Large steel frames will be installed on the west wall, the transepts, the back of the cathedral and the southern side of the building near where the tower once stood.

"These frames are designed to stop the building from moving in an earthquake," said Project director Keith Paterson

"But they also provide an opportunity for access and then also encapsulate the building to weatherproof it in the future.

We are using them for multiple purposes."

Workers would then enter beneath portable steel frames to protect them from earthquakes or falling debris.

"It is a bit like Pike River, but the danger isn't omnipresent, it is a discreet danger."

Once workers can access the building they will be able to assess the level of damage to the stone walls from a crane, Paterson said.

At the end of the year, demolition will begin on the visitors centre on the northern side of the cathedral to allow more access to the heritage building.

The two-year stabilisation project also includes removing the cathedral's historic pipe organ so it can be restored and improved.

By the end of the stabilisation stage, Paterson said the building would be about 34 per cent of the current seismic building code.

Three historic trees and the Citizens' War Memorial should only be removed from the Christ Church Cathedral grounds if absolutely necessary, city leaders say.

Proposed planning laws being drawn up by the Government to fast-track the cathedral's restoration allow for three, more than 100-year-old, London plane trees and the war memorial to be removed from the site.

The new planning rules being drawn up by the Government would mean resource consent for restoration would have to be approved within 40 days and would not require public notification

Source

• stuff.co.nz
• stuff.co.nz
• Image: stuff.co.nz

The documentary begins with filmmaker Gerard Smyth telling Paul Martin, the Catholic bishop of Christchurch, that he has heard "rumours" that the cathedral might be moving.

To which Martin replies "It is very interesting that you are hearing that Gerard."

Three options have been under consideration after the cathedral was damaged in the Christchurch earthquake: restoration of the existing structure, a new cathedral constructed on the present site, or a new cathedral in a new site close to the centre of the city.

Martin said that it is ultimately up to the bishop to make the decision about the future of the cathedral. He said there would be no voting on the options.

If restoration was not a possibility, his personal preference was to be more in the heart of the city.

In November, Stuff reported Martin as saying the church was in talks over the purchase of a city centre site near Cathedral Square.

He declined at that time to name the site.

In the documentary Smyth suggests it is located on Oxford Tce between the Margaret Mahy Playground on Manchester St and Victoria Square on Colombo St.

It currently has about five owners, including the former PWC building site partly owned by developer Philip Carter and the site of the former Copthorne hotel.

At the end of the documentary, Smyth asked the bishop if he was "leaning towards a certain decision, would you be able to tell us now?"

"If you turn the camera off you mean?" was the reply.

Smyth, an award-winning filmmaker, is the owner of Christchurch based Frank Film.

He has produced and/or directed more than 60 documentaries. A short, easily digestible film is uploaded to Frank Film weekly on Monday mornings.

Source

• stuff.co.nz
• frankfilm.co.nz
• gerardsmyth.nz
• stuff.co.nz
• Image: screenshot stuff.co.nz

Reinstatement project director Keith Paterson said he was pleased work on the cathedral was getting underway.

He said the building and frame - which are not connected - were a dramatic reminder of what the city went through during the Christchurch earthquakes.

It was important people saw the project was progressing.

Once the frame and rubble are removed, it would be possible to get a closer look at that part of the building.

This would help decide what needed to be done next.

Sections of a 90-tonne crane essential for the frame's removal arrived on-site on Thursday.

Two cranes will be used to remove the rubble: one will have workers in a basket, while the other will use straps to carefully lift out pieces of rubble.

Paterson said some of the stonework was heritage material, so would need to be moved carefully before being documented and catalogued for the future.

He said the work signalled the end of the tidying up of the site, ready for the next stage to begin, although it was too early to put a realistic timeframe on how long the cathedral's restoration would take.

Paterson is an engineer with more than 30 years' experience. In November he was employed by Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Limited (CCRL) as the Project Director for the reinstatement of Christchurch Anglican Cathedral.

He has worked for Beca from 1986 until recently in a variety of roles both in New Zealand and offshore.

He oversaw the firm's Canterbury rebuild projects and says the Cathedral project is a once in a lifetime opportunity.

CCRL is the charitable company set up to lead the reinstatement project.

Source

• stuff.co.nz
• scoop.co.nz
• Image: stuff.co.nz

Then-board chair Gerard Duignan said the schools would co-locate for up to four years, but Marian College principal Marylou Davidson said on Wednesday there were no plans to move until a new Catholic bishop was appointed. Continue reading

Preliminary reports on the land and foundations on which Christchurch's Catholic Cathedral sits are positive.

The detailed content of the reports has not been made public yet.

Property and Development Manager Keith Beal says the church's attempts to 'save the nave' are making progress with their proposed repair techniques being ratified.

The late Bishop Barry Jones, when making his initial decision last year to attempt to ‘save the nave,' decreed that this would have to be done within a budget cap of $45 million.

Beal said that they are not going to come back with a perfect replica. What they will do is incorporate the most significant elements of the cathedral into a future design.

The cap was set in place to ensure that there would be sufficient funding, including the insurance proceeds, to meet the needs of the cathedral and all parishes in the Diocese.

"Fundraising is the challenge we now face and our attention is fully focused on ensuring that we are able to achieve the first steps in rebuilding the cathedral by 'saving the nave' inside this budget," Beal says.

"Once the investigations into the costs of are complete, only then will we be making a statement on the future of the cathedral. As indicated earlier, that is still expected to be in September."

Interview with Keith Beal
Source

• chch.catholic.org.nz
• newshub.co.nz
• Image: chch.catholic.org

Despite warnings from staff, the strategy and finance committee had recommended council waive the fee. 

Mayor Lianne Dalziel, who backed the application at the committee stages,  said she had changed her mind on the matter.

At a council meeting on Thursday, Tim Scandrett and left-leaning People's Choice Crs Andrew Turner, Pauline Cotter, Jimmy Chen, Glenn Livingstone, Yani Johanson and Phil Clearwater voted to waive the fee.

Dalziel, Ali Jones, Vicki Buck, Jamie Gough, Raf Manji, Paul Lonsdale and David East voted against granting the remission.

The split vote meant the status quo - that the church be required to pay the development contribution - was maintained.

City councillors were torn about whether to approve the church's application, but council staff said granting a remission would set a dangerous precedent.

St Paul's School on Gayhurst Rd, Dallington, was red-zoned after the earthquakes and subsequently sold to the Crown.

The  diocese decided to merge the school with Our Lady of Fatima in Edgeware, creating a new primary school , St Francis of Assisi, on the Innes Rd site.

Two new classroom blocks were built and the church was invoiced for $150,617 under the council's development contributions policy to cover the cost of additional demand on infrastructure.

The school did not want to pay the bill and asked for a remission, saying its post-earthquake circumstances were unique.

Source

• stuff.co.nz
• Image: facebook.com