Christchurch's under-construction convention centre on track and already taking bookings

Friday, 6 April 2018

Progress can be seen at the Christchurch convention centre site as scaffolding and concrete slab goes up.

Bookings are already rolling in for Christchurch's under construction convention centre, which is starting to take shape.

Two conferences have been announced for the space in 2021 – an international medical science conference for up to 1000 delegates, and the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research biology symposium for 350 delegates. Others are in the pipeline.

The $475 million central city building is due to be finished in early 2020.

Conferences have already been booked in for the under-construction Christchurch convention centre.

ChristchurchNZ tourism industry partnership manager Caroline Blanchfield said the convention centre had 'unlocked the potential for Christchurch' by giving organisers the confidence to bring international conferences to other Christchurch venues.

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Ōtākaro chief executive Albert Brantley says the Christchurch convention centre is ahead of schedule and running under-budget currently.

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The auditorium in the Christchurch convention centre is starting to take shape. When finished, the space will be able to hold 1400 people, and will be able to be divided in two if needed.

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An artist's impression of the Christchurch convention centre, due to be finished in early 2020.

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'The fact that the convention centre is under construction has opened up that confidence for Christchurch.'

She said three large conferences in 2019 and 2020 were booked for the Town Hall and the University of Canterbury on the subjects of learning environments, international wetlands, and open-source software.

The convention centre will span two blocks bounded by Armagh St, Oxford Tce, Cathedral Square and Colombo St. The project is being managed by Crown rebuild agency Ōtākaro and built by Australian construction company CPB Contractors.

Large bracing concrete walls are sprouting around the space for a 1400-seat auditorium, which will be able to be split in two by moveable partitions. Fourteen meeting rooms with capacity for 1400 people are being built on the north side of the building, facing Victoria Square. The space will be capable of hosting two conferences simultaneously with no cross over.

The foyer and main entrance will face the Avon River, while administration and retail space will go on the Colombo St side of the building. Foundation work for the exhibition hall to the south is under way. Ōtākaro is looking for developers for the hotel planned for the south of the site, near Cathedral Square.

Ōtākaro chief executive Albert Brantley said it was an unusual build as a lot of concrete for the walls was being poured in place, rather than using pre-cast slabs, but it was the only way to make the building strong enough to handle quake movements. About 26,000 cubic metres of concrete is being used in the build – the equivalent of more than 10 Olympic-size swimming pools.

The project was running ahead of schedule and under-budget so far, he said.

'It's a very difficult thing for people to see behind the hoardings, and it's only when you get out and walk on site that you can really appreciate . . . how much work has been done.'

A 280-tonne crane is due to arrive on site next week to place the steel roof struts, though it will take several weeks to set up. Brantley said the struts would start being placed in the next four weeks, with workers trying to get as much roof structure as possible in place before winter.

The convention centre could have a big impact on the Christchurch economy. A Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment report from March 2017 estimated each international conference attendee stayed in New Zealand for six nights on average, about four of which were in the region of the event. They spent $334 per night – almost double the average spend of all international visitors.

Blanchfield said those numbers meant a 1000-person conference was worth $1.4m to the region, and those 'big chunky numbers' were why the city needed the convention centre.

She said the centre was expected to host about 200 events annually when operating at optimal capacity, though they would be a mixture of domestic and international conferences and exhibits.

The centre will target events in Canterbury's core area such as agriculture, earth sciences including Antarctica, and education.