| The year The focus in Christchurch has shifted from recovery to rebuild with the CBD demolitions progressed and the central city cordon removed. Just over a year since the Central City Recovery Plan was released, there has been substantial progress across the 17 anchor projects. An important announcement was made in July with the cost sharing arrangement between Government and the Christchurch City Council. This agreement covered horizontal infrastructure and anchor projects totalling $4.8bn with $2.9bn from Government and $1.9bn from CCC. Key Government-led anchor projects include the: Avon River Precinct, The Frame, Metro Sports Facility, Convention Centre precinct, Stadium and the Bus Interchange. Agreements in principle or contracts are in place to acquire 68% of the land area designated for the Convention Centre. Construction commenced on the first stage of the 3.2km of the Avon River Precinct as part of the 'Watermark' project. The Health Precinct master plan tender has been awarded. There has been substantial progress made on repairing the horizontal infrastructure with activity about to majorly scale up in the CBD. Approximately half of the horizontal infrastructure has been investigated and scoped (to TOC) and a third of repairs/replacement completed (as at 31 July 2013). As the horizontal infrastructure rebuild has shifted from first response/path and repair to fully fledged rebuild, a new governance structure has been implemented to provide greater focus on value for money. Orion Electricity, the electricity provider for the Christchurch area is currently proceeding through the Customised Price Path option with the Commerce Commission, the first Electricity Distribution Business to do so. This is being watched with interest across the country as it will set the prices Orion can charge and raises questions around resilience and disasters and who bears the recovery costs. The Canterbury Water Management Strategy and the work of the different Zone Committees is progressing. In the meantime, irrigation schemes for the Hurunui Water Project, Project Raindrop and Central Plains have been given grants from the Irrigation Acceleration Fund. These grants are to facilitate their development of the schemes to an investment ready stage. The Hurunui Project was recently granted consent to take water and is proceeding to progress the technical scheme design and engage with potential partners and water users. There has also been progress on land settlements: 96% of red-zoned property owners eligible for a Crown offer to purchase their property have signed a Sale and Purchase agreement. A significant work programme is underway on green Technical Category 3 (TC3) land to assist property owners to repair and rebuild their homes. A focus in the land area has been on ensuring an adequate land supply programme, supported by the draft Land Use Recovery Plan, which provides delivery mechanisms to rebuild and develop new communities and the infrastructure needed. |
| Overview The focus has shifted from recovery to rebuild with the central city cordons down and plans well underway for the rebuild. With the horizontal infrastructure programme proceeding at pace, there is a real need to ensure a well integrated and sequenced construction programme of work. |
| Highlights from the past year » CBD demolitions are 93% complete and the central city cordon removed. » Approximately half of the horizontal infrastructure has been investigated and scoped (to TOC) and a third of repairs/replacement completed. » The anchor projects to drive central city development are progressing and a timetable for the planning, design and construction of these has now been released. » Private sector investors have submitted outline development plans to cover approximately 95% of the proposed Retail Precinct. » 4% increase in total TEU volumes to 351,217 at Lyttelton Port. Four new Leibherr state of the art diesel electric straddle carriers were delivered and a commitment made to purchase another four straddle carriers and a new ship to shore gantry crane, capable of handling larger container vessels. » Housing New Zealand's $170m new builds housing programme was launched in May 2013 focussing on replacing houses that are too damaged to be economically repaired. 700 new dwellings will be built under this programme by December 2015.This complements HNZC's Repair 5000 initiative involving substantial repair work on the 5000 state homes it is economic to rebuild. » A Greater Christchurch Transport Statement has been developed to provide a one-network transport system across greater Christchurch. This includes an Accessible City Plan that looks at how people travel into and around the city, reduced speed limits and encourages more walking, cycling and the use of public transport. A key anchor project, the Bus interchange, will be a central link to all services and is an integral part of 4 major transport hubs in the city. | Opportunities/challenges » Reviewing and ensuring the SCIRT Alliance governance arrangements are fit for purpose considering the new phase of rebuild and ensuring the investment delivers value for money. » With the scale of construction anticipated across Government, CCC and the private sector, the importance of co-ordination, project sequencing and clear communication and engagement with the market is critical. Adding in the demand from a growing Auckland and given the expected increase in supply of land, and demand for housing, due to implementing the Housing Accords and Special Housing Areas Act 2013 in Auckland, it is unlikely that the national building and construction sector will be able to meet this demand. This will require a well-coordinated programme management approach to sequencing and managing projects. » Coordination between the rebuild of the horizontal and the vertical infrastructure as the rebuild of the CBD gets underway. » The large scale of change underway and the projected increase in freight demand and irrigation in the hinterland, provides a good opportunity to look at the Port and consider future corridor needs and capital requirements. | ||||
| Status of infrastructure repair work undertaken by SCIRT | |||||
| Estimated Damage | Total Complete | % Complete as at | |||
| Roading | 1320.4 | 280 | 21% | ||
| Water Supply | 69 | 42 | 60% | ||
| Waste Water | 659 | 200 | 30% | ||
| Storm Water | 26 | 12 | 45% | ||