Battle for the 'wasteland': Five groups vying for Cathedral Square redesign

Tuesday, 19 May 2026

The Christchurch City Council wants to redevelop Cathedral Square and has $28.5m budgeted for it.

Five groups are vying to redesign Christchurch’s Cathedral Square.

The city council’s call for expressions of interest from people wanting to develop a new concept design for the square attracted 13 responses.

Five groups have been shortlisted and will now be asked to submit their proposals, before one group is chosen to formulate the final design.

Cathedral Square has been described as a “wasteland” by a neighbouring building owner.

At a councillor briefing on Tuesday, senior project manager Hannah Pirie said the council received an “incredibly good response” and the five short-listed groups were “really strong”.

The council has $28.5 million budgeted for the work, but $2.5m has already been allocated for Worcester Blvd from Oxford Tce to the square to coincide with the mid-2027 opening of the refurbished Sheraton Hotel.

Work on the square since the earthquakes has focused on improving the outer edges with upgraded footpaths, paving and landscaping.

This new work will focus on the middle of the square, which was last year described as a “wasteland” by a neighbouring building owner.

The last design, released in 2018 by the now defunct rebuild planning agency Regenerate Christchurch, cost $1m and took several years to develop. It was expected to cost $60m to $80m and featured a lattice-style overhead shelter, no through traffic and mixed paved and tree-studded green spaces.

Pirie said the five groups would be asked to make sure their designs made the square a welcoming, vibrant civic space.

Once a design team was appointed, key stakeholders including surrounding developers and the Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement company, would be asked for input before a proposed design was put out for public consultation later this year.

The last Cathedral Square redesign was released in 2018 by the now defunct rebuild planning agency Regenerate Christchurch. (Artist’s impression)

Councillor Celeste Donovan said she hoped the key stakeholders would include the community because she did not want the square solely designed for the businesses surrounding it.

Councillor Yani Johanson asked how much input young people would have.

Citizens and community general manager Andrew Rutledge said he did not want to reinvent the wheel in terms of consultation because a lot had already been done through the Share An Idea project in 2011.

But Johanson said many of those children and young people would now be adults and middle-aged due to the delays, so he hoped young people would be consulted again.

Councillor Aaron Keown said there was nothing in the square that attracted people to it.

He wanted to ensure there was space for activities like an outdoor ice rink in the winter.