CBD car parks to get spruce up following council threats

Wednesday, 2 August 2023

The Wilsons Parking site on the corner of Worcester St amd Oxford Tce will feature a strip of landscaping, string lights and room for a sculpture.

Christchurch motorists can say goodbye to bog-like gravel pits to park their cars, with parking giant Wilsons set to make good on its consent obligations.

Christchurch’s elected members say council can take full credit for the parking evolution unfolding in real time, after years of trying multiple tactics to get private parking operators to play their part in Christchurch’s rebuild.

One such car park is on the corner of Worcester St and Oxford Tce. Wilsons Parking doesn’t own the site, but operates on it, and applied for resource consent in 2021.

Work is underway to plant the 2m strip of landscaping along the road frontages of Worcester St and Oxford Tce.

A final decision was made in February this year. In it, the council determined that in order to keep operating, Wilsons would need to maintain the site twice a week, including filling pot holes and sweeping the pavement to stop debris from going onto the road and tram lines.

Although the site will consist of compacted gravel, council asked Wilsons to add a 150mm capping layer and seal up to 5 metres of the access point.

Along the road frontages there will be a continuous 2m strip of mixed native and exotic landscaping. On the corner, there will be space for sculptural artwork alongside the pay and display machine, as well as string lights and bench seating.

A Wilsons spokesperson told The Press its recent site upgrades, including of 335 Durham St North (which would also need to be maintained twice-weekly), came from a desire to improve their service for customers.

The upgraded sites on Oxford Tce and Durham St North will need to be maintained twice weekly, according to the resource consent decision.

The spokesperson said Wilson's level of investment was tied to how long it could operate on a particular site. There had been an increase in its tenancy terms across its Christchurch sites, allowing them to speed up its investment plans, they said.

Wilsons isn’t the only private operator in town, but as one of the largest operators in the city and country it has copped most of the flak for unmaintained sites.

Councillor Jake McLellan said improvements were actually a result of multiple tactics used by the council in the last couple of years to demand change.

“I don’t think they [Wilsons] deserve any credit for improvements to their sites,” he said.

He said improving the look of Christchurch’s CBD didn’t just improve residents’ morale, but encouraged more investment and developments in the surrounding area.

Council action McLellan credited for the upgrades included the December 2020 letters to 93 car park owners, warning them to apply for a resource consent or cease operating, under threat of fines or court action.

A Wilsons Parking spokesperson previously told The Press it made several consent applications following the first round of warning letters.

In 2022, the council agreed to increase rates on vacant central city land which didn’t have an active or pending resource consent, effectively strong-arming property owners to do something with their sites.

Mayor Phil Mauger voted against increasing rates on vacant land owners at the time, saying his initial thinking was “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” but told The Press he was now a fan, and credited it to recent upgrades in the CBD.

“It’s a pleasure to see [upgrades], long may it continue,” he said.

*CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story said Wilsons’ level of investment was tied to how stable its income was. It should have said it’s tied to how long it could operate on a particular site. (Amended 3.57pm, August 2, 2023)