The Christchurch City Council and the Earthquake Recovery Minister, Gerry Brownlee, have hammered out a compromise deal over setting the council's long term spending priorities.
A PDF copy of pages 40-41 of the book Christchurch: The Transitional City Pt IV. The pages document the transitional project 'Temporary City Libraries'. Photo: Tim Church. With permission: Christchurch City Council.
Despite Government pressure on the Christchurch City Council to sell off some of its assets to help fund its 40% share of the city's earthquake repairs, the council has instead decided to raise rates, and rents.
A PDF copy of pages 48-49 of the book Christchurch: The Transitional City Pt IV. The pages document the transitional project 'Reconstruction: Conversations on a City'. Photo: Tim Church. With permission: Christchurch City Council.
The Christchurch City Council has received a strong warning from the Earthquake Recovery Minister to speed up its processing of building consents or lose its power to authorise consents.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister says this is a final warning for the Christchurch City Council.
The Christchurch City Council says it has reached a compromise with the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister, Gerry Brownlee, and voted unanimously to support a plan to intensify housing in the city.
The newly elected Christchurch City Council had its first meeting with the Earthquake Recovery Minister last night, and councillors say it was the beginning of a much better working relationship.
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.
A PDF copy of pages 44-45 of the book Christchurch: The Transitional City Pt IV. The pages document the transitional project 'Colombo Street Temporary Streetscape'. Photo: Tim Church. With permission: Christchurch City Council.
A PDF copy of pages 38-39 of the book Christchurch: The Transitional City Pt IV. The pages document the transitional project 'Rebuild Central'. Photo: Tim Church. With permission: Christchurch City Council.
A PDF copy of pages 274-275 of the book Christchurch: The Transitional City Pt IV. The pages document the transitional project 'Central City Plan (Draft Central City Recovery Plan for Ministerial Approval, December 2011)'. Photos with permission: CCC
A PDF copy of pages 42-43 of the book Christchurch: The Transitional City Pt IV. The pages document the transitional project 'Oxford Terrace Temporary Streetscape and Interpretation'. Photo: Tim Church. With permission: Christchurch City Council.
A PDF copy of pages 46-47 of the book Christchurch: The Transitional City Pt IV. The pages document the transitional project 'Central Station: Temporary Bus Exchange'. Photo: Tim Church. With permission: Christchurch City Council.
Group case study report prepared for lecturers Ton Buhrs and Roy Montgomery by students of ERST 635 at Lincoln University, 2013.The New Zealand Government’s decision to establish a unitary authority in the Auckland Region has provided much of the context and impetus for this review of current governance arrangements in the Canterbury region, to determine whether or not they are optimal for taking the communities of greater Christchurch into the future. A number of local governance academics, as well as several respected political pundits, have prophesised that the Auckland ‘Super City’ reforms of 2009 will have serious implications and ramifications for local governance arrangements in other major cities, particularly Wellington and Christchurch. Wellington councils have already responded to the possibility of change by undertaking a series of reports on local governance arrangements, as well as a major review led by Sir Geoffrey Palmer, to investigate options for governance reform. Alongside these developments, the Christchurch earthquakes beginning in September 2010 have raised a myriad of new and complex governance issues, which may or may not be able to be addressed under the status quo, while the replacement of Regional Councillors’ with centrally-appointed Commissioners is suggestive of government dissatisfaction with current arrangements. With these things in mind, the research group has considered local government in Canterbury and the greater Christchurch area in the wider governance context. It does not limit discussion to only the structure of local government in Canterbury but rather, as the brief (Appendix 1) indicates, considers more broadly the relationship between central, regional, and local tiers of government, as well as the relationship between local government and local communities.
A video of an interview with Mayor Bob Parker about the building consent crisis at the Christchurch City Council. The council received a letter from International Accreditation New Zealand (IANZ) on 30 May 2013. The letter says that the Council has until 28 June 2013 to improve its processes or it will be stripped of its accreditation as a building consent authority.
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.
A small house is shown on an enormous foundation block labelled 'Rate$'. The cartoonist's comment is 'Like for like for the house...Total dislike for the foundation!' In Christchurch there were prospects of large rises in householders' rate to help finance the Christchurch Rebuild project. In view of the damage to housing, rate increases may be badly disproportionate. Quantity: 1 digital cartoon(s).
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 Christchurch City councillor in charge of council housing says he accepts trenchant criticism from the Earthquake Recovery Minister that the council has been woeful in fixing its quake-damaged housing stock.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee says officials have tried for months to help the Christchurch City Council but it's consistently failed to make the necessary improvements and is still taking far too long to process applications.
A video of an interview with Lianne Dalziel about her decision to run for the mayoralty of Christchurch. Dalziel talks about resigning as a member of parliament, creating a sounding board for community, businesses, and the political spectrum at the Christchurch City Council, and the importance of uniting the Council.
An exceedingly large 'Gerry' Brownlee, the Minister for Earthquake Recovery, rises from a chair, holding a briefcase labeled 'CERA' and calling for 'Bob' Parker, the mayor of Christchurch. The thin Parker was flattened against Brownlee's enormous rear, when Brownlee sat on the chair. Brownlee and Parker had a strained relationship, with the government taking an increasing amount of control in local decision making. After ongoing assurances by Parker that Christchurch City Council would meet all of International Accreditation New Zealand's requirements on issuing building consents, Brownlee announced in June 2013 without Parker's prior knowledge that the authority had withdrawn its accreditation. Quantity: 1 digital cartoon(s).
Christchurch city councillors wants to know what the Earthquake Recovery Authority's plan is to hand back power to the council.
A video of Lianne Dalziel announcing her decision to run for the mayoralty of Christchurch. Dalziel talks about the rebuild of Christchurch, and the daily lives of those living in post-earthquake Christchurch. She also talks about her decision to run independently, her experience as a minister, and the need for transparency and financial integrity in the Christchurch City Council. Lastly, she talks about the building consent crisis at the Council, and the need for the Council to connect with communities.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister, Gerry Brownlee, has defended the government's handling of the Christchurch City Council's consenting crisis in Parliament this afternoon.
Christchurch City Council website on the infrastructure rebuild of Christchurch following the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes. Includes news; information on SMART building; projects related to rebuilding of facilities, transport, suburban centres and the central city.
On the day the the government and council jointly announced who will fund what, for the Christchurch rebuild, a rainbow appears over the rebuild of the Latimer Hotel. For the central city the figures are: NZ$4.9 billion with $2.9 billion coming from central government and $1.9 billion coming from the local city council (us ratepayers in Christc...
The Earthquake Minister Gerry Brownlee says it would be an absolute disaster for Christchurch, if the City Council stopped issuing building consents next week.
A PDF copy of pages 272-273 of the book Christchurch: The Transitional City Pt IV. The pages document the transitional project 'Events Village'. Photos with permission: CCC