Committee approves list of top 27 facilities

Christchurch City Council's Community, Recreation and Culture Committee has today agreed the Council should push ahead with prioritising 27 significant facilities for funding, further investigation and, where possible, repairs.

As part of its Facilities Rebuild Plan project, staff today (Tuesday 4 September) presented a report to the committee which recommended 25 facilities should be prioritised for immediate action (these are listed below). Committee members agreed with the 25 recommendations made by staff and also added Riccarton Community Centre and volunteer libraries (volunteer libraries will be considered as one project) to the prioritised list.

The committee also asked staff to report back to the Council about the status of all 27 significant facilities by December this year.

The committee will now recommend the full Council endorses the top 27 at the next Council meeting on Thursday 27 September. If the Council approves the list, work will continue as a priority to understand more about the facilities, such as the type of repairs and earthquake strengthening needed, the cost of this work and how much of this will be covered by insurance.

A draft prioritised programme for the remainder of the 1000 facilities included in the Council's Facilities Rebuild Plan project also received committee approval today. This will also be presented to the 27 September meeting for full Council approval. Community boards will have input into this prioritised programme.

Community Recreation and Culture Committee Chairman Yani Johanson says this is an important milestone.

"I believe it is imperative that the Council gives our communities hope and certainty by establishing some top priority projects in our suburbs going forward. While there has been a huge focus on the Central City facilities, it is important that neighbourhoods are not forgotten about either. As such I believe it is critical that we send a clear signal around where Council resources are targeted in terms of recovery. This list highlights that things such as swimming pools, libraries, service centres, community halls, and housing are essential elements for the well being of local communities."

The proposed list of 27 'significant projects' includes a range of facilities across Christchurch and Banks Peninsula that are currently closed. Some were closed following the earthquakes while the Council has closed others after receiving Detailed Engineering Evaluation (DEE) assessments which shows they are below 34 percent of the New Building Standard (NBS).

The top 27 were selected based on a criteria that considered a number of factors, including the impact the building's closure is having on the community. At today's meeting, the committee agreed with the criteria Council staff had used to put together their recommendations, but asked that one of the criteria - the criteria that notes whether a facility is earning revenue - should be removed.

Click here to see the 27 significant facilities (these are not in any particular order): http://www.ccc.govt.nz/thecouncil/councilfacilities/updateonfacilitiesrebuildplan.aspx

Read the full report to the committee, including all the staff recommendations, here: http://www1.ccc.govt.nz/council/agendas/2012/september/crc4th/full_crc_agenda.pdf

At today's meeting, the committee also received a monthly progress report on the Facilities Rebuild Plan project and its Detailed Engineering Evaluation programme. The report included a prioritised programme for the remainder of the Detailed Engineering Evaluation (DEE) assessments that will be carried out on social housing facilities over the coming year. DEE assessments are already underway or have been completed on nine social housing complexes across the city. Read the report here: http://www1.ccc.govt.nz/council/agendas/2012/september/crc4th/full_crc_agenda.pdf

Background:

A number of Council-owned facilities have already been prioritised for repairs or rebuilding as part of the Council's Annual Plan 2012/13:

These are:

* Christchurch Town Hall
* Convention Centre
* Christchurch Art Gallery
* Former AMI Stadium
* Central City Multi-Sport facility and QEII facilities
* Centennial Pool
* Central Library
* Lichfield Street Carpark
* Manchester Street Carpark
* Sockburn Service Centre

The Council has already approved repairs to a number of other facilities. Repairs and earthquake strengthening to 100 percent of the New Building Standard (NBS) have been completed on
Fendalton Library and Service Centre. Repairs are underway on Curator's House, Posiedon Café in Sumner, Cowles Stadium, Linwood Community Arts Centre and Avebury House in Richmond. Repairs have also been approved for Victoria Clock Tower (Jubilee Clock) and Edmonds Clock Tower.

For more information about the Council's Facilities Rebuild Plan project visit www.ccc.govt.nz/facilitiesrebuild

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