Red-zone vacuum
Many projects planned for Christchurch’s red zone have stalled, stuck in a grey area over responsibility for the land. Liz McDonald reports.
There are grand plans, appealing pictures and promises of cash. There have been public exhibitions and feedback sessions.
Nearly $200 million has been earmarked for new projects, some big, some small. So why has there been so little action?
Wrecked eight years ago and cleared of thousands of people and homes, Christchurch’s riverside red zone is 600 hectares of potential yet it remains a source of frustration for many.
Regenerate Christchurch, the Crown-council funded planning agency which issued a $150 million plan for the land last year, has now restructured and stepped back from involvement in its future.
Issues of who will own and govern the red zone, now renamed the O¯ ta¯ karo Avon River Corridor, are yet to be decided. Some sort of trust model has been widely discussed.
In the meantime no one entity has responsibility for the land.
There is no immediate sign of a start to implementing the plan, and there has been slow progress on approving transitional uses intended to get people and activity onto the land in the meantime.
‘SITTING THERE’
Four years ago a group called Cultivate Christchurch was denied a request to use a piece of the land.
Formed to create urban horticulture farms to train atrisk youths, the group has since successfully established two sites elsewhere in the city.
Now they are trying again for a chance to use 2.4 hectares in the red zone, says the group’s cofounder, ecologist Bailey Peryman.
But they are left unable to talk to funders and sponsors who are waiting to support them, he says.
‘‘We are trying to create a world-class facility. In the meantime, that bit of land is sitting there doing nothing. Why haven’t we done anything with it?’’ Peryman asks.
‘‘This land is an amazing ecological asset that can build prosperity, for now and the future. Are we too scared of realising this opportunity? We need to grab this thing and make it real.’’
Apart from about 2 per cent still privately owned, about twothirds of the riverside red zone is in the hands of the Crown and controlled by Land Information New Zealand (Linz), and the other third – comprising former roads, parks, footpaths, etc – is city council owned and maintained.
Mayor Lianne Dalziel has criticised Regenerate for failing to use its planning powers, and intends to discuss its work programme with Greater Christchurch Regeneration Minister Megan Woods.
Dalziel has expressed a preference for a single councilcontrolled urban development authority, replacing not only Regenerate but also rebuild companies O¯ ta¯ karo and Development Christchurch, which could both plan and deliver projects such as the river corridor.
Regenerate’s plan for the corridor includes a wide green spine running its length, linking the central city to New Brighton. Three separate areas, or reaches, would contain a range of ecological, educational, recreational, tourist, and light commercial activities.
SPINELESS
The council has so far budgeted $137m for starting stormwater and flood works, creating the riverside walk and bike track and replacing the Pages Rd bridge. Most of this is earmarked for spending between 2025 and 2028.
Of the $300m acceleration fund promised by the Government for rebuild work citywide, the council wants to use $40m to start the planning and early delivery of parts of the river corridor, including the green spine, but is still working with Regenerate on the business case for it. That business case is expected to go to Woods some time this year.
Meanwhile, the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal Trust, which was established by former prime minister John Key in 2011, still has $18 million in the bank to spend on projects on the land.
With Regenerate’s plan still to be approved by Woods, Dalziel says she does not know when work on the green spine can start, let alone finish. The council would have liked this approval step to have happened sooner, she said.
‘‘We are now, like everyone else, waiting for the plan to be signed off.’’
Also holding things up is the global settlement between the Crown and the council finalising who will own and be responsible for what in the city. Previously expected to have been settled by
mid-2018, settlement talks are yet to begin and mid2019 now looks likely.
TRANSITIONAL PROJECTS?
With planning, funding and governance decisions still up in the air, some hopes for using the land in the next few years lie with short- and medium-term uses but this too has disappointed many.
In May last year Woods extended to five years the transitional use period aimed at activating the land, and in response Linz said it streamlined its process for handling applications.
But those wanting to make use of the land must agree to vacate it, if needed, with just a month’s notice.
Linz’s group manager of land and property for Christchurch, Jeremy Barr, says it had received 34 applications to use red zone land since the start of last year. These were for a mix of one-off events and ongoing activities, and 18 have been approved.
But many others have stalled. As part of the process, Linz needs to consult the city council and Regenerate on every application, and wait for them to state their view, he says.
In a briefing to Woods obtained under the Official Information Act, Barr acknowledged there were ‘‘blockages’’ with the process, which he said they were trying to improve.
The blockages were being caused by delays in ‘‘consultation partners’’ giving feedback, and Linz needing more information than applicants had provided, he said.
Linz was setting deadlines for feedback and developing guidelines telling applicants what information they needed to provide, Barr said.
RED TAPE AND RULES
The Canterbury Tiny House Society wants to establish a community of 15 to 20 homes, but says that after nearly a year it is very frustrated at trying to get the go-ahead.
Last spring it asked Woods to intervene and speed things up, but remains stuck in the application process.
Chairman Kyle Sutherland said the condition of having to
leave with 30 days’ notice and agreeing on valuations for rental purposes are major sticking points.
‘‘We understand the need for an exit clause, but it should be for breaches of lease agreements,’’ he says.
Sutherland explains that to repay loans for upfront costs like establishing the required infrastructure, it needs a guaranteed period of rent.
‘‘Unfortunately with a project like ours requiring a large amount of investment, we can’t go ahead with a 30-day exit clause.
‘‘Also, we can’t have people given 30 days’ notice to be out on the street. We cannot risk that happening.’’
He says negotiating with Linz has been ‘‘incredibly painful so far’’. ‘‘I just don’t think Linz is the right organisation to be managing the red zone. They usually deal with large tracts of land and they can’t deal with community groups like ours in a manner which is timely and productive.
‘‘While we are waiting for long-term uses, the land is just sitting there and it’s a great opportunity to use it. We are really keen to see the space activated but things need to get moving.’’