A spokesman for the Catholic diocese said demolition work would begin in about two weeks.
Workers are currently clearing fallen rubble from the back of the cathedral in preparation for demolition. Read more

Restore Our Catholic Cathedral (ROCC) spokeswoman Dame Anna Crighton said they had given up their legal battle after receiving legal advice from barrister Prudence Stevens, which concluded the section 38 notice could not be challenged in the courts.

The only thing we could do is file an injunction to stop the work. But if we do that, and we lose, we have to pay all the legal costs," Crighton said.

"It was always going to be a challenge."

"The only thing we can do is shame them and let people know that we did try."

The diocese has since acknowledged that demolition cannot start until a work plan is approved. Approval by Information New Zealand (Linz), the Government agency that oversees the emergency earthquake power, in the form of a section 38 notice, is being sought.

Linz property and land manager Matt Bradley said a decision should be reached on the demolition plan within a week.

A spokesman for the Catholic diocese said demolition work would commence only once the plan was approved by Linz.

Crighton received the title Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2020 New Year honours.

She had long campaigned to protect New Zealand's historic buildings but stepped up after the 2011 earthquake.

She was a Christchurch City Councillor for twelve years (1995-2007) during which time she chaired the Arts Culture and Heritage Committee.

Crighton has helped restore the quake-damaged Isaac Theatre Royal in her role as director of the theatre's charitable foundation.

She also helped preserve more than a dozen Christchurch heritage buildings.

She has a PhD from Otago University. The subject of her thesis is The selection and presentation culture of the Robert McDougall Art Gallery.

Source

• stuff.co.nz
• stuff.co.nz
• heritageawards.co.nz
• otago.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com
• Image: rnz.co.nz

The $1.8 million demolition project is expected to take a year and started this week with three workers salvaging two stone angels from the front of the historic building.

Catholic Bishop Paul Martin said he was sad to demolish the cathedral.

He said in a statement on Tuesday the building was still unstable.

"Even though much work has occurred over many years to remove badly damaged sections of the cathedral as part of the stabilisation process, the site remains very hazardous and dangerous."

Some artefacts will be preserved

Martin said the cathedral's angels and some stone columns would be salvaged as part of the demolition.

"But any other salvage activities will be opportunistic in nature, and subject to being able to safely access areas of the building.

This also includes the recovery of other items such as stained glass windows and plaques.

Ornate stone elements may be retained for future projects where opportunities are identified.

While it would be desirable to incorporate some of the recovered artefacts into the new cathedral, successfully merging two architectural styles from different eras into a modern building can be extremely difficult to achieve."

Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel and Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb have both called for historic treasures like a 19th Century organ, a stained glass window by artist Philip Trusttum, and the Stations of the Cross carvings by late artist Llew Summers to be saved.

Heritage New Zealand saddened

Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga southern regional director Sheila Watson said she was "saddened" to see the demolition of the significant Category 1 historic place level begin.

"We understand the Bishop and his advisors have undertaken a serious and methodical consideration of the options to restore the basilica but unfortunately have come to the decision to demolish it."

Opposition continues

Heritage campaigner Anna Crighton said she was getting legal advice on whether the demolition could be challenged.

Fellow heritage campaigner Ross Gray said a pressure group called Restore Our Catholic Cathedral (ROCC) had been formed to challenge the demolition.

The Wizard of Christchurch, Ian Brackenbury Channell, has added his voice to the opposition.

In a recent 7-part video series the Wizard revealed that his fiancee had opposed the demolition of the Catholic Cathedral.

"Now my fiancee Alice (in an alchemical marriage), who was a trustee of the Catholic Cathedral in the past, is in the thick of the fight to stop the new Catholic Bishop rushing to demolish the Catholic Cathedral on shaky legal grounds and at a time of great economic uncertainty. The pro-Cathedral is functioning very well," he said.

Source

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

The restoration of the 137-year-old windows is part of a more than $2 million project to upgrade and earthquake-strengthen St Joseph's Catholic Church that was built with limestone taken from Opihi River in 1879 and damaged in the magnitude 7.1 quake that hit Canterbury in 2010. Read more

The classical-style cathedral in Hill St, Thorndon - designed by Dunedin architect Francis Petre and completed in 1901 - has been closed since 2018 because of earthquake risks.

Cardinal Dew says the $16.5 million cathedral project is able to start now thanks to an $8.5 million contribution last month from the Government's "shovel-ready" Infrastructure Fund, a $120,000 Wellington City Council Built Heritage Incentive Fund grant, and $3.3 million raised so far by the Catholic community.

Wellington firm L T McGuinness is the main contractor for the work, which includes base isolators to protect the cathedral during earthquakes; seismic strengthening of the roof; interior and exterior restoration; and refurbishment of the historic Arthur Hobday organ, installed in 1905.

L T McGuinness also did the strengthening and restoration of St Mary of the Angels in Boulcott St, completed in 2017.

Safety fences are already up around the site, ready for work to begin after Friday's blessing. Cardinal Dew said the project is expected to take at least three years and employ up to 300 people.

"Once complete, the cathedral will again be available to serve the Catholic congregation, and the wider Wellington community," said Cardinal Dew.

"Due to its globally acclaimed acoustics, it is a much sought-after musical venue and its historical and architectural merits make it a popular tourist attraction as well as a landmark on Hill St across from Parliament."

Cardinal Dew said everyone is invited to attend the blessing and prayers for the safety of the workers. The event will take place on the piazza in front of the cathedral, or in the cathedral chapel if rain is a problem.

Source

Supplied David McLoughlin
Communications Adviser, NZ Catholic Bishops
Te Huinga o ngâ Pîhopa Katorika o Aotearoa

The cathedral in Hill St, Thorndon, has been closed since 2018, and the money will go towards restoring and earthquake strengthening the building.

The $8.5 funding will create almost 300 construction jobs.

The archbishop of Wellington Cardinal John Dew said the money would enable them to not only complete the strengthening to a high standard but allow for base isolation as well.

"We thought we would never be able to do that, but we decided that we would apply to the shovel ready project."

The church had independently raised $3.3 million so far, and the additional $8.5m brought them closer to their goal of $16m.

"This project is ready to go right now," finance minister Grant Robertson said.

"The restoration is expected to take about three years and once complete will see this Category 1 Historic Place once again available for the Wellington community to use."

"The cathedral is not only widely used by the Catholic congregation but also by the public as a performance space because of its globally acclaimed acoustics.

It is also a tourist attraction because of its architectural merits," Robertson said.

In May, it received a one-off contribution from the Wellington City Council's Built Heritage Incentive Fund.

The funding came from the $3 billion tagged contingency set aside in the Budget for infrastructure.

There had been a cathedral on the side since 1851, even before Parliament was built across the road.

The original cathedral burnt down in 1898.

The new one opened in 1901, not as a cathedral, but as a parish church.

It was established as the cathedral in 1983.

The community had been using St Theresa's in Karori and the smaller chapel on the site for weekday mass.

Source

• Stuff.co.nz
• mcshwellington.org
• Image: Supplied New Zealand Catholic Bishops

Pannett holds the Council's heritage building resilience portfolio.

She said a special grant was one option the council had to offer some support, but ultimately the monastery may need to downsize.

She said the parish is going to have to make some tough calls about what it does with the buildings.

"It's a very painful process [relinquishing heritage buildings], but the buildings do need to be safe."

The monastery and church buildings are rated at 25 percent of the New Building Standard (NBS), and its owners have until 2027 to get them strengthened.

The buildings are owned by the International Catholic Programme of Evangelisation (IPCE).

St Gerard's is not the only catholic church in Wellington that has had to contend with earthquake strengthening costs.

The St Mary of the Angels Church on Boulcott St reopened in 2017 after a $9.3m upgrade.

Work will begin this month at Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Thorndon.

The Cathedral parish received a one-off 'out of round' contribution from the Council's Built Heritage Incentive Fund to help ensure the $3.3 million strengthening works proceeded.

Pannett says the Cathedral is one of only seven basilicas in New Zealand.

She said it is important that the Council is able to invest in important projects around the city, even in tough times.

"This is a well-thought-out project. Every building that comes off our quake-prone building list makes the city safer."

Source

• stuff.co.nz
• mcshwellington.org
• Image: stuff.co.nz

The buildings are rated at 25 per cent of the New Building Standard (NBS), anything under 34 per cent is considered earthquake-prone.

IPCE have until 2027 to complete the strengthening.

They have just $42,000 sitting in a fund to get it earthquake strengthened, falling well short of the $11 million that's needed.

Already engineer and quantity surveyor reports have cost tens of thousands of dollars.

But the director of St Gerard's church and monastery Silvana Abela told the New Zealand Herald they didn't look at the situation as a "headache" and the strengthening cost was just life.

The biggest problem is the church, which could take up $8 million of the total cost.

They are pursuing several avenues to raise money, including selling the property they also own at 1 Oriental Terrace.

The sale would provide more than $1 million.

Abela said they were also looking at fundraising options and were in contact with "major donors", but said she could not disclose further details while negotiations are ongoing.

"We will continue working towards it, and I have a lot of faith that we'll manage to do it," Abela said.

Abela confirmed they have applied to Wellington City Council for an extension of five years to get the church earthquake strengthened.

The Redemptorists built St Gerard's church in 1908 and the monastery in 1932.

Two of Wellington's most well-known architects, John Swan and Frederick de Jersey Clere, designed it.

In 1988, costs associated with the buildings and their declining numbers, made the Redemptorists decide to sell the buildings.

Source

• nzherald.co.nz
• stgerards.org.nz
• Image: en.wikipedia.org

The grant is a "one-off" ‘out of round' contribution from the Wellington City Council's Built Heritage Incentive Fund.

Wellington's mayor and councillors voted unanimously in favour of funding the cathedral.

The council has already made a grant of $25,000 to fund the temporary strengthening of the building's roof.

The project has been jeopardised by the withdrawal of other funding because of the economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mayor Andy Foster described the 119-year-old cathedral as one of the four or five most important landmark buildings in the city that still need strengthening and were eligible for the funding.

The parish has also applied for a share of the Government's post-pandemic funding for ‘shovel-ready' projects.

Foster said he urged the Government to seriously consider coming to the party.

"This is definitely a shovel-ready project - and jobs are involved," Foster said.

"This is not only about securing the future of one of our landmark buildings, it's about keeping Wellingtonians working."

"Every building that comes off our quake-prone building list makes the city safer," councillor Iona Pannett said.

"This is a well-thought-out project, and I am glad to see that the parish intends to base-isolated the building."

Pannett, who holds the council's Building Resilience and Heritage portfolio, said the cathedral is one of only seven basilicas in New Zealand.

The cathedral closed abruptly in 2018 after an assessment found the building's structural integrity to be just 15 per cent of the standard for a new building.

At the time it was said the building would be closed for several years and would cost "several" million to fix.

The Catholic Church has occupied the site since its arrival in Wellington in the 1850s and has been the hub of the Wellington Catholic community ever since.

Source

• scoop.co.nz
• wellington.govt.nz
• stuff.co.nz
• stuff.co.nz
• wellingtoncityheritage.org.nz
• en.wikipedia.org
• Image: heritage.org.nz

The buildings are hard to miss; the image is scored into road barriers and postcards around Wellington, and their bulk is plainly visible on the Roseneath hill overlooking Oriental Bay. Read more

$200,000 left to the church in a will had no specific provision for restoration of the basilica. The donated total of $350,000 would be used for the planned new cathedral, he said.

In 2017 The Washington DC Catholic diocese donated $200,000 in 2017 as a "sign of solidarity".

At the time, the Canterbury diocese was considering preserving just the central part of the earthquake-damaged Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament.

The cathedral's $30 million insurance payout will be used to fix other damaged buildings throughout the Catholic diocese of the city including the building of a new cathedral.

The plan now is to build a new cathedral opposite Victoria Square on Colombo St.

Heritage advocates are disappointed by the decision to demolish Christchurch's Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament.

"We tried to get a sounding board from different people, we're not running a referendum in the end and, as the bishop, the decision rests with me," Bishop Martin told Newshub.

Parishioners are accepting of the bishops decision, calling it a "big loss" and "sad occasion".

Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel told Newshub she understands it's been a tough call for the bishop and there will be genuine sadness over the decision.

But the Catholic Church does have the legal authority to demolish the building she said.

Martin is working with engineers and safety experts to allow parishioners to attend a special event to farewell the iconic cathedral.

Source

• newshub.co.nz
• stuff.co.nz
• insurancebusinessmag.com
• Image: naylorlove.co.nz

But Christchurch Regeneration Minister, Megan Woods says the city needs to accept the church's decision and move on.

Woods said she had many fond memories of the cathedral having gone to school next to it, but the decision to demolish was one for the church to make.

"We do need to move on, as sad as it is, a decision has been made.

The last thing the people of Christchurch need to see is another building getting bogged down in legal wrangling."

In a pastoral letter read out in all parishes on Sunday the catholic bishop of Christchurch, Paul Martin announced decision demolish the cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament.

The decision was necessary because the cathedral could not pass a 12-point test set out in the notice that was issued in 2015 by CERA (Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority).

A fight brewing

Despite Wood's advice, the situation is fast becoming a re-play of the prolonged disagreement over the future of Christchurch's Anglican Cathedral.

Some see the building as an architectural gem. They want to preserve it

Others want a functional and functioning place of worship.

Restore the Cathedral

Former cabinet minister Peter Dunne took to Twitter saying:

"A Canadian Anglican Bishop tried to tear down Christchurch's Anglican cathedral and failed. Now an outsider Catholic Bishop wants to do likewise to his cathedral. Will this be a similar battle & outcome?"

Heritage advocate Anna Crighton said there was outrage in the community.

She was ready to fight for the building's survival.

"Rest assured it will not go unchallenged," she said.

When asked where the money would come from for a challenge, Crighton said: "It's always easy to find money for a good cause".

Demolish and build elsewhere

Martin says the diocese has spent millions of dollars investigating the site and the building.

It has looked at more than 20 different possibilities:

"But ultimately we were unable to find a functional and financial solution."

Section 38 of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Act allowed for the deconstruction of the Cathedral, in the quest to save the nave and other parts.

Section 38 also gave the Diocese the power to demolish the whole building if it could not pass the 12-point test outlined in the application.

One option was to save the nave but with a much reduced new sanctuary and no towers at the front.

To do this would cost $91m.

Martin says the resulting building would not be fit for purpose.

The second option, a complete restoration, would cost $149m.

There is $30 million set aside for the cathedral from the diocese's insurance payout is available to go towards fixing other damaged buildings throughout the diocese.

Source

• rnz.co.nz
• chchcatholic.no
• stuff.co.nz
• stuff.co.nz
• tvnz.co.nz
• twitter.com
• Image: John Kirk-Anderson/Stuff

The demolition of two residential buildings in Parnell, Auckland, owned by the Anglican church has been described as "sinful".

And in Dunedin, an eleventh-hour effort is being made to prevent the demolition of Highgate Presbyterian Church in Maori Hill.

In both cases, the financial constraints are behind the decision to demolish.

The churches have followed all the proper procedures. None of these building has a Heritage New Zealand listing.

Cathedral Dean Anne Mills said they needed the land next to Holy Trinity Cathedral on which the demolished building stood, to lease for townhouses so it can afford annual upkeep on its other properties.

Annual cathedral, grounds and associated building maintenance was $300,000-plus annually. That figure was predicted to rise.

The church in Maori Hill is set to be demolished because the Presbyterian Church is no longer able to maintain the building which it says requires expensive work to earthquake-proof.

The church has agreed to put the demolition on hold until the end of this month so the Dunedin City Council has time to find alternative solutions.

Church minister Rev. Geoffrey Skilton said a meeting was scheduled for May 25 at which the congregation would be informed about the church's discussions with the council.

A decision would also be made on whether to continue those discussions or go ahead with the demolition, Mr Skilton said.

"We understand that some in the community were disappointed by the decision to demolish the building, and we have heard these voices."

The decision to demolish was made after years of discussions within the congregation about what was best for the church now and in the future, he said.

Source

• nzherald.co.nz
• odt.co.nz
• Image: nzherald.co.nz

Twenty-five projects were commended that "have changed the face of Wellington city and other regional centres.

Bulleyment Fortune Architects and Ian Bowman, architectural conservator were the winners of the Heritage Award for the work done on St Mary of the Angels.

The jury called the restoration and seismic strengthening of St Mary of the Angels a "labour of love".

The citation says: "In many ways, St Mary of the Angels is the pinnacle of achievement for Wellington religious architecture, and an expression of faith in the pinning of buildings to the sides of rocky outcrops.

The restoration and strengthening of the church has been a labour of love for many.

Through subtle, understated, and almost invisible measures, including this century's only new Gothic flying buttresses.

The late Dennis Fortune has brought Frederick de Jersey Clere's brilliant original design into the modern seismic code era. St Mary of the Angels should endure well into the next century."

Source

architecturenow.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

The project involves major improvements, maintenance and repairs.

"We have a responsibility to fulfil the requirements to earthquake strengthen this building for public use and maintain the building as an impressive symbol of Christian Faith into the future," said Father Brian Fennessy, parish priest of Holy Name parish.

The renovation will take about 10 months. In the interim, church services and funerals will be held at St Thomas' Church on Mountain View Road.

Fennessy said the strengthening project will be undertaken by Christchurch company C Lund & Son, but the general public will not be able to view much of the upgrades.

"Most of the work will be internal and won't be seen on the outside."

Fennessy said there was already one crane on site, with another coming later in the year to take bells out. The eight bells in the bell tower weigh eight tonnes.

He said steel and concrete will be used to reinforce the basilica's nave, transepts and towers to ensure the structure is above the mandated 34 per cent of the New Building Standard.

"We've received money in donations and pledges, just over $1 million," said Fennessy.

The money was raised in campaigns that took place late last year to raise the required $1.6m for the project's completion.

"We are very happy with the contributions, but we still have to raise some more. Any other donations we never say no to."

The overall cost of the project is $2.4m, with $800,000 of that coming from Christchurch diocese insurance disbursements.

"We've got five years to raise the money."

The basilica, designed by Francis Petre, was completed in 1911 at a cost of £23,000 and in a construction time of two years.

Source

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

Work on the Church of the Good Shepherd, on the edge of Lake Tekapo, began almost a year ago due to the increasing number of tourists to the district - with many coming to see the church. Continue reading

96 townhouses are to be constructed on the site.

As part of the overall development, the chapel is to be restored at the cost of $7 million.

Development manager Earl Hope-Pearson said the feeling was positive as work was able to begin.

"After 18 years of ownership from the Wellington Company, and various court cases, we're finally working."

Parts of the chapel, which is yet to be strengthened, have been protected from construction.

Heritage items have been taken out of the chapel and put into a secret location so that they're protected.

Some religious icons in the chapel were destroyed by vandals in 2016.

Strengthening of the chapel was expected to start in August or September, said Hope-Pearson.

When the restoration is completed, it will be used for funerals, weddings and other functions.

The project has been predicted to cost $30m, but Hope-Pearson did not have a final total cost of the development.

The eventual development of the site would accommodate about 250 people.

Erskine College was built in 1906 by the Society of the Sacred Heart and was a Catholic girls' boarding school until 1985.

An Environment Court decision recognised the college was of "outstanding heritage significance."

However, it approved the demolition of the convent and school buildings.

But a condition of the Environment Court consent was that the chapel must be strengthened before any other work, including demolition, can take place.

The decision said: "The chapel, main building, and Reverend Mother's Garden are of special architectural, cultural, social, technical and aesthetic significance.

"The chapel is the finest neo-Gothic interior in New Zealand. The Reverend Mother's Garden is a garden space with high values."

Source

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