Cathedral funding shortfall forecast
Restoration of the Christ Church Cathedral will cost more than the original $104 million estimate, leaving a multimillion-dollar shortfall for the high-profile project.
The true cost of the restoration will not be revealed until the end of this year, but fundraisers are privately contacting potential donors across the world seeking large donations.
A spokeswoman for the Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Ltd, a company leading restoration run by Crown and Anglican representatives, said the economic impact of the Covid19 pandemic was making fundraising harder.
A donor had already dropped out as a result of the coronavirus downturn, she said. ‘‘We are acutely aware that the economy is uncertain,’’ she said.
‘‘We are working with key supporters to help ensure we navigate through this period with sensitivity and pragmatism.’’
The company was confident the fundraising target would be ‘‘ambitious yet achievable’’, the spokeswoman said.
The original $104m estimate was calculated in 2016 by the governmentappointed Cathedral Working Group. The project has about $100m in funding from church insurance proceeds, council grants and government contributions.
The project will cost more because of additional enhancements included in the restoration in 2018, the spokeswoman said.
‘‘The $104m estimate . . . was based on a ‘like for like’ reinstatement, which did not consider consenting, the real complexities of a safe build sequence and other site constraints, or properly address enhancements that were agreed to in 2018 to ensure this 19th century cathedral is equipped for the next century.
‘‘We are not just putting back everything as it was because the pre-quake Cathedral didn’t have adequate facilities, for example, it didn’t have adequate amenities like toilets and gathering spaces.’’
The spokeswoman could not provide any more detail on the higher budget or the donor that dropped out.
The fundraising campaign was in the ‘‘quiet phase’’, she said.
‘‘The first phase is what we call the quiet phase, which happens behind the scenes, focusing on key relationships.
The bulk of support comes from these givers who make sizeable gifts.
‘‘Then comes the public phase of the campaign where fundraising becomes very visible and the community is actively involved. We aim to move to the public phase next year.’’
All the money would need to be in place by the middle of 2023 for the final phase of the project – restoring the cathedral spire. The $11.8m first phase of the project, stabilising the building, is fully funded and work is under way.
‘‘The next phase is strengthening and reinstatement and funding for this will need to be in place by late 2021.
‘‘The next fundraising milestones are in mid-2022 for the ancillary buildings and mid-2023 for the tower, based on the current project programme.’’