Civic Offices re-open to the public
Christchurch City Council’s Civic Offices have today (14 November) re-opened to the public for the first time since the February earthquake.
The offices, at 53 Hereford Street, will again be open from 8.30am-5pm on weekdays. The first Council meeting will be held on Thursday 24 November.
Services available from the day the building re-opens will include:
- Rates payments, rebates and remissions
- Parking fine payments
- Ordering and collection of property files
- Dog registrations
- Provision of drainage plans
Building consent, resource consent and subdivision consent services will be available at Upper Riccarton Library, 71 Main South Road, until 16 December. From 18 December, these services will be available from the Civic Offices in Hereford Street.
Since the February earthquake, Council staff have been working from a number of temporary premises while repairs have been made to the Hereford Street building and engineering assessments conducted.
Engineering reports conducted by the building’s owners – the Joint Venture between the Council and Ngāi Tahu Property Ltd – after the September, February and June earthquakes show the building performed well and is structurally sound. A peer review commissioned by the Council agreed with the findings of these reports.
The first Council staff returned to the Civic Offices two weeks ago and the remainder of staff are scheduled to move back in stages over the coming months. The building will be fully occupied by February.
Corporate Services General Manager Paul Anderson says the return of Council staff to the Civic Offices is an important milestone. “It has always been important for Council staff to have a visible presence in the Central City and this is even more vital as we rebuild our city.”
Mayor Bob Parker says it is wonderful to be able to welcome the public back to the Civic Offices. “It’s many months now since the February earthquake devastated our Central City. Re-opening our city’s Civic Offices is another positive sign that we are moving forward in our city’s recovery.”