After a brief period of new hope for rebuilding the cathedral in Christchurch, New Zealand, the project has ground to a halt. The coalition national government has declined to help cover a funding shortfall of $85 million in a project with a total cost of $219 million.
The decision comes little over a month after Christchurch’s diocesan synod agreed to revisions to the original reconstruction plans that nearly halved the projected funding gap for rebuilding the landmark building, which was catastrophically damaged by a 2011 earthquake.
Nevertheless, Mark Stewart of Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Limited is not abandoning the project and will continue to seek alternative funding.
Stewart called the government’s decision short-sighted. “By just kicking it down the road it’s actually making it worse and more expensive and harder to solve,” he said, adding that each decade the cathedral remains empty will add another $50 million to the reconstruction cost.
Christchurch mayor Phil Mauger joined Stewart in expressing sadness about the government’s decision.
“This is so much more than just a church,” he told reporter Tina Law of The Press in Christchurch. “It’s a building that sits at the heart of our city, and I hope that funding to complete the reinstatement can be secured at some point.”
Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb said the Labour Party did not have a policy on the cathedral but that he would advocate that a Labour government support the restoration. “This government has shown Christchurch the hand,” he told The Press. “It’s said to Christchurch, ‘You’re on your own.’”
Work crews will now “demobilize” the property for three months, assuring that the construction site is not vulnerable to inclement weather.
The cathedral congregation continues to meet in architect Shigeru Ban’s award-winning interim cathedral. That interim structure makes extensive use of large tubes made of durable cardboard.
Bishop Peter Carrell of Christchurch told The Press that the diocese has no plans to demolish the cathedral: “I will never, as Bishop of Christchurch, seek a demolition order.”
