$6.7M NEW CIVIC BLOCK Approval but commission decision awaited

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33539, 21 May 1974, Page 1

$6.7M NEW CIVIC BLOCK Approval but commission decision awaited

Plans for a $6.7m administration block, to be built next to the Town Hall across Victoria Street, were approved by the Christchurch City Council last evening. But the council decided to defer any further progress on the block until the decision of the Local Body Commission on possible amalgamation of Christchurch councils is known.

The proposed block is in the form of a letter G, the U-shape containing the offices of the council departments and the tail encompassing the Mayoral suite, council chamber, and committee rooms.

In the gap of the U is a paved and landscaped court, connected by broad flights of staircases and ramps to the lower terraces along the southern face of the Town Hall between the Ferrier fountain and the council suite in the tail of the G.

The illustration shows a perspective, drawn by the architects, Warren and Mahoney, from the south-east.

The existing Town Hall building is on the right and the Salvation Army Citadel on the left. The roadway leading to the entrance of the council chamber, (bottom) is Victoria Street, which would be closed there and traffic diverted to Chester Street.

The preliminary cost, including the General Wage Order from July 1 is $6,727,531. This figure does not include the cost of furniture, furnishings, and demolition of existing buildings.

As a rider to its decision to defer further action —including the production of a model of the block, which would have cost between $l5OO and $2OOO — the council also decided to invite the Local Body Commission to make Christchurch its first point of inquiry, “because the city is faced with a number of urgent development decisions.”

Earlier scheme

The scheme approved last eveing is very different from the multi-storey office tower of the original architectural competition-winning scheme and subsequent proposals.

It was felt that the various departments and divisions of the council should not be isolated on separate floors of small area, but grouped together on floors as large as possible to emphasise the corporate nature of the council. said Mr M. F. Warren, one of the partners in the firm which designed the block.

The building is of five storeys—the bottom two being a 338-vehicle car park. The lowest floor is 6ft below ground level and the “ground” floor of the administration offices is 12ft 6in above ground level. Access to the car park is down a gradual ramp from JJilmore Street and from Chester Street to the bottom level only. Egress is to Chester Street only.

The engineers’ department with its six divisions, and the reserves department are planned on the top floor and other departments below. All the public spaces and

counters of these divisions were grouped in a U-shape at two levels around a double-height public concourse. and the floors were connected by escalators so that people entering the building would be immediately aware of the arrangement of the council departments and the corporate nature of the council, said Mr Warren.

The upper floor public spaces look down into the concourse below and a complex roof form, shaped around the diagonal forms of the plan, join the spaces together. The offices are planned in wide open areas with a minimum of subdivision.

The entrances to the council offices are from Durham Street by a lift and staircase and from the paved court formed by the horseshoe of the offices.

Staff cafeteria

In the first stage a further floor would be built over the south arm of the U and connected to the central services block for a staff cafeteria, opening out on to perimeter balconies. The roof of the north block and part of the west would be constructed to allow for expansion of offices ovet the whole of the area of the administration building.

The council suite is over Victoria Street and projects towards the bridge in a block parallel to the Limes Room of the Town Hall. Victoria Street would end there and traffic would turn into Chester Street. At that point there would be a covered entrance leading to the council committee rooms and the council chamber.

A little above ground level behind the entrance is a coffee shop, opening on to a brick-paved terrace, which would extend to the present terraces of the Town Hall. The three committee rooms of the council, two small and one large, are on the same level as the lower-floor ad-

ministration. Each committee room has its own identifiable form, both internally and externally, with a plan reflecting the shape of the Town Hall. Above the committee rooms are the Mayoral suite, facing north on to the court, and the councillors’. lounge and dining room looking over the Town Hall terrace and the river. At the southern end of the council suite is the council chamber.

The whole building provides 37,450 sq ft of floor space.

Town Hall forms

The block extends and develops the forms and shapes of the Town Hall.

The large, paired concrete columns of the Town Hall are continued in the administration block at the same grid and height, so that the three bays and two splayed faces of the Kilmore Street frontage match the plan of the Town Hall promenade.

The street face of the carparking podium are faced with sloping, aggregatefaced concrete units matching the Town Hall, but the

The copper-faced fins and copper roof of the Limes Room are repeated around the upper floor of offices and council suite, but with additional sun protection for the offices.

“More efficiency”

Christchurch City Council staff are working in nine separate buildings and the proposed administration block would be the greatest single contribution to improving the administration’s efficiency, Cr D. R. Dowell, the chairman of the policy and resources committee, said when proposing the sketch plans for approval. But it would be irresponsible for the council to proceed with the project before the views of the Local Body Commission were known, he said. The council was under both union and Department of Labour pressure to improve working facilities, but it was impossible to improve .the present buildings to the required standards, said Cr Dowell. “There is no suggestion that the library proposal is in conflict with the administration block —indeed much work is now being done on the investigation of sites for a library.

Library priority

“It is difficult to see how the library proposal would in any way be accelerated by the slowing down of the administration block,” said Cr Dowell.

Cr H. G. Hay said that the administration block would enhance the Town Hall and make a fine group of buildings, but the library ranked as a higher priority. “You haven’t got Buckley’s show of Loans Board approval to get the money this will need. The money market is against us,” he said.

“Even if the Loans Board approved additional loans for the administration block, I very much doubt if the necessary under-writing support would be forthcoming.” Cr Hay said that a new library was long overdue and had to be faced up to in the next three to five years. A considerable sum had been

spent on the Mayoral suite and councillors’ rooms in recent years, and these were good enough for another 10 years. Leasing suggested He was aware of some of the shortcomings of the present office arrangements for council staff, but office space could be leased as a temporary measure. Provision for additional car parking alongside the Town Hall was desirable, but not a matter of great urgency, said Cr Hay. Sir Robert Macfarlane said it seemed the Citizens’ Association had hoped to make a political football of the adminstration block as an election issue. “But being a party of vision we have long appreciated the possibility of boundary changes being recommended by the Local Body Commission, and this is all we are doing now — being prepared for any eventuality but not committing the ratepayers to anything until the way is clear," he said.

Look at boundaries The Mayor (Mr N. G. Pickering) said he was extremely confident that the Local Body Commission would come to Christchurch for its first inquiries. “And I would be very surprised to find that we are not fighting this election for the last time on the present boundaries,” he said.

General discussion on the scheme took almost two hours, but the plans were approved without dissent.

blank faces are broken by deep-glazed inserts at each pair of columns.