Posts by Sacha
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Hard News: Christchurch: Is "quite good"…, in reply to Hilary Stace,
surely he should be one of the enthusiasts/ inner circle
Only in an alternate Chch. This plan (and Brownlee all along - points for consistency) prioritises those who will develop new buildings, not keep old ones alive.
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Hard News: Christchurch: Is "quite good"…, in reply to James Caygill,
There is actually loads of room for residential development in the Four Aves (I live two blocks from the Frame and the new stadium site). It does look as though residential is being preferred outside the Frame -- but in truth it's too hard to tell. I can't track down a copy of the Appendix which contains the detail on the designations and regulatory changes which might indicate the degree to which mixed use is actually contemplated in the CBD.
I couldn't tell either. You can download the Appendix with the District Plan changes from the top of the main CBDU Plan page. Be interested to hear more about what your expert eyes make of it.
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Hard News: Christchurch: Is "quite good"…, in reply to Russell Brown,
Anyway, the tourism people seem over the moon about it.
Naturally - it's the public funding their industry's core infrastructure. :)
Here's hoping the redevelopment of the Avon banks actually keeps that space for the people of Chch, not just visiting delegates.
Event centres and stadiums tend to be inward-facing buildings that don't give much energy to their surrounds except for peak crowds that can be hard to engage with and result in empty crowd-scale plazas the rest of the time.
The retailers that conference attendees might buy from during breaks are designated to the South of the convention centre. I imagine hospitality businesses clustering nearby, with the performing arts precinct immediately to the North as well - though the on-site hotels may score a good share of that incidental business.
As for the stadium, even the PM acknowledged it will end up surrounded by sports bars, but what will that neighbourhood be like during the day? Will residents or businesses want to co-locate there? Are they even allowed to?
The CBDU planning team seemed pretty onto-it during the Campbell Live story last night, so presumably they've thought all this through. It's the politicians they report to I have less faith in.
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Hard News: Christchurch: Is "quite good"…, in reply to Tim Croft,
a rail connection from the airport, through to UC, then to Riccarton, past the hospital (and perhaps the cricket ground), new metro sports hub, then into the bus exchange
Thanks. I wasn't imagining that route clearly yesterday but it makes more sense than along Memorial Ave, etc.
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Hard News: Christchurch: Is "quite good"…, in reply to James Norcliffe,
The green frame areas and 'campus" feel are promising
Same. The prospects for a buzzing mix of high-value daytime work and resident-fuelled nightlife seem highest in that part.
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There were some great ideas in the post-quake TEDxEQChch event too. Especially Sacha McMeeking on Ngai Tahu's history and vision, and urban designer James Lunday entertainingly sketching what a human-scale Chch could look like in the context of other urban rebuilds (audio is echoey, but worth it):
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Hard News: Christchurch: Is "quite good"…, in reply to Ed Muzik,
They'll now argue that the "core" is too far from the railway line
The plan's lack of nous about transport struck me yesterday. Then I discovered that they aren't addressing that until the next 100 days.
The exchange is one of the only public transport provisions included in the 100-day blueprint.
This is because Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee decided to shelve the city council's transport ideas, including ambitious plans for a light rail network, when he set up the CCDU back in April.
He said at the time a more detailed assessment of the transport options in Christchurch was needed before any decisions were made.
The CCDU has indicated that it will look more closely at transport in the CBD over the next 100 days of its work programme.
CCDU director Warwick Isaacs said that now the location of key facilities had been decided, his team could start work on traffic modelling and look at issues such as whether the one-way street system should be retained.
So, moar cars. I guess I've been spoiled by transit-led development like most of the first world (and its investors) expects these days. Meanwhile here's the City Council-led 30-year draft Transport plan. Who knows if it means anything.
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Hard News: Christchurch: Is "quite good"…, in reply to Stephen Judd,
Where does this mania for convention centres come from?
They bring in foreign currency. You can imagine how important that seems to the current mob in charge.
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Field Theory: Olympics-eve, in reply to Russell Brown,
unbeatable in the pairs
imagine the Poms would put up a solid resistance
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Capture: Two Tales of a City, in reply to Lilith __,
we need excellent public transport, biking facilities and strategially-placed parking buildings
which are apparently in the *next* 100 days of planning. Somewhat arse-backwards. For now you get a big bus interchange on the edge of the cbd rather than the centre, and some mention of cycleways, bike storage and carparking buildings. All the green space looks promising for cycling and walking.