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The Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee says discussions are continuing about the future of the ChristChurch Cathedral.

“The Cathedral Working Group was formed in June to consider restoration options for the earthquake-damaged cathedral,” Mr Brownlee says.

“The group delivered its final recommendation on November 28.

“Proposals from the working group were considered by Cabinet today however discussions continue with the Church Property Trustees.

The Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee has approved the Waimakariri Residential Red Zone Recovery Plan – the first of several major future use decisions in the region.

About 100 hectares of mainly residential land in Kaiapoi, The Pines Beach and Kairaki sustained severe land damage in the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes.

The Crown subsequently bought almost 1000 properties in the district to allow people to move on with their lives.

An ongoing focus on the whole of government response to the Canterbury earthquakes will prove invaluable for the New Zealand’s future resilience against natural disasters, Ministers Gerry Brownlee and Nicky Wagner say.

The decision has been made to hold off on the Canterbury Earthquake ‘Learn, Prepare, Act’ Symposium, scheduled for February 2017.

The final inscribed marble panel on the front of Canterbury Earthquake National Memorial is being placed today, says Associate Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Nicky Wagner.

“The Memorial Wall consists of 517 panels of Italian marble, which have been placed on a concrete base wall over the past two months. The names of those who lost their lives in the earthquakes and supporting text have been carefully inscribed using a sandblaster onto 21 panels,” Ms Wagner says.

Regenerate Christchurch’s Statement of Intent has been tabled in Parliament today.

Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee says the Statement of Intent outlines the agency’s strategic objectives, as well as its vision, role and approach.

“Regenerate Christchurch is jointly owned and funded by the Crown and the Christchurch City Council,” Mr Brownlee says.

Canterbury will continue to benefit from major investment from central and local government and the private sector for the next decade.

Treasury’s National Infrastructure Unit has today released its Ten-Year Capital Intentions Plan 2016 – 2025.

The Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee says it shows ongoing commitment to the region’s regeneration.

The Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee has welcomed the broad public support of proposed future land uses in the Waimakariri District’s red zones. 

About 84 hectares of mainly residential land in Kaiapoi, Pines Beach in Kairaki sustained severe land damage in the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes.

The Crown subsequently bought more than 1000 properties in the district to allow people to move on with their lives.

The Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee has welcomed the first step towards deciding the future use of Christchurch’s residential red zones.

Regenerate Christchurch has announced the first Outline for a Regeneration Plan it will develop, which will be for the section of the Otakaro/Avon River corridor from Barbadoes St to Stanmore Rd.

“I’m looking forward to receiving the first of several Outlines for Regeneration Plans put forward by Regenerate Christchurch.

The Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee says the latest spending figures from Statistics New Zealand are further proof of the city’s ongoing recovery success.

Statistics New Zealand has today released its Christchurch Retail Trade Indicator for the June 2016 quarter.

It shows the total retail and hospitality spending rose 2 per cent and, in actual terms, was $1.9 billion for the quarter, up 4.8 per cent from the same quarter last year.

Health Minister Jonathan Coleman and Associate Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Nicky Wagner say the 2016 Canterbury Wellbeing Survey and Index shows Cantabrians are making good progress.

“The survey of over 3,000 greater Christchurch residents shows that Cantabrians’ quality of life and wellbeing continues to improve, and fewer people are negatively impacted by earthquake stressors,” says Dr Coleman.

Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee has announced a line-up of key international leaders in disaster recovery and preparedness for a symposium sharing lessons from the Canterbury earthquake recovery.

The Learn, Prepare, Act Symposium to be held in Christchurch in February next year will present the recovery experiences and lessons learned across many different sectors, including community organisations, government and non-government agencies.

Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee is encouraging people to have a say on a draft plan for the future use of the residential red zones in Canterbury’s Waimakariri District.

“I have received the Draft Waimakariri Residential Red Zone Recovery Plan from the Waimakariri District Council, and I thank the Council for its work in producing this comprehensive document,” Mr Brownlee says.

A Working Group is considering options for the reinstatement of the Christ Church Cathedral and will, once a consensus has been reached, recommend the best way forward, Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee says.

“On 14 June I, in conjunction with Bishop Victoria Matthews, appointed a Working Group to consider options for the reinstatement of the Christ Church Cathedral,” Mr Brownlee says.

Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee says months of design and planning work has the Government on course to open Christchurch’s new Convention Centre in late 2019.

“Today the Government has released an indicative design for the Convention Centre Precinct, to give people an idea of what to expect from this important new facility for Christchurch,” Mr Brownlee says.  

Greater Christchurch Regeneration Minister Gerry Brownlee and Science and Innovation Minister Steven Joyce today welcomed the opening of Kathmandu’s new worldwide head office in the Christchurch Innovation Precinct.

The first anchor tenant to open its doors in the precinct, Kathmandu has brought in over 150 staff, including its product design, systems and online development teams, to the central city location.

Associate Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Nicky Wagner has praised the many volunteers who have helped greater Christchurch make such big strides in its recovery and regeneration.

“National Volunteer Week is a chance to acknowledge the tremendous effort volunteers have put into helping others through difficult times in Canterbury over the last few years, and the time they continue to give selflessly,” Mrs Wagner says.

Minister supporting Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee, and Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel, welcome the appointment by the board of Regenerate Christchurch of Ivan Iafeta as the new chief executive.

Regenerate Christchurch is the agency jointly owned and funded by the Crown and Council, with a focus on development in Christchurch’s central city, residential red zones, New Brighton and potentially other areas. 

The Government’s support for Christchurch has topped $17 billion as new arrangements bring in an exciting phase of regeneration, the Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee says.

“Since the earthquakes in 2010 and 2011, the Government has backed greater Christchurch and our financial support has helped people make huge strides in their recovery,” Mr Brownlee says.

Associate Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Nicky Wagner says it is pleasing to see that a recent CERA survey of former red zone owners shows the Crown’s recovery objectives have largely been met.

A CERA survey of more than 2000 who accepted an offer measured the Crown’s recovery objectives in four areas: certainty for home owners, confidence in moving forward, being provided with the best information to make an informed decision, and simplicity of the process.

Associate Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration, Nicky Wagner congratulates CERA, the Christchurch City Council and the Matapopore Charitable Trust who jointly won the Strategic Planning and Guidance best practice award from the New Zealand Planning Institute.

The award acknowledged the Street and Spaces Design Guide, a jointly written benchmark document in terms of the type of information it combines and the format in which the information is presented for urban regeneration.

Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee says the four Ministerial appointees to the board of Regenerate Christchurch bring an impressive range of skills and experience working in greater Christchurch.

Mr Brownlee has appointed Andre Lovatt (as Chair), Ross Butler (member, Designate Chair of Otakaro Limited), Manaia Cunningham (nominated by Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu) and Richard Holden to the board, who will serve alongside three Christchurch City Council appointees to be announced today.

Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Gerry Brownlee says central city development plans in Christchurch are going strong.

“Today I joined the Prime Minister John Key in opening the first stage of the BNZ Centre, between Cashel and Hereford Streets, which has brought about 380 workers from eight different Government agencies back into the central city, with more staff from one more agency to arrive next month,” Mr Brownlee says.