Pigeons and a piper on opening day

Press, 23 February 1978, Page 4

Pigeons and a piper on opening day

There will be a carnival : air in New Brighton next ’ Saturday morning (February 25), when the Mayor 1 of Christchurch, (Mr H. Hay), officially opens the ] new pedestrian mall. At , 10.30 a.m. the Mayor and , Councillors will walk in procession up Seaview ■ Avenue, from New Brighton Primary School, pre- . ceded by Mr Peter Rash- , brook, a piper with the , New Brighton Pipe Band. , They will be followed 2 by a group of vintage cars carrying Mr Rodney Bryant with the 1 15 competitors in this < year’s Miss Canterbury Competition clad in bi- 1 kinis. The opening cere- 1

mony will take place on the mall’s permanent stage in Oram Avenue, just off the mall. Speechmaking will be brief and to the point, (the whole function is scheduled to last 20 minutes), and speakers will be Mr Bernie De Vere, President of the New Brighton District Business Association, the Mayor, and Mrs Mary Batchelor, Member of Parliament for Avon. When the Mayor says the magic words and declares the mall open “thousands of pigeons” will be released, and the lights in the standing clus-

ter-lights in the mall will go on for the first time. After the opening ceremony, the official party will have morning tea in the Shoreline restaurant, and festivities will continue throughout the day, under the guidance of Rodney Bryant and his attractive female helpers. Events for children and other entertainments have been planned, and the vintage cars will be on display at the end of Seaview Avenue.

“New Brighton is an informal place,” says Mr De Vere, “and this is the way we want to keep it. The opening will reflect this informality. We feel New Brighton is not just a shopping area, but a good place to be with the whole family.” Mr Frank Gracie has been a shop-owner in the area for 34 years, and points out that Saturday trading has been in existence for over 100 years — “for as long as New Brighton has been New Brighton.” Another retailer is convinced that Saturday trading is the root of New Brighton’s popularity.

He is Mr Peter Dunbar, a pharmaceutical chemist and past city councillor who claims that New Brighton’s Saturday situation is almost unique in New Zealand. He thinks more seaside suburbs near the country’s big cities should try it. Mr Dunbar says, “We are in an ideal position to serve the population of Christchurch and surrounding areas.” The mall may still look a little raw on opening day. but basic construction will be complete by the

end of March. Because improvements and maintenance will be constant, it is intended that a public relations officer-cum-care-taker be appointed to coordinate such activities. Future improvements include a new postal centre, a new tavern, and several large business complexes. Already New Brighton has “more car parking per 1000 ft of retail area than anywhere in the citv.” according to, the City Council, but five old houses were recently demolished to provide further parking. The total number of shons, including the 35 in Brighton Pier Shopping Centre, is about 140.

Mr Bill Williams, Christchurch’s Acting City Planner, has been closely associated with New Brighton Mall since its inception in 1966. He has attended over 30 meetings during that time. Mr Williams is not aware of anything comparable elsewhere in New Zealand. “A central mall at right angles to the beach, with a series of interior arcades to the north and south, with parking areas beyond again, plus a wide area such as Oram Avenue as a focal point, is a tailormade situation for effective pedestrian shopping.” The history of the mall began with the 1967-68 issue of the District Scheme Review, (a publication put out every 10 years bv the Town Planning Division of the Christchurch City Council), which contained a suggestion for a pedestrian mall at New Brigh-

ton. Most shop-owners enthusiastically took up the idea, but because some appealed against it, a retailers’ questionnaire was circulated. This clinched the matter. A study was made by the town planners of the special needs of butchers, chemists, hoteliers and others, and in November 1973, newspapers carried this public notice, “The Christchurch City Council hereby resolves by way of a Special Order, for the purposes of creating a pedestrian mall, to close the portions of Seaview Avenue and Oram Avenue, described in the undermentioned schedule, to vehiclar traffic . . .” Half the finance for the mall was provided by the C.C.C. and half came from special rates levied from those shop-owners who would benefit from the new complex. The over-all cost for the mall proper, excluding parking lots and the Oram Avenue area, has been $340,000.

At the end of last year, a special management committee was formed to see the project through its final stages. It is composed of four members of the City Council and four from the New Brighton District Business Association. The C.C.C. members are Mr R. Bamford, Miss V. Buck, Mrs N. Massey and the chairman, Mr Newton Doge. N.8.D.8A. respresentatives are Mr B. De Vere, Mr D. Gregg, Mr P. Sheppard and Mr D. Williams. The committee will only disband when the project is satisfactorily completed.