 because the cost is considered too great to fund during the next 10 years.

The historic buildings, on the corner of Armagh and Durham streets in the central city, were severely damaged in the 2011 earthquakes. They are the only purposebuilt provincial government buildings still in existence in New Zealand.

Previous estimates put the Provincial Chambers repair cost at about $108m.

Historic Places Trust Canterbury chairman Mark Gerrard believed the council should ask the Government to help fund the cost of restoring the chambers because of its national and international significance.

‘‘I don’t think it’s unreasonable for the council to go to the Government and ask for some funding.

‘‘The longer you leave the building, there is more chance of it becoming more deteriorated.’’

The building has a category-one heritage listing and is considered the finest example of Gothic Revival architecture in New Zealand.

The news to delay the restoration came as the council admitted it did not have enough money to complete the repair of other heritage buildings across the city and Banks Peninsula. It has repaired 30 since the earthquakes, but 14 remain damaged and closed.

According to the council’s draft 10-year budget, the Long-Term Plan (LTP), it would spend $35m repairing heritage buildings between 2018 and 2028. Most of that money would be spent on three projects – the former Municipal Chambers ($17.9m) on the corner of Worcester Bvd and Oxford Tce; the Robert McDougall Art Gallery ($12.7m); and the Edmonds Band Rotunda ($1.2m). This leaves about $3m to repair the remaining damaged heritage buildings, which were estimated to cost about $6.8m to repair.

By comparison, during the next 10 years the council proposed to spend $254m on a multi-use stadium and was considering a $7.19 levy on each ratepayer every year to fund a $10m contribution to the cost of

restoring the Christ Church Cathedral.

The council was asking individuals, groups and organisations if they were interested in using 17 heritage buildings or helping to fund their restoration.

Those buildings were all classed as strategic assets, which meant they could not be sold or demolished, without the council conducting extensive public consultation.

Head of parks Brent Smith said the council wanted to hear from anyone interested in helping it restore the buildings and put them to good use.

‘‘People may be interested in running a business or community group from these buildings, or they may be able to help us to restore the buildings.’’

Smith said the council would talk to the Crown and other public agencies about funding and ownership options for the central-city buildings.

He said the council was committed to maintaining its heritage buildings, even if a future use could not be determined.

‘‘Some buildings that haven’t received any interest may be kept in a holding state to stop further deterioration and the restoration could be scheduled for later years.

‘‘The council’s preference is to retain all of its heritage buildings, which is reinforced with the identification of all of its heritage buildings as strategic assets,’’ Smith said.

Christchurch Heritage Trust chairwoman Anna Crighton would not say if the trust was considering taking on the restoration any of the heritage buildings. She said the trust would discuss the issue at its next meeting in March.

‘‘The longer you leave the building, there is more chance of it becoming more deteriorated.’’

Historic Places Trust Canterbury chairman Mark Gerrard