Suburban Shops Increase As Christchurch Expands

Press, Volume XCI, Issue 27675, 3 June 1955, Page 14

Suburban Shops Increase As Christchurch Expands

No fewer than 667 new’ shops have been opened in North Canterbury—between the Conway and Rakaia rivers —in the last five years. Most of the shops are in Christchurch and building indicates further additions to shopping facilities. The grocery business is the one with the biggest expansion. Since ■ 1950. 244 new grocery premises have ooened. New butchers shops number' 38. Chemists, who are licensed, have increased by only six. but 27 hairdressers have opened saloons. The shopping expansion in the suburbs of Christchurch has been j staggering. Fifteen years or so ago, ; Christchurch had more shops than Auckland and Wellington. As the i city has expanded, so have the shopping centres and the number of isolated shops. Subdivision for settle- ' ment has been synchronised with the building of new shops. The trend in • most new housing areas of any size has been to build a shopping centre, supplying a miscellany of services, i from fish and chips down to a packet of brads, only a few shops standing isolated m an area of new homes Christchurch has been zoned and most of the sites for commercial premises are at street intersections. The demand of residents appears to be for a centre. so_ that they may go “down to the In the new arefcs.- the shops are mostly of the “lock-up” type and modemlv fitted and lighted. Both inside and outside, they are attractive in appearance. The modernisation trend has extended, too, to many of the single shops and rows of shops in the older-established areas. The only tvne of business which no* expanded in Christchurch or North Canterbury towns and villages in lhe last five years is that of restaurants and tea rooms. Actually, they are 14 fewer, notwithstanding the steep rise in populations and greater freedom of transport. Private hotels, too. are three fewer but licensed hotels have increased by 13 in the district. Figures compiled by the Department of Labour for March 31 in 1950 end 1955 show the commercial development in Christchurch and North Canterbury. The totals of businesses for the two years are:—

Labour Employed Nealy two thirds of the new businesses employ labour. New shops employing labour number 412 and new shops without assistants are 236 in the last five years. In 1950. shops with assistants totalled 1630 and the number today is 2057. “One man” businesses have increased since 1950 from 16°5 to 1871. The division of businesses in 1950 end 1955 is:—

Two Progressive Areas Little change in the older-established shopping centres of Christchurch can be recorded. New Brighton and Riccarton are two exceptional areas. The development of shops in both places is surprising to visitors from other parts of the Dominion, and to casual visitors from Christchurch suburbs. New

Brighton has expanded phenomenally since the borough joined the city, and the business expansion has been accelerated because the area enjoys Saturday shopping, a facility with an obvious wide attraction. Four new shops are ready for occupation at New Brighton, where the shopping area is i extensive and city firms have opened branches.

1 Although Riccarton has been fairly closely settled for years, the State . housing block and residential building • out to and beyond Hornby have given ’it commercial advancement in recent i years. The Riccarton shopping area is ; one of the busiest in the Christchurch metropolitan area,- and it is expanding. ! Three new shops in a brick building on the south side of Riccarton road are nearing completion, and a bank has i taken over the fourth shop. Another /bank has temporary premises in a i house, and is reported to have bought | a new site in Rimu street, and another i bank has called tenders for premises lon Riccarton road on the site of a house lit now occupies. Another four shops at the Division road corner are proposed. In anticipation of a diversion of traffic from Riccarton road when the new southern outlet is opened, businesses have been opened already on i Blenheim road. Further out at Hornby, two new shops have opened recently. More shops may be expected when the State housing schemes are carried out in large areas on both sides of Carmen road. In the Suburbs For the first time for many years, a row of shops is being.built in’Sydenham. The four shops, are nearly half a mile south of the main shopping area. No new shops have been built further south—in Beckenham and Cashmere — for some years, but in the last year or so 11 shops have been built in the shopping centre for St. Martins in Wilsons road, near Beckford road. The extension of a shopping area in 9 well-settled locality marks the centre for St. Albans in Papanui road. For years, the businesses were static, but at present two blocks of shops are being built. On the Main North road, Papanui a block of 10 shops is occupied. and to the eastward in St. Albans a centre of 15 shops occupies sites at the corner of Innes road and the Cranford street extension, while in the middle of a new housing settlement six shops have beenNipened at the corner of Westminster street and Hills road.

The shopping facilities at North New Brighton have no recent additions, in contrast to the expansion at New Brighton. But the settlement on the land on the city side of Burwood near Queensbury avenue has attracted the building of five shops in a concrete building. To the north-west of the city, shops have been opened in Bryndwr beyond the main shopping centre for the district, and there has been spasmodic shop building in the new settlement of Hoon Hay. formerly in the Halswell County.

In localities long settled, such as Linwood, Sydenham. Opawa, Woolston, Fendalton, Beckenham, Avonside, Richmond. Addington, and St. Albans, no signs of devel- irnt of new or extended shopping centres are evident. The over-all picture of business expansion in Christchurch, however, is one of enterprise and confidence. The demand of residents in the newlydeveloped areas appears to be for central shopping facilities within easy walking distance.

1950 1955 Hotels (licensed) 123 136 Hotels (private) Restaurants and 44 41 Tearooms 176 162 Grocers 491 735 Hairdressers, etc. 238 265 Butchers 177 215 Chemists 77 83 Others .. 1939 2291 3265 3928 ■ - — —

With Assistants 1955 1950 Hotels (licensed) 113 123 Hotels (private) Restaurants and 30 29 Tearooms 118 124 Grocers 236 324 Hairdressers, etc. 106 119 Butchers 139 176 Chemists 48 71 Others 844 1091 Without Assistants 1950 1955 Hotels (licensed) 10 13 Hotels (private) Restaurants and 14 12 Tearooms 58 38 Grocers 255 411 Hairdressers, etc. 132 146 Butchers 42 39 Chemists 29 12 Others .. 1095 1871