Monday, September 5, 2011

CERA Regime. Shanty Shops, Post Apocalypse Christchurch

Shanty shops focus. Tue 06.09.11. A year post Sept 4 Darfield Quake & more than 6 months post Feb 22 Killer Quake, I snapped shanty shops, which evolved on Christchurch demolition sites. This post would be written over 2 months while I found new shanty shops sprouting all over quaking Christchurch. Whatever happened, many businesses continued trading, either in shanty shops, or in relocation premises, or homes. No businesses, no city. Good on them.

Some damaged businesses relocated to mobile vans, shipping containers, trailers, caravans, porta-cabins. Snapped several shanty shops which I passed on my daily drives to Sullivan Ave tech. Business relocation signs were on steel mesh fence cordons & trees for months. Often a shanty shop was against, or opp a ghost bldg.

Rossall St / Holmwood Rd: Maudes on holmwood, porta-cabin cafe, quake demolition site. Leah had tea with a friend there. "Very nice," she said. By 2012 end a permanent bldg would be rebuilt.


06.09.11. Rossall St / Holmwood Rd: Maudes on holmwood, porta-cabin cafe, quake demolition site. By 2012 end a permanent bldg would be rebuilt

Papanui Rd, Merivale: Quinns, two shipping containers, Quinns clothing display windows, Merivale quake demolition site. Quinns relocated to Aikmans Rd cnr, usurping House of Travel, after House of Travel was damaged & repaired, then moved across the road. A new, copper clad bldg was rebuilt on the cnr.


06.09.11. Quinns, shipping container, clothing shop window, quake demolition site, Merivale, Papanui Rd


06.09.11. Quake damaged, boarded, Urban Bliss, Papanui Rd / St Albans St

Papanui Rd / Rugby St: God shops: Like other Christchurch ghost churches, Chinese Methodist Church decayed. Crane removed, church spire stood next to the church. Hall, soon demolished. Church, steel mesh fence cordoned, abandoned, till July 2013 when it would be demolished. Church rebuild would begin, 2014.


06.09.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Quake trashed, Chinese Methodist Church site, Papanui Rd / Rugby St. The church would be demolished July 2013. Church rebuild began in 2014


06.09.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Church hall demolition site, quake trashed, Chinese Methodist Church, Rugby St / Papanui Rd. The church would be demolished, July 2013. Church rebuild would begin, 2014

Papanui Rd / Derby St: Portabuild porta-cabins for hire. A man glared at me from a porta-cabin door when I snapped. He wouldn't get much trade with his sales manner. Never mind my free advertising.


06.09.11. Post quake, Portabuild porta-cabins, carpark, Papanui Rd / Derby St

TV One had occupied the carpark & porta-cabins for several weeks during the Feb-Mar 2011 National State of Emergency, as the site was across Bealey Ave from the steel mesh fence cordoned, red zoned CBD.

Papanui Rd / Derby St: Mobile Osaka-ya, trailer shop, in a carpark.


06.09.11. Osaka-ya trailer shop, post quake carpark, Papanui Rd / Derby St

Papanui Rd / Bealey Ave: Carlton Hotel quake demolition site: Carlton Country Club, trailer mobile pub, attached tents, rooftop booze zones. Mobile pub would depart mid 2012, for a Burger King / offices rebuild which would open, Sept 2013.


06.09.11. Carlton Country Club, trailer pub, Carlton Hotel demolition site, Papanui Rd / Bealey Ave. The mobile pub would stay till mid 2012. A new Burger King / offices would open on site in Sept 2013


Bealey Ave / Victoria St: Knox Presbyterian Church ghost. Opp cnr: Tilt-slab bldg rising on Saggio di vino demolition site. Knox Church restoration would begin, mid 2013. 2014. Rebuilt Knox Church would have copper clad walls.

Bealey Ave: Espresso, black trailer, quake demolition site. 2021. Espresso trailer would be long gone.


06.09.11. Espresso, trailer shop, quake demolition site, Bealey Ave. 2021. The trailer shop would be long gone

Bealey Ave / Caledonian Rd: Thai Food caravan, table, chairs by a steel mesh fence cordon. Large, green, plastic, sewage tank behind. Later, lime green, shipping container joined the caravan shop. 2022. Thai Container cafe would still be on site.


06.09.11. Thai Food, caravan take-away, quake demolition site, Bealey Ave / Caledonian Rd. Thai Food traded on site for years


Stanmore Rd: Red Espresso van in carpark. Earliest shanty shop I saw, came mornings post 22.02.11 Killer Quake.


06.09.11. Red Espresso van, Stanmore Rd. Sold coffee to quake survivors for many months. Earliest post quake shanty shop I saw

Ferry Rd, near Ensors Rd cnr: Hi Viz Tattooing cabin, on pavement, by a burnt out shop, demolition site.


06.09.11. Hi Viz Tattooing, pavement cabin shop, nr quake burnt out shop, Ferry Rd, nr Ensors Rd cnr

Colombo St, Sydenham: Indian dairy, white shipping container, quake demolition wasteland, opp Sydenham WINZ ghost. Shipping container would dairy trade on site for years.


06.09.11. Indian dairy, shipping container, quake demolition site, opp WINZ ghost, Colombo St, Sydenham. The shipping container dairy would trade on site for years

Sydenham WINZ ghost: Cnr concrete, exterior wall slabs, damaged several floors up, all 4 cnrs. Concrete spalling, bent reinforcement steel seen. Typical damage to concrete bldgs: damage to joins where concrete beams, columns, slabs knocked while shaking. Diagonal cracks across concrete slabs too.

Feb 2015. Sydenham WINZ, part demolished, all concrete, exterior wall slabs gone, bldg gutted, just a concrete skeleton remained. WINZ would be demolished, rebuilt as Powell Fenwick offices, similar sized multi-storey to old WINZ.


13.03.12. Coffee Zone, shipping container shop, demolition site, Colombo St, Sydenham. Coffee Zone shipping container would trade on site for years


Colombo St, Sydenham: Months later a Coffee Zone, shipping container shop joined the shipping container dairy. Next to Coffee Zone a Gap Filler temporary office stood amongst demolition site weeds, advertising Gap Filler info. Coffee Zone shipping container would trade on site for years. Late 2012, Gap Filler office would move to Crowne Plaza Hotel demolition site, Kilmore St / Durham St Nth.


13.03.12. Gap Filler hut, quake demolition site, Colombo St, Sydenham. Quake closed, WINZ bldg right. Gap Filler office soon moved to Crowne Plaza Hotel demolition site, Kilmore St / Durham St Nth. WINZ bldg would be demolished, rebuilt as Powell Fenwick offices, similar sized bldg to the old WINZ bldg



05.10.11. BNZ Bank in porta-cabin, KFC carpark, nr The Palms, Shirley Rd

Shirley Rd: BNZ Bank in porta-cabin, KFC carpark, near The Palms.


20.10.11. ASB Bank in porta-cabin, nr Ferrymead countdown, Ferry Rd

Ferry Rd: ASB Bank in porta-cabin near trashed, Ferrymead countdown. ASB Bank porta-cabin would trade on site for years. Ferrymead countdown sign:

The Countdown premises are temporarily closed whilst the building
is being assessed. Countdown will be re-opening in this shopping centre
and we will keep the community informed of the progress.

Thank you for your patience.

Management & staff of Countdown & Building Owner R.D. Sloan.

Ferrymead countdown would be demolished, rebuilt.


20.10.11. Serial quake trashed Ferrymead countdown, awaiting demolition, Ferry Rd

Ferry Rd: Quake Cafe in porta-cabin by closed shops, near Ferrymead countdown. Quake Cafe sign: BUSINESS NOT QUITE AS USUAL.


20.10.11. Quake Cafe in porta-cabin near Ferrymead countdown, Ferry Rd


Barrington St: ASB Bank in porta-cabin by quake damaged Barrington Mall.

Merivale Ln / Papanui Rd: Shipping container shops starting on house demolition site. Shipping container shops would trade on site for years.


20.10.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Beginnings of shipping container shops, on a house demolition site, Merivale Ln / Papanui Rd. The shipping container shops would trade on site for years.

QE11 Park, Bower Ave: EQC had set up porta-cabin offices. Later on EQC staff felt so threatened by irate claimants that EQC capped its border fence with razor wire. Months later EQC would remove the razor wire. Waste of money! If EQC was competent, it would've had happy claimants.

Waimea Tce: By South Library, Fletcher builders, porta-cabin offices.


26.10.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. The Tuck Shop Express, porta-cabin shop, by a Council bldg, near the new, temp, Bus Exchange, between Tuam St / Lichfield St. The Council bldg became Tuam Library mid 2012

Tuam St to Lichfield St, by the new, temp, Bus Exchange: The Tuck Shop Express, porta-cabin shop for Council office workers' use, No Public Access. Tuck Shop Express had left by the time the Council bldg would become Tuam Library mid 2012. Only then would Council provide a porta-cabin shop for bus passengers.

Oxford Tce near Cashel Mall: pure pulp, fruit juice, trailer shop.


29.10.11. Trailer shop, pure pulp, fruit juice, Oxford Tce, nr reopened Cashel Mall. Clarendon Tower left, due for demolition

05.10.11. Thirteen months post Sept 4 Darfield Quake, I would do a short walk along St Asaph St past Manchester St crossing & saw the following:


05.10.11. St Asaph St view, Feb 22 quake trashed Odeon Theatre, Manchester St. Odeon Theatre would be part demolished, Sept 2012, flies gone, auditorium exposed to weathering for years, Tuam St facade kept

22.02.11. Manchester St / Tuam St: Old, brick, Odeon Theatre ghost, would be part demolished in Sept 2012, flies gone, auditorium exposed to weathering for years, Tuam St facade cordoned by stacked shipping containers, obstructing Tuam St traffic for years. Odeon Theatre roof would lie by Manchester St pavement for 2 years.

Manchester St / St Asaph St: Caravan coffee shop on Theme Basics demolition site. Theme Basics brick ghost had stood part demolished, fence cordoned post 04.09.10, 26.12.10 & 22.02.11 quakes. Caravan overlooked demolition sites on 2 other cnrs. 4th cnr, quake survivor, the drawing room, still did business. Caravan later traded, Cambridge Tce, opp Our City, by Avon River.


05.10.11. Caravan coffee shop northern view of serial quake trashed Manchester St,  St Asaph St / Manchester St. The caravan shop was on serial quake trashed Theme Basics demolition site. The Caravan would later trade on Cambridge Tce, opp Our City, by Avon River


05.10.11. Caravan coffee shop view, quake survivor, the drawing room, only bldg to survive serial quakes on Manchester St / St Asaph St cnrs


05.10.11. Manchester St / St Asaph St, caravan coffee shop view, serial quake trashed Manchester St. Quake damaged Holiday Inn & Hotel Grand Chancellor behind, would be demolished

Caravan had an apocalypse view down Manchester St, past the drawing room; past CBD red zone, steel mesh fence cordon, NZDF soldier checkpoint; past old, brick Odeon Theatre ghost; past old, brick ghosts, brick walls peeled off, exposing weathering rooms.

NZDF checkpoint, Manchester St cordon fence, 3 signs:

                     ACCESS POINT
             HOURS OF OPERATION
                6 AM TO 7 PM DAILY
         OUTSIDE OF THIS TIME USE
GLOUCESTER ST / CAMBRIDGE TCE
                     ACCESS POINT

          WARNING
 NO PUBLIC ACCESS
BEYOND THIS POINT

EXTREME
 DANGER
    KEEP
    OUT


05.10.11. St Asaph St view, crane box hoisting men up to quake damaged Holiday Inn roof. Quake trashed Hotel Grand Chancellor Hotel behind. Both high rises would be demolished


05.10.11. Orange, plastic, road cones, steel mesh fence cordon. St Asaph St crossing view, Manchester St red zone, NZDF cordon checkpoint & northern view down serial quake trashed Manchester St. Beyond manna shop, most bldgs in the pic would be demolished


05.10.11. WARNING. Orange, plastic, road cones, steel mesh fence cordon. St Asaph St / Manchester St red zone, NZDF cordon checkpoint & northern view, serial quake trashed Manchester St. Most bldgs in the pic would be demolished


Beyond, a crane lifted a cable-suspended box full of Hi-Vis vested workmen high above multi-storey, Holiday Inn ghost. Did those workmen get danger-money for extremely dangerous aerial work? (I often saw that cable-suspended, crane box work during quake times). Behind stood Feb 22 Killer Quake tilted, Hotel Grand Chancellor ghost, gutted from the inside. Nearby, Westpac high-rise ghost. The 3 high-rises would be demolished.


05.10.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Yellow digger. Serial quake trashed, McKenzie Willis, demolition site, St Asaph St. Post Feb 22 quake, the red zone site was part demolished, sanitized, fence cordoned & stood idle for months before resumption of demolitions


05.10.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Demolition site, serial quake trashed bldgs, St Asaph St, nr Manchester St. Post Feb 22 quake, this red zone site was part demolished, sanitized, fence cordoned & stood idle for months before resumption of demolitions


St Asaph St: Westwards, McKenzie Willis, being demolished. Beyond, more old, brick ghosts, being demolished, 2 steel mesh fence cordoned diggers destroyed bldgs, while cars rattled along St Asaph St obstacle course. Months post Feb 22 Killer Quake, the steel mesh fence cordoned site stayed demolition-sanitized for rubberneckers to gawk. (2019. It would become gritty Salt District). CERA only demolished rubbish bldgs along St Asaph St, 7 months post Feb 22 Killer Quake, nearly 4 months post June 13 Quake.

29.10.11. Restart Cashel Mall: Shipping container, shanty shops would open on quake demolition sites after CERA opened CBD, red zone, Cashel Mall to the public.


29.10.11. Shipping container shops, Restart Cashel Mall, south precinct, opening afternoon




06.11.11. North Hagley Park, post RWC Fan Zone / Music in the park zone: The Caffeine Laboratory, shipping container coffee shop. In mid 2013 the Fan Zone tent would close, no longer used for hire.


06.11.11. Coffee shop in a shipping container, North Hagley Park

Rolleston Ave: Tourist Information cabin, Botanic Gdns gate, by Canterbury Museum, after quake closure of Tourist Information office, Cathedral Sq.


06.11.11. Post quakes tourist information cabin, Botanic Gdns, next to Canterbury Museum, Rolleston Ave

Worcester Blvd: Ice cream hut by coffee shop, opp trashed, steel mesh fence cordoned, Arts Centre ghost.


06.11.11. Ice cream hut & coffee shop, only post quake shop open on Worcester Blvd, opp Arts Centre


06.11.11. Serial quake trashed, steel mesh fence cordoned Arts Centre, Worcester Blvd

Worcester Blvd: Beginnings of container shops, opp trashed, steel mesh fence cordoned, Arts Centre ghost.


19.11.11. Trinket sellers & beginnings of container shops, opp serial quake trashed, steel mesh fence cordoned Arts Centre, Worcester Blvd

Worcester Blvd / Montreal St: NZDF checkpoint huts by closed Christchurch Art Gallery. Art Gallery, damaged by 22.02.11 Killer Quake, closed for repairs, would reopen, Dec 2015.


06.11.11. Quake obsolete sign & closed NZDF checkpoint huts, Worcester Blvd / Montreal St. Art Gallery bldg behind was Civil Defence HQ during Sept 4 & Feb 22 quakes, was closed for repairs & would reopen, Dec 2015


06.11.11. Orange, plastic, road cones, steel mesh fence cordon. Worcester Blvd cordon view, CBD red zone, dead zone. Recently reopened, quake damaged, new Council bldg right. Clarendon Tower ghost beyond, awaiting demolition. Serial quake trashed, Christ Church Cathedral rose window, western facade, at end of street. Cathedral tower gone, behind crane. Rydges Hotel & Grant Thornton left. Grant Thornton would be demolished. Rydges Hotel would survive the quakes, but by 2022 would still be closed

Between Victoria St & Montreal St: Behind a steel mesh fence cordon, Revival container bar & Lebanese food trailer, bordered by 4 blue portaloos.


16.11.11. Montreal St view, Revival container bar, 4 blue portaloos


16.11.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Victoria St view, Revival container bar, Lebanese food trailer



16.11.11. USAR / TF graffiti on pavement & Feb 22 quake closed shops, Victoria St, 9 months post Feb 22 quake

*Trekked Rossall St, Papanui Rd, Bealey Ave, Stanmore Rd, Ferry Rd, Colombo St, Shirley Rd, Tuam St, Cashel Mall, St Asaph St, Hagley Park, Worcester Blvd, Victoria St. 63 snaps.

Given insurers' reluctance to insure rebuilds, with excuses about risk & more aftershocks, shanty shops would blot post quake Christchurch for years.

Mind the Gap: The Press, Wed 21.09.11 & GeoNet kept up aftershocks commentary. We'd had several small aftershocks on Monday & Tuesday & 4 M4s which jolted, rolled, grumbled, mostly Prebbleton region. The Press reported, via a seismologist: there were many aftershocks around Prebbleton in the gap between the Greendale Fault & Port Hills Fault.

Seismologists were mystified why there was no fault connection in the Prebbleton gap between western Greendale Fault & eastern Port Hills Fault. Seismographs did prove faint connections, but rock structures in the gap stopped a continuous fault along Greendale Fault to Port Hills Fault.

Mon 19.09.11: 1.51pm; M4.0; 12km depth; 10km E of Lyttelton.
5.41pm; M4.3; 12km depth; 10km SW of Christchurch (GeoNet).

Tues 20.09.11: 4.30pm; M4.2; 7km depth; 10km SW of Christchurch.
5.41pm; M4.1; 5km depth; 10km W of Christchurch (GeoNet).

Last 3 M4s from Prebbleton wobbled our indoor pot plants, signalling M4 & above.

CERA carbuncle on Council, ratepayers bled for both. The Press, Wed 21.09.11 reported CERA's CBD bus tour plan. Citizens having endured 4 XL quakes, 8 500+ aftershocks over the last quake year, CERA now thought citizens could see the changed CBD behind CERA cordons. Why didn't demolition boss Isaacs roster overnight demolitions & demolitions during weekends? CERA, miffed about complaints about foreigners & celebrities given tours in the forbidden CBD, belatedly thought citizens deserved the same.

Fri 14.10.11. CERA boss Sutton stated on TV that CBD bus tours would be during weekends in November & stop in mid December. A few days before Restart Cashel Mall opened, CERA would open the new, temp, Bus Exchange between Lichfield St & Tuam St. That was after the 2 temp, bus exchanges on Bealey Ave & Hagley Ave had exasperated bus commuters for 8 months post Feb 22 Killer Quake.

Citizens could phone-book their CBD bus tour places, tours starting at Cranmer Sq, 6 buses / hour, 4 hours, Sat & Sun. Citizens were told what shoes to wear & were told about demolition & quake hazards once the bus tour was in the red zone CBD. A gold coin donation from passengers would cover CERA bus tour costs. Twilight bus tours were also planned. (The Press 04.11.11).

What to see? Quake ghosts, weedy demolition sites, no rebuilds.

The Star 20.09.11, mayor Parker reported Council's post quake efforts:

"Of our 2 400km of roading, 54km suffered severe damage and 980km required repairs. Six hundred retaining walls required repair or replacement and 30 bridges needed repairs at a cost of $60 million. Our staff have collected 500 000 tonnes of silt and of our 900 parks, 300 suffered damage. Our staff have faced huge challenges, such as drains that used to flow downhill, now flow uphill...

Next month there are hearings on the Central City Plan and tomorrow we are signing the Alliance agreement for the $2 billion rebuild of the city's underground infrastructure, including water supplies, waste water disposal and roads and at the same time launching the Stronger Christchurch Infrastructure Rebuild Team." (SCIRT).

Coda:

Mayor Parker's statistics were fluid, as a SCIRT 2013, BRIDGES pamphlet would state:

There are approximately 225 bridge structures (including road and foot bridges and larger culverts) in the city. 140 require some level of repair from minor works, such as repairing cracks, through to major work. 

SCIRT 2013, RETAINING WALLS pamphlet would confirm:

SCIRT is rebuilding publicly owned retaining walls. 

There are hundreds of retaining walls in the Port Hills. The damage ranges from minor repair to major rebuild. 

Mayor Parker's optimistic Central City Plan would be gobbled by CERA's CBD Blueprint, which would languish for years, little rebuild in CERA occupied CBD.

Content & pics Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.