Outcry possible on council’s P.O. plan

Press, 13 April 1978, Page 6

Outcry possible on council’s P.O. plan

The Christchurch City Council’s town-planning' committee seems to have taken the path of least resistance, at least from the Government, in its proposal to keep only part of the Chief Post Office building in Cathedral Square.

>!an might be more than the The chainnan of the Enibout rhe unseemly haste’’ of Dr Hervev said there had, S* public about possible opVms, or the costs of those: options. No-one outside thei council had been able to exPost Office prefers the one* retaining one facade only.i and apparently the City council agrees with it.” she •gst wing, which includes the; “lock tower, would be ‘much more environmentally' icceptable," Dr Hervev said.; dona! c racter for the* •he said, ‘There is too much; been unwilling to pay attention to public criticism of I the new Postal Centre’s sitr?. and they should be will-i building. I

er Dr Hervey said she would f'send letters to councillors, I asking them to defer a deci-i ■jsion on Monday evening, to! - allow time for public opinion | : to enter the debate. s Until yesterday, a report 1 outlining options had been' f kept in committee at the re-, [quest of the Director-; ■ General of the Post Office,; who had to make a prelimm-; I'arv proposal to the Govern-! The proposal to do away| - with the building’s northern. !■facade, facing the Four Ships j •jCourt. “is the scheme which) the Post Office definitely fav- ‘ ours as most nearly satisfy-1 ' mg its new- space require-; .merits,” according to a plan-; ning report. '; In other words, the Post I Office did not encourage! '.councillors to seek more) ' preservation of the building. ; 'Extra preservation would be; ' a facade only, covering one; face of a new' two-storey! ‘podium level” of a tower office block from 10 to 12 j storeys high. ; Retention of the north! . wing facade “would involve; a structural redesign of the! old north wing, with a link-1 ing in of the new structure,”! according to the council’s re-1 Three private discussions] ‘lof preservation notions have: (already been held this year.] On the basis of those meet-, rings, it is probable that the. I Post Office would be willing I

I ;o exchange the east wing ,|for the council’s women's •rest rooms and creche build- > ing in the south-west corner; i|of the Square. Then, the east wing would ', be used for council services. " According to the report, “it (should be structurally ; strengthened in order to acdcommodate social services, •creche. Citizens’ Advice ■Bureau, elderly persons’ rest > rooms, public conveniences 'and possibly some other ■facilities, such as the Public Relations Office.” Doctor Hervey said her; (organisation “might even I consider a petition" if there ; were no attempt to gauge 'public feeling about either proposal. ! Two disadvantages listed : for the proposal to keen both i facades are that it could cost the City Council “a considerable amount of money” because the council could be (asked to contribute to the cost of that retention, and it would mean a higher cost fpr | the Post Office. Merits of the recommended plan include possible 'development of a shopping ;arcade between the old east I wing and the new building. Other merits were that | little council cost would be involved, and that the new j Post Office building would (cost less and be “a discrete unit, and not a part of a 'false front.”