Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Historic building owner John Phillips wants the red tape to go so he can pull his very badly damaged heritage building down and start again so the businesses in the premises can start again. Phillips owns the former Nurse Maude building on Madras Street".
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "South aspect of ChristChurch Cathedral, Cathedral Square".
An architect and art historian is setting up an action group to oppose the demolition of one of the most well-known churches in Christchurch, the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. The church, registered as a Category 1 building with Heritage New Zealand, was damaged in the 2011 earthquakes and has sat in a state of disrepair ever since. Dr Anna Crighton is from Historic Places Aotearoa. She talks to Susie Ferguson.
In 2010 Neil Challenger, Head of the School of Landscape Architecture at Lincoln University, stated that the malls surrounding Christchurch drove the life out of the inner city of Christchurch. His economic and sociological concerns were expressed even before the earthquake occurred, and this forms the current hesitation on the rebuilding of Christchurch’s inner city. The position of this research proposal is to establish whether an urban architectural intervention can address these economic and sociological concerns and the potentially devastating effects the suburban mall has had on urban life within Christchurch. The thesis specifically asks whether establishing a mall typology as a landmark building within the inner city can strategically engage the damaged historic buildings of post-earthquake Christchurch in ways that actively preserve these historic remnants. The main intention of this research is to engage the damaged historic buildings of post-earthquake Christchurch in ways that actively preserve these remnants and are also economically viable. By preserving the remnants as active, working elements of the urban fabric, they act as historic reminders or memorials of the event and associated loss, while also actively participating in the regrowth of the city. The thesis argues that contemporary architecture can play a strategic role in these imperatives. Overall this research argues that there exists a distinct requirement for large-scale retail in the inner city urban environment that recognises and responds to the damaged cultural and historic architecture of inner city Christchurch. The objective of the thesis is to propose means to rejuvenate not only the economic vitality of central Christchurch,but also its historic character.
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Looking from Gloucester Street across the demolition site of the Coachman and Canterbury Times (Christchurch Star?) buildings with Heritage Hotel on the left and Novotel in the centre".
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Looking from Gloucester Street across the demolition site of the Coachman and Canterbury Times (Christchurch Star?) buildings with Heritage Hotel on the left and Novotel in the centre".
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Looking from Gloucester Street across the demolition site of the Coachman and Canterbury Times (Christchurch Star?) buildings with Heritage Hotel on the left and Novotel in the centre".
Foam hearts with uplifting messages pegged to the fence surrounding Knox Presbyterian Church. The heart on the left reads, "We're all in this together. Christchurch, we love you! Xx". The heart on the right reads, "'We can do no great things; only small things with great love.' Mother Teresa
On a walk around the city to catch up on what is happening May 29, 2014 Christchurch New Zealand. Demolition work on Christchurch's "distinctive" former civic building is under way. The category-2 heritage building was designed by G A J Hart and opened in 1939 as the Miller's department store. It featured the South Island's first escalator, w...
A night-time photograph of the Cranmer Court building on the corner of Kilmore and Montreal Streets. The building has been lit up from below. The octagonal section on the corner of the building was the part occupied by Plato Creative from March 2008 to November 2009. Although designed to house a book depot, this section was used as the principal's office while Christchurch Normal School was operating from the building.
A black and white, night-time photograph of the Cranmer Court building on the corner of Kilmore and Montreal Streets. The building has been lit up from below. The octagonal section on the corner of the building was the part occupied by Plato Creative from March 2008 to November 2009. Although designed to house a book depot, this section was used as the principal's office while Christchurch Normal School was operating from the building.
An interior view of the Cranmer Court building's octagonal corner section, which housed Plato Creative from March 2008 to November 2009. The photograph showcases the building's high windows and intricate wooden ceiling. Although designed as a book depot, this room was used as the principal's office while Christchurch Normal School was operating from the building. A table with chairs set around it can be seen in the lower part of the photograph.
A photograph of the damaged Christ Church Cathedral.
A photograph of the damaged Christ Church Cathedral.
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "ChristChurch Cathedral, Cathedral Square".
Heritage buildings are an important element of our urban environments, representing the hope and aspirations of a generation gone, reminding us of our achievements and our identity. When heritage buildings suffer damage, or fall into disrepair they are either met by one of two extremes; a bulldozer or painstaking repair. If the decision to conserve defeats the bulldozer, current heritage practice favours restoration into a mausoleum-type monument to yesteryear. But what if, rather than becoming a museum, these heritage buildings could live on and become a palimpsest of history? What if the damage was embraced and embodied in the repair? The Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament on Barbadoes Street, Christchurch is the case study building for this thesis. Suffering damage in the Canterbury earthquakes of 2010 and 2011, the Cathedral sits in ruin waiting for decisions to be made around how it can be retained for future generations. This thesis will propose a reconstruction for the Cathedral through the analysis of precedent examples of reconstructing damaged heritage buildings and guided by a heritage framework proposed in this thesis. The employed process will be documented as an alternative method for reconstructing other damaged heritage buildings.
A photograph of a marble plaque on the outside wall of the City Council Civic Offices on Manchester Street. The plaque lists the former Mayors and Chairmen of Christchurch.
A photograph of a marble plaque on the outside wall of the City Council Civic Offices on Manchester Street. The plaque lists the former Mayors and Chairmen of Christchurch.
A photograph of a marble plaque on the outside wall of the City Council Civic Offices on Manchester Street. The plaque lists the former Mayors and Chairmen of Christchurch.
A photograph of a painting in Donna Allfrey's house at 406 Oxford Terrace. The painting depicts heritage buildings which were demolished in Christchurch, as well as the year or era in which they were built.
One landscape colour digital photograph taken on 19 November 2011 showing Grubb Cottage on London Street. The rear portion of this building was built in 1851 and is regarded as one of the oldest buildings in Canterbury. It was sold in 2006 to the Christchurch City Council and vested in the Grubb Cottage Heritage Trust. In August 2013 the buildi...
The interior of the octagonal corner section of the Cranmer Court building, which housed Plato Creative from March 2008 to November 2009. The photograph showcases the building's intricate wooden ceiling and high windows. A stained glass crest is visible at the bottom of one of the windows reading, "Est. 1874. The spirit of this building lives on". Although designed to house a book depot, this section was used as the principal's office while Christchurch Normal School was operating from the building.
The interior of the octagonal corner section of the Cranmer Court building, which housed Plato Creative from March 2008 to November 2009. The photograph showcases the building's intricate wooden ceiling and high windows. A stained glass design is visible at the center of the windows with a motto underneath reading, "The spirit of this building lives on". Although designed to house a book depot, this section was used as the principal's office while Christchurch Normal School was operating from the building.
The interior of the octagonal corner section of the Cranmer Court building, which housed Plato Creative from March 2008 to November 2009. The photograph showcases the building's intricate wooden ceiling and high windows. A stained glass design is visible at the center of the window with a motto underneath reading, "The spirit of this building lives on". Although designed to house a book depot, this room was used as the principal's office while Christchurch Normal School was operating from the building.
A plaque on the side of the Edmonds Band Rotunda on Cambridge Terrace. The plaque reads, "This rotunda shelter and circular seat were presented by T.J.Edmonds to celebrate fifty years of residence in Christchurch 26th September 1929".
A photograph of staff from the Department of Physics and Astronomy from the University of Canterbury recovering parts of the Townsend Telescope from the rubble of the Observatory tower. The telescope was housed in the tower at the Christchurch Arts Centre. It was severely damaged when the tower collapsed during the 22 February 2011 earthquake.
A photograph of staff from the Department of Physics and Astronomy from the University of Canterbury recovering parts of the Townsend Telescope from the rubble of the Observatory tower. The telescope was housed in the tower at the Christchurch Arts Centre. It was severely damaged when the tower collapsed during the 22 February 2011 earthquake.
The Manchester Courts building was a heritage building located in central Christchurch (New Zealand) that was damaged in the Mw 7.1 Darfield earthquake on 4 September 2010 and subsequently demolished as a risk reduction exercise. Because the building was heritage listed, the decision to demolish the building resulted in strong objections from heritage supporters who were of the opinion that the building had sufficient residual strength to survive possible aftershock earthquakes. On 22 February 2011 Christchurch was struck by a severe aftershock, leading to the question of whether building demolition had proven to be the correct risk reduction strategy. Finite element analysis was used to undertake a performance-based assessment, validating the accuracy of the model using the damage observed in the building before its collapse. In addition, soil-structure interaction was introduced into the research due to the comparatively low shear wave velocity of the soil. The demolition of a landmark heritage building was a tragedy that Christchurch will never recover from, but the decision was made considering safety, societal, economic and psychological aspects in order to protect the city and its citizens. The analytical results suggest that the Manchester Courts building would have collapsed during the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, and that the collapse of the building would have resulted in significant fatalities.
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "ChristChurch Cathedral and Cathedral Square from the air".
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "A digger working on the remains of Gough House with the fragile remains of the wooden heritage building, Shands Emporium (one of Christchurch's oldest retail buildings), still standing on Hereford Street".