Sorry state: Calls to tidy up city eyesore
Overgrown weeds and tall grass in front of the Christ Church Cathedral are a ‘‘bloody disgrace’’ and a ‘‘civic embarrassment’’, Christchurch leaders say.
Christchurch city councillor Deon Swiggs and RSA president Pete Dawson have both called for the cathedral to be tidied up immediately. The fenced-off area around the cathedral has been poorly maintained since the 2011 earthquakes, with gorse, pampas grass and other plants growing wild through the paving stones.
But Anglicans and cathedral restoration leaders say tidying up the space around the earthquakedamaged building is a health-andsafety risk.
Dawson said the neglect was disrespectful to the city’s war memorial, which is inside the fenced area next to the cathedral and surrounded by overgrown grass.
‘‘I think it’s a bloody disgrace,’’ he said.
‘‘It is like a bomb site. It’s like Kosovo . . . It is the site of a significant war memorial. At least it could have been kept tidy and clean so when people gaze through that fence they can see that something has been given the respect it deserves. That has not happened.’’
Swiggs said it was embarrassing for the city.
‘‘I heard a lot of people talking about Christchurch when I was away this weekend. The first thing people would say was about the state of the area around the cathedral,’’ he said.
‘‘It is time to tidy it up. It is a civic disgrace. It is embarrassing because we are meant to be the Garden City.
‘‘I have spoken to staff about what we can do, but it is out of council hands because the Government has stepped in.
‘‘It is up to them to get something done.’’
Christchurch MP Nicky Wagner said something needed to happen with the building quickly.
‘‘They really need to show change and that there is a future,’’ she said.
‘‘It is important to see some action.’’
The cathedral and some land around the building is owned by the Anglican’s Church Property Trustees (CPT), which is in negotiations with the Government to form a joint venture to restore the cathedral.
The chairman of the trust formed to oversee the restoration, Peter Guthrey, said in November that he wanted the site cleaned up before the end of 2017. Guthrey, a central-city landowner and property investor, chairs the Christ Church Cathedral Restoration Trust, which oversees fundraising and restoration of the building.
Guthrey said this week that he understood ‘‘the public’s wish to see the site tidied’’.
‘‘The cathedral site is dangerous and the first priority must be health and safety,’’ he said. ‘‘The potential of carrying out some work to tidy areas of the cathedral site is actively being discussed between the Church Property Trustees, Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Trust and the Crown. We are looking at appropriate solutions, taking into account health-and-safety considerations relevant to the site.’’
Greater Christchurch Regeneration Minister Megan Woods said the joint venture for restoration should be agreed ‘‘in the next few weeks’’.
‘‘One of the key aspects of this negotiation will be the timing and sequencing of the clean-up and restoration of the cathedral site, including health-and-safety considerations.’’
CPT general manager Gavin Holley said any tidying work must take into account the dangerous state of the cathedral.
‘‘Church Property Trustees is not prepared to endanger the lives of others,’’ he said.
A spokeswoman for CPT said Bishop Victoria Matthews wished ‘‘to convey the same message she has since 2011, that the safety of people comes first’’.
Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel said the city council ‘‘stands ready to support the cleaning up of the site’’.
‘‘It is like a bomb site. It’s like Kosovo . . . It is the site of a significant war memorial. At least it could have been kept tidy and clean so when people gaze through that fence they can see that something has been given the respect it deserves.’’ RSA president Pete Dawson