Christ Church Cathedral likely to be mothballed

Friday, 9 August 2024

Funding stopped for Christchurch Cathedral rebuild.

Christ Church Cathedral looks likely to be mothballed after the Government declined to bail out the building’s reinstatement.

Mark Stewart, chair of Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Ltd, said on Friday they were told this morning the Government would not put in more taxpayer money to help plug the budget shortfall.

The Government will not bail out the Christ Church Cathedral.

“As a Board we need time to consider the implications of the coalition Government’s decision,” Stewart said.

“With the Government’s decision, the pathway to completion is much longer and mothballing is now likely.”

Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Ltd chairperson Mark Stewart.

He called the decision “incredibly sad and disappointing”.

Open Christchurch is offering tours of Christ Church Cathedral - closed to the public since the 2011 earthquakes - this year and tickets have already sold out.

The CCRL will meet on August 19 to look at its options, he said. The Anglican Synod then meets in early September.

CCRL approached central Government recently seeking more money.

The project’s financial shortfall was reduced from $114 million to between $75m and $85m after the church synod - the diocese’s governing council headed by the bishop - agreed last month to cut costs.

This reduced the $248m cost of the project to between $209m and $219m.

He said they would tell the city council to hold the $7m tranche of a ratepayer grant it has already agreed to hand over.

As well as $25m already from taxpayers, the project has received $3m from the Christchurch City Council, $33m of the church’s $44m insurance payout, and $24m from a $50m target in donations.