Christ Church Cathedral - how on heaven and earth did we get here?

Wednesday, 6 May 2026

Christ Church Cathedral, overlooked by the statue of John Robert Godley.

Fifteen years after the big 2011 earthquake, the partly repaired Christ Church Cathedral remains mothballed, and parts of Cathedral Square resemble a wasteland. How did things get to this point? The Press answers this and many more of your questions.

What did the Anglicans originally want to do with their damaged cathedral?

Early repair hopes turned to replacement plans when aftershocks caused further harm and the $39 million insurance cover was deemed inadequate. After the building received an unsafe building notice, then-Bishop Victoria Matthews deconsecrated the cathedral in November 2011, making it no longer a sacred building.

A suggested cathedral design combining new and old.

In 2012 the Church Property Trustees, who hold the property on the diocese’s behalf, decided repair was uneconomic, and they would demolish to sill level then rebuild with a mix of old and new.

But new designs began to appear. In 2013, the Anglican Synod, the diocese’s governing council, voted overwhelmingly to demolish the cathedral and build a modern design at a cost of about $60m.

Bishop Victoria Matthews said a new cathedral would be cheaper to build.

So where is this modern cathedral?

In response to the 2013 decision to demolish, a new group, led by former MPs Jim Anderton and Philip Burdon, presented a restoration plan to the bishop. She rejected it. The group went to the High Court which halted the demolition but did not order a repair. The Supreme Court ruled the church was free to demolish the cathedral and build a new one. But that was not to be the end of the legal battles.

Jim Anderton, left, and Philip Burdon leave the Christchurch District Court after a court hearing on the cathedral in 2012.

Why did they decide to repair it after all?

Heritage campaigners continued to file injunctions and legal notices. The church said it would reconsider its decision, although Bishop Victoria Matthews said the extra money it would take to rebuild the damaged cathedral should be spent helping people.

A report said repair would cost $105m, while a new building would cost $63m to $66m.

A Government-appointed working group, set up to break the deadlock between the church and campaigners, recommended repair, and the Government promised to contribute $25m.

Armed with this information, the Synod voted in 2017 to repair and strengthen the cathedral.

Christchurch City Council agreed to levy ratepayers and put in $10m. Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Limited (CCRL) was formed to manage the project, and work began in 2020.

Workers on the rebuild of Christ Church Cathedral in 2023.

Why did the work stop?

As more became known about the building’s state, the cost escalated and by 2024 had reached $248m, more than double the original estimate.

The Anglicans cut their ambitions, simplifying foundation designs and dropping plans for a visitor centre and offices, reducing the project cost to $219m.

But there was still not enough money even for the reduced project and CCRL mothballed the building in December 2024.

Didn’t they change their plans again?

In 2025, CCRL launched a new plan to reduce the project’s costs even further by only partially repairing the building and walling off the eastern end for later restoration. This would allow the cathdral to get to the stage where it could safely open to the public.

The new approach would halve the amount still needed to finish the work to $95m.

Christ Church Cathedral Dean Ben Truman, Christchurch Anglican Bishop Peter Carrell and CCRL director Mark Stewart (L-R) look at the revised plan for the building in September 2025.

CCRL said it could raise about $50m but asked for more public money to reach this goal.

Can’t the cathedral just be used as-is?

After all, hundreds of people have now visited the cathedral for exhibitions and concerts.

Yet, it remains a construction site.

The building’s certificate of public use allows just 50 people inside the building under supervision for special events, with hard hats and hi-vis vests a must.

Why can’t we just leave it as a ruin, like the old Coventry cathedral in England?

This appears to be ruled out by law because the 1858 Church Property Trust Act, under which the land was transferred to the Anglicans, requires them to have a cathedral on the site.

The old Coventry Cathedral in England has been left as a ruin and is used as a public space.

Can we have the rest of the Square back in the meantime?

CCRL has fenced off the roughly 1500m2 of public land it is leasing from the council for $1 a year.

It says it’s happy for the fence to be moved back and portable cabins removed, but does not want to pay for it from the already short budget.

How much money has been spent or promised?

NZ First leader Winston Peters is promising more money for the cathedral if re-elected.

A total of $90m has already been spent. This has come from the church ($38m, roughly equal to the insurance payout), taxpayers ($25m), ratepayers ($3m), and donors ($24m).

Ratepayers will put in another $7m (from a direct levy on rates bills), the church has indicated it will put in another $20m from selling two properties including the transitional cathedral, and donor pledges total $20m.

Who are the big donors?

Many of them are anonymous. Philip Burdon pledged $5m over time, CCRL director Mark Stewart is a major donor but will not reveal details, Canterbury Cathedral in Kent, England gave $250,000, and King Charles gave $15,000 when he was Prince of Wales.

Why won’t the church fill the funding gap itself?

The Church Property Trustees look after $561m worth of property for the diocese and its parishes, including unused, under-used and rented-out sites.

Bishop Peter Carrell says parishes use their property and income it generates for supporting their mission and ministry and they, not the diocese, initiate sales.

Will more public money go into the project?

This remains unknown. CCRL says it needs more public money to be able to reopen the cathedral.

In 2024, the Government said it had spent enough money on what is a private, religious space.

More recently, NZ First leader Winston Peters said if re-elected, his party would include a $15m cathedral contribution in its coalition agreement. He has previously promised Government money in 2014 and 2017.

Meanwhile, the city council has been seeking public feedback on whether to put more ratepayers’ money into heritage buildings, including the cathedral.

The details of that feedback remain under wraps.