Two years after the Christchurch earthquakes, the city council has only finished detailed assessments of about half its community facilities, and nasty surprises are still cropping up.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister is giving the Christchurch City Council until this morning to approve a major land development plan otherwise he'll force it through himself.
Some of Christchurch's earthquake damaged red-zone land is another step closer to having some long term decisions made about its future. Today the Minister of Greater Christchurch Regeneration, Megan Woods, formally handed over ownership of 70 hectares of land to the Christchurch City Council. The land gifted to the council is in the coastal suburbs of Southshore, South Brighton and Brooklands, where residents have been waiting almost a decade to find out what the future holds for their area. Rachel Graham reports
Christchurch City Council staff have been given the hurry up from councillors over the length of time it is taking to repair or replace earthquake-damaged council housing.
The Christchurch Mayor says the city council will meet with GNS scientists to get some answers about the current sequence of earthquakes, which have sparked anxiety among residents.
Plans for the reconstruction of earthquake damaged parts of Christchurch are slowly taking shape as priority is given to restoring fundamental services to residential areas of the city.
Christchurch is home to many diverse ethnic groups whose voices have sometimes gone unheard in the aftermath of the earthquakes and the city's rebuild plans. Katy Gosset visits a gathering in Christchurch's battered eastern suburbs to hear their thoughts on post-quake life and the future of their adopted home.
Plumbers say EQC paying bills too slowly, Earthquake Commission defends its claim process, Events centre, not stimulus package, for West Coast, Harawira calls meeting to consider forming new party, Government, Auckland council split over development, Search work in Christchurch central city nears completion, Power in South Christchurch threatened by cut cable.
Hundreds of Christchurch homeowners have discovered extensive damage to the on-sold properties they purchased after the 2010/2011 earthquakes. Licenced Building Practictioner Dan Paltridge talks to Logan Church about what people need to look out for, and what they need to do before buying a home in the city.
Building plans signed off by the Christchurch City Council show one of its own structural engineers was involved in the design of a new multistorey building that is unstable. The eight-storey office building at 230 High Street is off-limits as it is too weak and might 'rupture' in an earthquake. But the council insists the planning documents are wrong and its engineer had only a minor role. Phil Pennington reports.
Days after Christchurch was devastated by a 6.3 magnitude earthquake, Simon Morton traverses the city, using the Avon River as his route, and finds everyone has a story to tell.
Construction delays and cost over-runs are prolonging the earthquake risks facing patients and staff at Christchurch hospital. Six major hospital buildings at the central city site have been listed as earthquake prone since May, but there is no safer space to shift patients into. Christchurch Hospital boss David Meates pron; Mates says the hospital is still basically a construction site. One earthquake prone building has roof tanks containing 75 tonnes of water. Mr Meates told RNZ reporter Phil Pennington removing the water from the tanks in the meantime is not an option.
The Prime Minister, John Key, has just announced that a national memorial service to mark the Christchurch earthquake will be held in the city on Friday March the 18th.
On October 23, 2010 Christchurch's Hagley Park hosted one of the biggest ever free concerts in New Zealand, following the first big earthquake to shake the city a month earlier.
Scientists studying last month's earthquake in Christchurch say the shaking was exacerbated by a slapdown or trampoline effect that made the land under the city bounce up and down.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister says the Christchurch City Council has wasted an opportunity in deciding to save the Town Hall, instead of building a new performing arts precinct.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister has given the Christchurch City Council until this morning to approve a development plan, or else he says he'll do it for them.
The Property Council says an ultimatum from the Christchurch City Council to owners of earthquake damaged commercial buildings will add to the stress business people are already under.
As Auckland and Northland brace for more atrocious weather, city leaders are calling for funding to repair the city's broken infrastructure to be along the lines of the help given to Christchurch after the quakes. Auckland deputy mayor Desley Simpson says that the damage so far is equivalent to the biggest non earthquake event the country has ever had and should be treated accordingly. The Opportunities Party says the "alliance" model established after the earthquakes, was effective and would work for Auckland's rebuild, because it provides a structure that the Central Government can fund directly. ToP leader Raf Manji was a Christchurch councillor after the quakes and closely involved in the rebuild. He tells Kathryn Ryan it is vital to ensure water and transport infrastructure is repaired quickly and efficiently, especially with a view to future extreme weather events - and there is much to learn from the post-quake rebuild.
As the feature length documentary When A City Falls about the Christchurch earthquakes goes on general release in New Zealand, One in Five recalls a programme from earlier in the year when Mike Gourley sneaks inside the Christchurch cordon to meet up with red zone resident, Frank Film's Gerard Smyth.
Survivors of February's devastating earthquake in Christchurch are astounded the Royal Commission won't investigate whether anyone should be held liable for the collapse of so many central city buildings.
A new office building in central Christchurch has multiple flaws in its earthquake design that the city council was warned about almost two years ago. Construction of the seven-storey building above the busy shopping precinct at 230 High Street, continued even after those warnings in December 2017. Three leading engineering firms have found critical faults - the latest are detailed in a Government-ordered report that's been leaked to RNZ. Phil Pennington joins Corin Dann with the details.
A payrise of nearly 70 thousand for the Christchurch City Council's chief executive has stunned people in the community, many of whom have been struggling financially since the earthquakes.
Katy Gosset meets one of Christchurch's top tailors. Mark van Roosmalen may have lost his premises in the earthquake but he's busier than ever, turning out bespoke garments for the city's style-conscious. Katy finds that amidst the high-viz vests of Christchurch there's still plenty of room for a sharp suit.
Our programme this morning is completely devoted to the aftermath of yesterday's Christchurch earthquake. Civil Defence says rescue teams in Christchurch are still recovering people alive who have been trapped in buildings in the city overnight. The emergency department at Christchurch Hospital is extremely busy with many seriously injured people. After an emergency cabinet meeting yesterday, the Prime Minister flew to Christchurch to view the aftermath of the quake first hand. Numerous stories, some of survival, others more tragic are emerging in the aftermath of the quake.
Business owners have told the Christchurch City Council they are haemorrhaging thousands of dollars a week, while it decides whether or not to demolish their buildings following last month's earthquake.
Christchurch's historic Theatre Royal will reopen for business in November, with bookings about to open for the first show, the Royal New Zealand Ballet season of "A Christmas Carol" The 106-year old theatre has been closed for almost four years because of earthquake damage in the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes. The $40million rebuild and restoration project will be completed over the next five months and on 17 November 2014, the 'Grand Old Lady' of New Zealand theatre will reopen her doors for performances. With so few venues for performance left in the city, including the Town Hall out of commission indefinitely, the rebuild of the Theatre Royal is very good news for Christchurch audiences Chief executive Neil Cox explains the process of getting oldest Edwardian theatre in the country back in use and mounting the large scale theatrical productions it has been famous for.
A scheme called Crack'd for Christchurch wants to make a beautiful memorial out of the fine china broken in the earthquake. Jenny Cooper is one of a group of people who plan to create an inner-city mosaic that is an art work in its own right, but also acts as a memorial to old Christchurch.
Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee has backed off on his threats to the Christchurch City Council and one of the New Zealand Greenpeace activists is freed from a Russian detention centre.
The Labour Christchurch East MP Lianne Dalziel says the city council has made a terrible decision about how it organises help for earthquake victims and it needs to be changed urgently.