Wellington's Courtenay Central building in limbo one year on from closure

Wednesday, 8 January 2020

A year has passed since one of Wellington's largest cinema complexes closed and the building's future is still largely unknown.

The owners of the Courtenay Central building, which housed businesses such as the Reading Cinema, have mostly left the Wellington City Council out of the loop after plans for the space to be transformed into the hub of entertainment in Courtenay Place were revealed in May last year.

Silence on building plans and the 12 months worth of wear and tear on the empty building – one of the largest in a prime position along the street – has added to the downtrodden state of the capital's 'golden mile'.

In May last year, the franchise told investors it had a 'laser focused' plan to re-invent the earthquake-prone complex but details on the earmarked multi-million dollar revamp has remained a mystery.

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Shocked tenants were given immediate notice to move out of Reading Cinema's building on Courtenay Place,Wellington, due to earthquake risk in January last year.

* Plans unclear on whether Reading's Courtenay Place revamp will see building strengthened or demolished

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Twelve months have passed since the cinema building was left vacant.

* Wellington City Council and Reading meet following complex closure

A statement was pasted to the glass of the Courtenay Central Complex after it was closed.

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Libby Dearnley evacuated her small business from the Reading Cinema building on Courtenay Place due to earthquake risk (Video published in 2019).

Wellington City councillor and Urban Development associate Nicola Young said the building's owners had told the council it planned to strengthen the cinema and get it up and running 'as soon as possible'.

'They are still planning to build a carpark on the Tory St site, with retail/cafes at ground level.'

The Wellington City Council said it had not had an update on the building owner's plans for the site for several months.

The quake-damaged Reading Cinema carpark building was demolished.

Countdown had resource consent to build a supermarket on the Cable St site and there have been rumours about the possibility of building a hotel above the supermarket, she said.

But Wellington City Council spokesman Richard MacLean said the building's owners had not been in touch with the council for several months over its plans, which had left it relatively in the dark about specific plans for the site.

The building, which also housed several food outlets, ANZ bank, NZ Post, STA Travel and Unichem Pharmacy, suddenly closed until further notice due to earthquake risks on January 5 of last year. In a statement, the building's owners – Reading International – said then an assessment was expected after a draft report from independent engineers said there were potential risks in an earthquake to parts of the building.

The complex was closed for a number of months after it was damaged in the 2016 Kaikōura earthquake, and an adjacent car park deemed quake-prone was demolished. It reopened in March 2017.

Reading International showcased some details of its new 'top-to-bottom' renovation during an annual general meeting in May, with slides to shareholders which said the cinema franchise would invest $23.06 million into its New Zealand portfolio over three years.

The refurbishment included converting all auditoriums to recliner seating, adding new food and beverage offerings, more theatres with surround sound, and extending the Gold Lounge.

It was not clear whether the current building would be demolished or strengthened with the information given to shareholders saying the company would prioritise 'seismic safety' and 'engineering'.

Reading International did not respond to a request for comment.