A.M.P. Society Favours Site In Square

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30481, 1 July 1964, Page 16

A.M.P. Society Favours Site In Square

(From Our Own Reporter)

WELLINGTON, June 30.

The A.M.P. Society, which owns the Dominion Building in Cathdral Square, intends to rebuild on this site when the opportunity arises.

“We think it is the finest site in Christchurch in many ways," said the general manager for the society in New Zealand (Mr S. J. Chatten) today. Mr Chatten said the building was bought with a view to eventual redevelopment and the Canterbury headquarters of the society, now in the A.M.P. building at the west side of the Square, would probably be incorporated in the new building. This building would be worthy of the site and substantial tenants would be sought to fill a building of some size. Mr Chatten said that certainly anyone proposing a large building here would be interested in whether Government departments would take office space. He said there were no

immediate plans for rebuilding. Private builders seeking to let space to the Government have to take into account the prospect that in perhaps seven or 10 years the State may feel compelled to embark on a building scheme of its own.

After a general reshuffle of Government office accommodation in Christchurch at the end of July and a possible solution in the search for a new site for the central police station, further decisions on the planning of Government office space will probably be made. The first stage in the rearrangement and extension of accommodation is related to the opening of the Government Life Insurance Building in the Square. The second stage concerns changes in which other departments will move into buildings vacated by those allotted space in the insurance building.

The secretary of the Government Accommodation Board (Mr J. S. Dempsey) said today that the next stage would depend on how much space is offered by the Reserve Bank in its new Hereford street building. The bank has let a contract for this building and is expected to set the amount of space available to other departments 'in the next two or three months.

The fourth stage envisaged by the board concerns the balance of office space required after these buildings have been filled.

“The future is not clear,” said Mr Dempsey. “We cannot make all the decisions at once, but the position is not being allowed to drift. Clearly, we will be in need of more space in the future.” .One of the complicating factors is the choice of a site for the police station. Police Station A decision by the Ministry of Works on this site would affect the long-term scheme for a Government centre for Christchurch on this block. Mr Dempsey said that police station plans could affect buildings already occupied by State departments and any development of a Government centre must await the police station decision. All the officers concerned in these decisions were in touch with each other, said Mr Dempsey. A further complication in long-term planning of State buildings is the commitment of the Government to the use of privately-owned office space.