Carter Group threatens legal action over proposed CBD changes

Tuesday, 3 September 2024

Carter Group head Philip Carter says the heritage listing on a deteriorating building on a site he has slated for housing development in Christchurch's CBD should be lifted.

A vote to remove height limits on buildings in the core of central Christchurch has been postponed for two weeks due to a threat of legal action.

According to a memo obtained by The Press, the Carter Group (one of Greater Christchurch’s biggest property owners and developers) has warned the Christchurch City Council it could end up in High Court proceedings if it makes certain changes to planning rules on Wednesday, as scheduled.

Lawyers for the Carter Group believe the independent hearings panel (which is overseeing a city wide plan change process, aimed at making it easier to build taller and more densely in commercial and residential areas) made three errors in its list of recommendations for the city centre zone.

Philip Carter, right, with former Christchurch Catholic Bishop Paul Martin, at the site of the abandoned catholic cathedral and precinct in 2019.

The errors would warrant a judicial review if not remedied, the Carter Group alleged.

As the council’s Wednesday vote is based on those recommendations, staff have asked the panel to urgently look into the issue and delayed the vote to September 18.

It is unclear what the alleged errors are, but the area in question includes the vacant Armagh St site, which is partially owned by the Carter Group.

The land was meant to be developed into the new Catholic Cathedral and precinct. However, the half-billion-dollar joint project was unpopular with parishioners (some of whom lodged a legal challenge with the Vatican) and abandoned in favour of a different site.

The Carter Group was not available to comment, nor was the council, on Monday night.