For five years CERA supervised 1000s of demolitions and delayed rebuilds. CERA held up private sector rebuilds by offering peanuts to CBD property owners for CERA's Blueprint properties. Property developers took their development money elsewhere, like Auckland, or offshore. CERA failed to get offshore funding for Christchurch rebuild, like offshore funding from China.
Sunday Afternoon 14.07.13. CERA's Christchurch CBD red-zone was a cordoned Zombie Zone for two years four months. Two weeks before, NZDF- soldiers left Christchurch CBD cordons for good. Military cordons had strangled Christchurch CBD for 28 months' military occupation. CERA only allowed favoured contractors & demolishers into the CBD. Citizens were banned while CERA contractors profited. As there were few rebuilds so far in CERA's core CBD, I looked at rebuilds done by the private sector:
14.07.13. Post quake, retail rebuild, near Knox Plaza, Victoria St
Victoria St: Near abandoned Knox Church, a glassy, retail rebuild was up next to Knox Plaza. Across the road abandoned Procope still loomed, it's side-wall covered in loose boards & tatty tarps blowing in the wintry wind. Old tarps & boarding allowed the elements in. During that stormy afternoon, I saw rain & hail blowing into Procope. While insurers delayed, ruins rotted, awaiting demolition & rebuild. Procope would survive the quakes.
14.07.13. Quake ruined, boarded Procope, Victoria St
on a boarded-window:
WE ARE
COMING BACK!
NO THX TO SCUM
Across Victoria St, a power-pole with Ben Brown doggerel:
VICTORIA STREET
The clock, if somewhat gaudy
tells a time of poets and hatters
apparently all mad
at an intersection
which makes no sense except
that all roads must lead somewhere
sometimes only one way.
C'est la vie it would seem but
there is more than one way to go
in this life, to the cafe, to the bar,
to the money bin to strike
it rich, to the broken church
to square your loss with god,
to another intersection that can't
make up its mind except
that it must exist.
14.07.13. Ben Brown poem, power pole, Victoria St. Quake trashed Procope opp
Victoria St / Salisbury St: I saw a steel-frame rebuild happening. Noticible about rebuilds: Massive steel-frame with X shaped, steel strengthening between frame verticals. Further down Victoria St, behind Victoria Mansions ruin, I saw another rebuild happening. Both rebuilds post 22 February 2011 Quake, were quickly done by private developers without CERA interference.
14.07.13. Two post quake rebuilds, Salisbury St / Victoria St / Montreal St crossing
Block bordered by Salisbury St, Madras St, Bealey Ave: I saw a new steel, glass & concrete box behind Alan Reay Consultants, easily seen from Salisbury St & Bealey Ave. Steel, glass & concrete boxes were de rigueur in post-quakes Christchurch. Never mind concrete tilt-slab buildings going up too. Prince Charles once referred to such architecture in UK as a "monstrous carbuncle!"
Alan Reay Consultants was the engineering firm which designed CTV multi-storey which collapsed & burned in the 22 February 2011 Quake, killing 115 people. The Royal Commission of Inquiry found Alan Reay remiss in not supervising his subordinate Harding who designed CTV. The Commission found Harding an inexperienced designer.
Despite the Royal Commission of Inquiry findings, Christchurch families & Japanese families, who lost loved ones in the CTV collapse, were upset that NZ National government did nothing to prosecute Alan Reay Consultants, holding them accountable for the 115 deaths. Meanwhile Alan Reay continued engineering in Christchurch (The Press 25.11.13).
The Press 09.01.14 would report that Alan Reay Consultants was renamed Engenium. Directors like Reg Garters distanced themselves & Engenium from Alan Reay's name. Business as usual, despite 115 people killed in the CTV collapse. Pre-quakes, I remembered Reg Garters playing his guitar at church services in Halswell where we lived.
14.07.13. Alan Reay Consultants (renamed Engenium) Madras St. By 2015 the Alan Reay sign would be gone
14.07.13. Demolition site, office bldg, Madras St
14.07.13. Bealey Ave view, demolition site, office bldg
Madras St / Bealey Ave: I saw the Dental clinic rebuild on the old Audiology Clinic demolition-site. Pre-quakes, I'd attended that Audiology Clinic where the audioligist John Gourley had given me a pair of old Phonak hearing-aids for free.
14.07.13. Dental Clinic rebuild on Audiology Clinic demolition site, Bealey Ave / Madras St
Bealey Ave / Colombo St: I saw the concrete tilt-slab imagic shops rebuild, including The Gift Shop, on the old Bealey Pharmacy demolition-site.
14.07.13. Imagic shops rebuild on Colombo Pharmacy demolition site, Colombo St / Bealey Ave
Colombo St: A SCIRT sign near a ROAD CLOSED sign:
SHOP PARKING AVAILABLE
PLEASE SUPPORT YOUR
LOCAL SHOPS
In Christchurch, there were many such SCIRT signs near SCIRT detours around shops.
14.07.13. ROAD CLOSED. SCIRT sign, Colombo St / Bealey Ave
Barbadoes St / Edgeware Rd: I saw the shopping centre rebuild, several shops, including Barbadoes Foodstore, on the old shopping centre demolition-site. I saw another rebuild shop across Barbadoes St. On the corner opposite from the shopping centre, I saw Restoration rebuild on the old Restoration demolition-site.
14.07.13. Shops rebuild on shops demolition site, Edgeware Rd / Barbadoes St
14.07.13. Shop rebuild on shop demolition site, Barbadoes St
14.07.13. Restoration rebuild on Restoration demolition site, Edgeware Rd / Barbadoes St
I saw rebuild shops all had thicker concrete foundation slabs, compared to pre-quakes, thinner concrete foundation slabs. Would thickened concrete foundation slabs stop future liquefactions causing new buildings to tilt in future quakes?
Near Barbadoes St / Warrington St, next to St Albans Park: I saw an old clapboard surgery building propped on four steel crutches. Underneath the propped building, a small blue-digger & small, white front-end-loader excavated pre-quakes, thin concrete foundations for replacement with new, thicker, concrete foundations. That new building-hoisting technology was developed in response to good buildings surviving quakes on weak concrete-pile foundations, or weak concrete-slab foundations, or weak concrete-ring foundations. Thus good buildings could be saved aloft, while new foundations were built beneath.
14.07.13. Wooden surgery propped on 4 steel crutches, while concrete foundations were rebuilt, Barbadoes St, nr St Albans Park
Sherborne St / Westminster St: I saw another shopping Centre, two-storey rebuild, including Papas Pizzas, on the old shopping centre demolition-site. On the diagonally opposite corner, Angus Butchery demolition-site was still empty. Next door, I saw two rebuild shops, including Willow Shoes & St Albans Seafood, Fish n Chips.
14.07.13. Copper clad shops rebuild on shops demolition site, Sherborne St / Westminster St
14.07.13. Shops rebuilds on shops demolition sites, Westminster St
*Trekked Victoria St, Madras St, Bealey Ave, Barbadoes St, Sherborne St. 29 images.
Although there were more rebuilds outside CERA's core-CBD, I drove home, as wintry weather was too foul for finding more rebuilds. I'd been blogging Christchurch quake-zones for three years & was tired of driving long distances on ruined roads to find few rebuilds!
Tuesday 16.07.13. NZTV One News reported CERA minister Brownlee saying the Human Rights Commission was "dreadfully wrong" querying why CERA's review of 150 red-stickered, Port Hills houses was taking so long? Meanwhile those 150 homeowners were stopped by CERA from living in their Port Hills homes ever since the 22 February 2011 Quake, so far two & a half years! Brownlee's response: homeowners should've accepted CERA's red- zoning. CERA had repeatedly delayed residential zonings. Never mind delays by EQC & insurers regarding repairs & rebuilds, all causing anguish for claimants.
Brownlee's CERA delayed zoning dealings, yet Brownlee recently instigated a Crown manager to deal with Council consents delays till the end of 2014! As there were so few rebuilds in Christchurch's core-CBD, why didn't Brownlee organize a Crown manager to deal with CERA delays? Purchase of CBD Frame land was also bogged down by CERA's low offers which caused rebuild delays in CERA's core-CBD!
More than two years into its regime, CERA had so little to report on its "rebuild" that it filled its latest Greater Christchurch Recovery Update, Issue 23, July 2013, with 12 pages, three columns per page, of all the do-gooder helpers allegedly helping Cantabrians. Headlines:
Page 1. SPECIAL EDITION SUPPORT AND ASSISTANCE
EARTHQUAKE RECOVERY, A LONG HAUL, BUT HELP IS OUT THERE. (CERA)
Contact numbers: Canterbury Support Line... Community Energy Action... Red Cross... CERA... EQC... CCC... Waimakariri District Council... Selwyn District Council...
Page 2. EXTENSION TO SETTLEMENT IN THE RESIDENTIAL RED ZONE (CERA)
FREE FINANCIAL ADVICE (CERA)
WE ARE HERE TO HELP IF YOU NEED IT (WINZ)
Page 3. EARTHQUAKE SUPPORT LIGHTENS THE LOAD FOR OPAWA RESIDENT (Earthquake Support Coordination Service).
CANTERBURY EARTHQUAKE TEMPORARY ACCOMMODATION SERVICE - A RANGE OF SUPPORTS ON OFFER
Page 4. SURVIVING THE THIRD YEAR AFTER DISASTER - SUPPORT FOR GREATER CHRISTCHURCH ROB GORDON PhD
The doctor wittered 3 columns of Psycho 101, do-gooder nonsense.
Page 5. ALL RIGHT? IN GREATER CHRISTCHURCH? (Allright)
AFTER HOURS CARE IN CHRISTCHURCH
After Hours contact numbers: 24 Hour Surgery... Riccarton Clinic... Moorhouse Medical Centre... Linwood After Hours Surgery... Papanui After Hours Surgery... Psychiatric Emergency Mental Health Services... In an emergency call 111
Page 6. INSURANCE SUPPORT & ASSISTANCE. List of insurers & contact numbers:
EQC
SOUTHERN RESPONSE
LUMLEY
TOWER
IAG & IAG contacts:
STATE
NZI
LANTERN INSURANCE
ASB
BNZ
THE CO-OPERATIVE BANK
The above insurers & their reinsurers were slow regarding assessments, repairs & rebuilds.
IAG said in CERA's Update: "IAG is committed to complete all claims within its rebuild and repair programme by December 2015." As some of those claims were from the 4 September 2010 Quake & many from the 22 February 2011 Quake, claims should've been completed within a year. Imagine living in a damaged house waiting for repair or rebuild for years as proposed by IAG. That was the reality of post-quake Christchurch. Many houses still had tatty tarps on roofs; faded grey-boards covering damages & faded, grey wooden-braces propping walls. Insurers wilfully delayed settlements for years, blaming EQC's slow $100 000 overcap decisions!
Page 7. RESIDENTIAL ADVISORY SERVICE, HELPING HOMEOWNERS THROUGH THE REBUILD / REPAIR PROCESS. RAS was recently formed by CERA & insurers to avoid court cases, in opposition to Council's Residential Advocacy Service (court cases). That dissonance between CERA & Council & CERA usurping Council functions showed how local democracy became farcical after CERA took over!
Page 8. CONTRIBUTING TO THE EARTHQUAKE RECOVERY IN CANTERBURY
(Housing New Zealand. Slow in housing stock repairs & rebuilds).
SCIRT: HOW WE CAN HELP YOU (Slow in road repairs & road infrastructure rebuilds). SCIRT's gangs: City Care; Downer; Fletcher; Fulton Hogan; McConnell Dowell.
Meanwhile Fletcher, also contracted to EQC, earned a bad reputation for slow housing repairs. CERA's & EQC's boasting was that 40 000 housing repairs were completed. But that was only half the housing repairs needed to be completed nearly two & a half years post 22 February 2011 Quake.
NZ National government owned a big proportion of Fletcher & EQC was a government agency, so the combination of interfering CERA, inept EQC, evasive Fletcher & slow insurers was a disaster for housing repairs & rebuilds. Canterbury housing repairs & rebuilds would be in disarray for years. Never mind Council's & Housing NZ's slow repairs of Council & state housing. Never mind CCDU's interference with private enterprise in CERA's core-CBD & the Frame. Who wanted to buy a post-quake, Fletcher repaired house? A future scandal would show many poorly "repaired" house-piles done by Fletcher contractors!
FAMILY AND COMMUNITY SERVICES RESOURCES
Page 9. RED CROSS SUPPORT AND ASSISTANCE
COMMUNITY ENERGY ACTION'S TOP TIPS TO STAY WARM
WARM HOMES A PRIORITY THIS WINTER (Environment Canterbury) Pre-quakes, ECAN had usurped local democracy by NZ National government's appointment of government commissioners & the sacking of local elected managers.
Page 10. A HELPING HAND IN THE SELWYN DISTRICT (Selwyn District Council)
THE HUB HAS MOVED HOUSE! (Waimakariri District Council)
SPECIALIST ADVICE GRANT FOR MAORI HOME OWNERS (Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu) An exclusive Maori home owner grant.
Page 11. SUPPORT AND ASSISTANCE FOR CONNECTING COMMUNITIES
-CHRISTCHURCH APPEAL TRUST
-ROTARY
-CHRISTCHURCH CITY COUNCIL. If CERA had a democracy clue, Council would've been on Page 1 ahead of the rest!
Page 12. KEEP WARM & WELL THIS WINTER Healthy Christchurch, a CDHB intersectoral partnership with 200+ signatory organizations, including Earthquake Support Coordination; Community Energy Action Trust; Age Concern; NZ Fire Service; WINZ; Tenants Protection Association; Allright...
Sunday 21.07.13, 5.09pm, M6.5 quake, 20km east of Seddon, 58km south-southwest of Wellington, 48km east-southeast of Blenheim. (TV OneNews & US Geological Survey). There would be many EQC claims from Seddon, Wellington & Blenheim. As EQC was slow with Christchurch claims, nearly three years post 4 September 2010 Quake, EQC staff would be running around like headless chooks.
Coda:
The Press 30.07.13 reported: last year 54 relatives of those killed in CTV collapse complained about Alan Reay to the Institute of Professional Engineers NZ, IPENZ. Complainants wanted Reay investigated by IPENZ. Although Reay was an IPENZ member since 1970, Reay tried squirming out of an IPENZ investigation using legal action against IPENZ. (2023. Ten years later, IPENZ / Engineering NZ investigation into Alan Reay would still be incomplete!)
Two years since the above post, CERA was useless at even starting building its Blueprint anchor projects, like the Convention Centre / Te Pae & the Metro Sports Facility & the 35 000 seater, covered stadium & East Frame housing... As CERA would disband in 2016, on Thursday 02.07.15, PM Key announced the formation of a new government organization, Regenerate Christchurch to replace CERA, under control of the PM's Office. Minister Brownlee would be boss of Regenerate Christchurch from 2016. A Stuff Co commentator would dub it Degenerate Christchurch!
Disbanded CERA functions would be taken over by Regenerate Christchurch & other central & local government agencies & departments like: Otakaro Limited; Land Information New Zealand (LINZ); Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment (MBIE); the Greater Christchurch Group in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet; Ministry of Health / Canterbury District Health Board. Given that hotch-potch of CERA functions, no wonder CERA failed its own trumpeted rebuild.
NZ National coalition government would rule Christchurch for years post-quakes, with CERA stooges, then Regenerate Christchurch stooges, while Council puppets danced on government strings. NZ National government tried forcing Council to sell its revenue-producing assets like Christchurch Airport & Lyttelton Port to pay off its Blueprint anchor projects. Why sell a revenue-producing asset like Christchurch Airport to pay for a rugby stadium foisted on Christchurch by CERA?
Content & pics Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
See Are insurance companies deliberately delaying? (The Press / Stuff Co).
See Rebuild speeding up but still slow (The Press / Stuff Co).
See Damaged homes leave many out in the cold (The Press / Stuff Co).
See Quake repairs EQR totally incompetent (The Press / Stuff Co).
See CTV engineer fights probe (The Press / Stuff Co).
See EQC cuts costs with lower standards (The Press / Stuff Co).
See CTV collapse liability demanded (The Press / Stuff Co).
See New legislation to replace Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Act (The Press / Stuff Co).
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