What’s opening this year
The gaps between developments continue to be filled around Christchurch, slowly bringing a sense of completeness to the rebuild of the earthquake-ravaged central city. But what is set to open in 2019? Which fences are coming down? Where will Christchurch folk be shopping and hanging out in the next 12 months?
We take a look at both public and private projects that are set to open in the eighth year since the earthquakes, further expanding Christchurch’s offerings.
Expect new retail and hospitality areas, food courts and co-working spaces, supermarkets and crucial road links.
Riverside Farmers Market
The Riverside Farmers Market is set to dominate the intersection of Cashel Mall and Oxford Tce, a bookend of the retail precinct.
The $80 million development by the Peebles Group and other development partners is the biggest project on the block, between Ballantynes and the Bridge of Remembrance, a popular preearthquake shopping area.
Peebles Group spokesman Ben Owen said they would hand the shops over to tenants about April or May, with much of the development expected to be completed in June or July.
‘‘We can’t say exactly when everything will be open after that, it’ll come down to when tenants complete their fit-outs,’’ Owen said.
More than 45 tenants have been confirmed for the complex.
Several market stalls are still available but ‘‘the retail side of things is looking pretty full’’.
‘‘With the library opening, EntX and even the Avon River precinct, there’s been a massive influx of people, and we’re expecting the same from the Riverside Farmers Market opening,’’ Owen said.
‘‘We think it’ll be a really important factor in finishing off that last part of Cashel Mall, suited to everyone from office workers right through to tourists.’’
The Welder and The Yard
Two new projects from property development company Box112 are expected to get over the line in 2019.
Box112 owns several significant buildings around the central city, including the multi-storey building at 159 Manchester St, the Public Trust Building on Oxford Tce, and the former Municipal Electricity Department building alongside the Margaret Mahy Family Playground.
Box 112 spokesman James Stringer said The Yard would open this month in Mollett Lane, between Colombo and Durham streets.
The new building is a boutique eatery with a fully leased multioffice space upstairs ‘‘in the heart of the south frame’’.
‘‘The Yard includes eight food offerings on the ground floor, opening on to Sugarloaf Lane and Mollett Lane.
‘‘James Bagrie of Caffeine Laboratory is at the northern end with Maison de Crepe, and a new Thai restaurant will occupy the St Asaph St end,’’ Stringer said.
The Welder, in Welles St, is set to open mid-year.
The development sits inside six repurposed and renovated industrial buildings.
While unable to confirm an opening date, Stringer said 80 per cent of tenancies were confirmed.
‘‘They include a range of hospitality, health and wellbeing, and food retail,’’ he said.
Tenants include boutique Auckland-based fillery GoodFor, which has gained a cult following among northern foodies, Greenroots Juicery, Grizzly Baked Goods, an organic vegetarian restaurant by Hennie Murray, and a range of health clubs and studios.
Stringer said the Public Trust Building would also open in 2019, with several hospitality and corporate tenants already confirmed.
Moorhouse Ave New World
The supermarket domination of the northern side of Moorhouse Ave will continue in 2019 when New World opens the doors to its newest premises.
Foodstuffs spent more than $20m securing multiple sites at the corner of Durham St South and Moorehouse Ave for its largest supermarket in the city.
Property and retail development manager Roger Davidson said it would open between April and June. ‘‘The fit-out . . . [is] beginning in early 2019 [and] we’re looking forward to the store’s expected opening in the second quarter of [2019].’’
Christchurch Town Hall
Although marred at the last hurdle by needing a crucial bailout by the city council, the Christchurch Town Hall is still set to reopen this year.
The building will reopen in stages from February, and is expected to be fully functional in August. Features of the restored building include a three-storey home for the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, an improved stage that can be raised and lowered, electronic acoustics and new backstage facilities. The final rebuild bill for the building was $167m, almost a third more than the initial $127.5m budget. The council approved a $15m bailout in December.
Sumner Rd
The link between Sumner and Lyttelton has been closed since the 2011 quakes.
It is set to reopen in March, after a $40m, 30-month project to make it safe and driveable.
The road had slipped away in places after retaining walls failed, and fallen boulders had damaged other parts. Repairs to the road started in October 2016.
Council spokeswoman Lynette Ellis said public plans for the opening were still being figured out. ‘‘We are currently working on opportunities to celebrate the reopening of this vital transport route, and hope to be able to confirm plans early [in the year].’’
Ao Tawhiti Unlimited Discovery School
Christchurch’s central city Ao Tawhiti Unlimited Discovery school will open in April, at the corner of Colombo and St Asaph streets.
The 2200-square-metre, $30m building will be spread across four storeys, and represents an alternative school model.
With no staff room, library or school grounds, the city centre will provide the school’s facilities.
‘‘We want to recreate what we had in the CBD . . . We will use the city as our playground, as our library and our museum,’’ school director Steven Mustor said. ‘‘Maybe you won’t see Discovery kids playing dodgeball in the [Cathedral] Square like you used to but they might be doing it somewhere else.’’
Avon River Precinct
The City Promenade along the Avon River opened in November to much jubilation.
The 2-kilometre cycle and footpath brought a sense of completeness and pride back to the city section of the Avon River.
An O¯ ta¯ karo spokesman said several small things still needed to be finished to complete the project, including a pedestrian bridge over the Avon, a walkway between the promenade and the red zone, and the installation of the Mana Motuhake artwork in Victoria Square.
The pedestrian bridge replaces the proposed Art Bridge, which was never built. It will cross the Avon between Manchester and Colombo streets, connecting Cambridge and Oxford terraces.
‘‘A 900-metre riverside walkway will be constructed between Kilmore St and Fitzgerald Ave to create a connection between the City Promenade and future developments in the residential red zone,’’ the spokesman said.