Rebuilding the streets of Kaiapoi after the 2010 Canterbury earthquake

The 4 September 2010 earthquake which struck the Canterbury region significantly damaged essential infrastructure in the town of Kaiapoi, 20km north of central Christchurch. This left the Waimakariri District Council (WDC) facing challenges of immediate repairs and longer term reinstatement. An 'Infrastructure Recovery Team' including ViaStrada's Jeanette Ward, was promptly established to manage these challenges and the opportunities that soon became apparent.

The paper focuses on four key areas within Kaiapoi and outlines the collaborative framework in which the recovery team was operating, the successful alignment and integration with other projects, the fast track scheme development and consultation process, and the outcomes that resulted from the recovery. Due to the scale and relative urgency of the rebuild required, numerous tasks were under way in parallel that would normally be carried out sequentially.

In particular the paper focuses on the outcomes that enhanced the streetscape and improved accessibility. Opportunities included revitalising a 1960s residential development to achieve better urban design, stormwater management and transport outcomes. There was also a Town Centre Revitalisation planning project already under way that had scope to integrate with the residential street rebuild particular given the number of buildings that required demolition. All of the emerging opportunities presented the community with an environment where the economic prosperity of the town could be enhanced through urban design and transport improvements. Very rarely does an opportunity occur to rebuild streets to current standards and best practise on such a large scale.

The conference presentation gives an overview of the items discussed in the paper and provides a strong visual background to the project.