Cathedral Square work resumes after long delay
Work to revamp some of the tatty corners of Christchurch’s Cathedral Square is to restart after long delays to promised upgrades.
The city council was to have begun landscaping the two triangular areas at the southeast side of the square in 2019. Attempts to reschedule the work for 2020 were thwarted by the Covid-19 pandemic and the exercise area at the Distinction Hotel, which was used for managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ). The space outside the Distinction and the Spark building, and outside the Distinction and OGB building, which houses the Heritage Hotel and OGB bar, are both overdue to get new paving, planting, lighting and seats.
The council also had plans to upgrade the area in front of the old post office building, and the section of road between Hereford and Worcester streets.
It is now hoping to start the work at the southern end of the square soon and will also move the unsightly toilet block opposite the new Te Pae convention centre.
Jane Davis, the council’s general manager of infrastructure, planning and regulatory services, said improvement works outside the old post office ‘‘will begin next week and are expected to take about three months to complete’’.
The old post office building has been newly restored by its owner and new tenant, and will open as The Grand by September.
The complex will house a restaurant and bar, pizzeria, deli, florist and gift store, and an i-Site information centre, with a plaza area outside. An artisan bakery will follow.
Davis said they would also be able to make progress on stages of the upgrade delayed by the MIQ exercise yard, now that the facility has closed and the hotel has reverted to business as usual.
‘‘We are still in the design phase and this is yet to be finalised.’’
Last year the council negotiated unsuccessfully to have the hotel’s MIQ exercise yard shifted on to private land so it could get its revamp done.
Plans include relevelling the ground, relaying paving, installing more lighting and putting in more landscaping. Where possible the council hopes to re-use existing materials.
‘‘We are working closely with the Distinction Hotel and the OGB to determine a construction schedule that supports their businesses to continue operating through the busiest spring/summer period, and will be able to confirm this schedule in the coming months,’’ Davis said.
In late August or early September, the council will also shift the temporary toilet block near the tram stop at the northern end of the square. The cost is not yet known.
The rear of the toilet block now features prominently in the view across Cathedral Square from Te Pae. Davis said moving the block would free up space for future development, including around the war memorial, which was shifted last year to make way for repairs to Christ Church Cathedral.
The toilets will be moved across the road and rotated to sit next to the fence around the now-vacant former Grant Thornton office tower site.
Davis said it would be ‘‘a temporary measure while an alternative site is found for permanent toilets’’.
Public space in front of the Tu¯ ranga library has already been upgraded with seating around raised planted areas.
Some minor improvements were made in front of Te Pae in time for its completion late last year.
Other parts of Cathedral Square, including the land being used for access to the cathedral construction site, will not be upgraded until its restoration is complete.
A dramatic new design for Cathedral Square, released by Regenerate Christchurch in 2018, has not been used as there was no funding for the redevelopment. The plan included green areas and waterways, an open air events space, and activity areas.