The Press

Stormwater plan

A multimillion-dollar stormwater treatment plant may be built inside Christchurch’s Hagley Park as the city council seeks to improve water quality in the Avon River. The plant is expected to take 90% of sediment and about 65% of dissolved metals out...

Dumping costs ratepayers

Illegal dumping is not just an eyesore, it’s costing Canterbury ratepayers almost $3 million a year. Figures from the Christchurch city, and Selwyn and Waimakariri district councils show the growing financial toll of rubbish being dumped illegally or...

‘Wrong kind of heritage’: Rejection forces costly redesign

A Christchurch developer says the city council rejected its original design for a heritage-inspired apartment building near the Arts Centre because it was from the wrong period – forcing an 18-month redesign that cost up to $800,000. Brooksfield Homes...

Dome destined for red zone or scrap pile

A Christchurch man says he will scrap a heritage dome he saved after the earthquakes if the city council refuses to support his plan to donate it to the red zone. Paddy Snowdon, a demolition expert and heritage conservationist, bought the Regent...

Virginia Fallon

OPINION

Response to Covid-19 ‘effective’

The Government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic was effective but imperfect, a Royal Commission has found. The second leg of the powerful inquiry – secured in coalition agreements – interrogated key decisions about vaccine safety and mandates,...

GET YOUR glow ON

Let’s be real: skincare routines can be a total snooze. Ten steps, a million ingredients and half the time no one knows what they actually do. Everyone’s over buying products that flop or leave skin feeling meh. Imagine if happy, glowy skin was...

Edge of blue

Niue is one of the world’s smallest countries, situated on one of the world’s largest raised coral atolls. But as far as conservation goes, Niue is a heavyweight. It has provided protection for its skies, land and sea. Niue was the first country to...

Goodbye Gap Filler

Coralie Winn is standing in the sun on the patio of a cafe in Lyttelton, looking out over the harbour. She teaches pottery in the building next door, and when the cafe gets too loud, she asks the barista to unlock the closed outdoor area, and leads me...

Motel billed $46k for water after leak

A Christchurch motel owner is reeling after receiving a $46,000 bill from the city council for excess water use. Raj Gordon, owner of Samhil Motor Lodge on Riccarton Rd, fixed his leaky pipe and provided the council with the invoice. But he says it...

Operator chosen

Christchurch brewer and bar operator Cassels has signed a deal to open in the Arts Centre’s old Student Union/dux de Lux building, but the move hangs on ratepayer backing. The Arts Centre has launched a social media campaign lobbying for public...

Truffle operation hopes to go global

A $10 million investment in rare black winter truffles aims to put Canterbury on the world map as a main exporter of the delicacy. Trufa Aotearoa Ltd has secured consent from the Overseas Investment Office (OIO) to expand onto a new 10-acre block in...

‘Take shelter’, PM tells Kiwis in Iran

At least 1750 Kiwis have found themselves in a conflict zone with no promise of rescue following a United States-israeli military strike on Iran during the weekend that is likely to have far-reaching implications, including in New Zealand. While...

Iranians rejoice, mourn

Iranian New Zealanders have expressed their joy, relief, anger and fear following major air strikes against their homeland that have left the Middle East in turmoil. The United States and Israel launched the attack at the weekend, with strikes in the...

The show will go on

Electric Avenue, Australasia’s biggest music festival, continues in Christchurch’s Hagley Park today after red-hot excitement yesterday despite the cool weather – as 45,000 tickets were sold for each day.

Cathedral crisis

The campaign to restore Christchurch’s Anglican cathedral is exclusively targeting ratepayers for the money to restart work on the mothballed project. Eighteen months since halting the $200 million-plus restoration project, Christ Church Cathedral...

House valuations

Some city suburbs rise, some fall

Museum cost up yet again

The cost to redevelop Canterbury Museum has increased again, this time by $15 million – and local councils and the Government are being asked to pick up the tab. The museum announced yesterday that the project is now expected to cost $261.9m, up from...

Months of closure after flood

'Wipe out' for owner of Little River Cafe

Civic Building repair bill rises

Christchurch City Council’s Civic Building is in worse shape than originally thought, and the repair bill, already over $1 million, continues to rise. Problems with the building’s six-storey annex, fronting Worcester Blvd, were identified in May,...

Further fall from grace

Spending the day in police custody was hardly how Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor would have wished to celebrate his 66th birthday – but, for once in the life of the former prince and Knight of the Garter, his power and position could not prevent it. His...

Square left behind

When Christ Church Cathedral’s tower and spire of fell on February 22, 2011, it was thought 22 people had died in the rubble. There was a viewing platform 30m up the 63m-high spire that gave visitors an elevated but intimate view of the square. It was...

Design that delivers

With their children having left the nest, this middleaged professional couple was moving into a modern apartment on Wellington’s waterfront. It was a blank canvas in terms of interior design, and the pair engaged interior designer Sandra Aiken, of D...

‘We’ve lost everything’

Dozens of primary students are holed up at a marae, properties are damaged and Little River’s main road has become a “raging river” after unprecedented rain crashed over Banks Peninsula. The area entered into a local state of emergency yesterday as...

15 years post-quake

Into the gorge

‘Hey, Emma, do you want to see a crocodile?” my guide asks from her kayak. Standing barefoot on my paddleboard, in only my swimsuit and lifejacket, I pause mid-stroke and consider my answer. “Uh ... yeah,” I eventually say, apprehensively. As it turns...

Appeal hearing

This week, convicted murderer and terrorist Brenton Tarrant’s case was heard at the Court of Appeal in Wellington. He was seeking leave to appeal his convictions and to vacate his guilty pleas for killing 51 people and injuring 40 at two Christchurch...

Back to race after 43 years

More than 40 years after they stood on Kumara Beach for the first ever Coast to Coast event, three of the 79 starters will take on the 44th edition of the race. Alister Metherell, 67, from Christchurch, Rex Randell from Nelson, and Julian Carne, 67,...

Cash prizes to help root out pretty pink invader

It’s hairy, pink, and two metres tall – and the regional council needs the public’s help to get rid of it before it chokes up Canterbury’s waterways. Environment Canterbury (Ecan) has launched a “great willowherb hunt” until the end of February....

Ratepayers hit again

Christchurch ratepayers are facing a 7.96% rates increase this year and could also end up paying more to park in the city, swim at the council’s pools, register their dog and be buried. Under the proposals a family could end up paying an additional...

$6.2m app isn't an app

Reaching individual fitness goals is now all about dialing up expert support that’s tailor-made for each person. Because whether the goal is to complete an upcoming half marathon, manage a niggly pain or just be that little bit fitter for the kids,...

New beach beckons but don’t pack your togs

Christchurch is about to get a new beach, butyouwon’twanttoswimatit. A 180m long “soft beach” is among a suite of work planned to help protect South New Brighton and Southshore from erosion and flooding along the Ihutai Avon-heathcote Estuary. The...

Fish foretold river collapse

Every year, in the waning heat of summer, the Rakaia River reliably flashed silver with salmon. Hundreds would cast lines into the river’s milky, glacial flow, hunting for the heaviest fish and the prestige that came with it. The Rakaia fishing...

Life Savings

Teachers Cherie Boyd and Angela Paxon were shocked when Water Safety New Zealand instructors tested their year 6 class from Christchurch’s Te Kura o Rātā Templeton. Out of their 24 students, only eight could swim competently when tested at Templeton...

Making her mark HOMED

Tina Worthington took over running her family’s fifthgeneration farm in Taranaki 17 years ago, and she and husband Bryan bought the worker’s house and two acres. The garden consisted of hedges, two cherry trees, a large rhododendron and little else,...

South Island gets denser

Townhouses are quietly changing what it means to build a home in the South Island, and the latest consents data shows the shift is no longer just a Christchurch story. Numbers suggest the building downturn has eased, with new dwelling consents up 11%...

Wolfbrook buys land for $42m

Housing developer Wolfbrook is planning a range of luxury apartments, houses and townhouses after spending $42 million on land opposite Hagley Park. In what is one of the largest development land deals ever done in central Christchurch, the company...

Boat damage ‘worse than anticipated’

Damage to a stranded wildlife cruise boat is “worse than anticipated” as authorities work to minimise the impact of thousands of litres of diesel now thought to have leaked into the sea. Black Cat Cruises says 38 passengers and three crew were...

Court Theatre responds

There will be no wholesale changes at the Court Theatre, following a wave of complaints about seating comfort and sightlines, but its chief executive says that is not the end of the conversation. After a week of criticism focused on the $61 million...

‘Fines’ copped for using free parking

More than 2500 people have been slapped with a $75 ticket after parking at Parakiore – even though they parked within the free two-hour limit. Christchurch City Council confirmed 2585 breach notices – totalling almost $200,000 – were issued to people...

Long lines and big bills back

Long queues snaked through NZ Uniforms stores this week as parents scrambled for the new school year, with some families spending hundreds of dollars on required clothing and waiting for items to be restocked. “This particular week that we’re in at...

Same fuel, different price

On Christchurch’s Cranford St, the price of diesel can vary by almost 30 cents a litre in the space of 1.5km. BP’S full-service station was this week charging 194.9c a litre. Head north and Waitomo’s unmanned site at the end of Cranford St was...

Carter a contender

Green Party list MP Kahurangi Carter has declared her intention to win the Christchurch Central electorate seat in this year’s general election. She says the Greens have shown that they can be effective electorate MPS.

Sheeran in the rain – a glorious feeling

Ed Sheeran, Apollo Projects Stadium, Christchurch, Saturday, January 24. Rain killed all but two of Ed Sheeran’s guitars, and an earpiece, and caused a mechanical bridge to malfunction for a bit, but he still put on a show to remember. Sheeran...

Should warnings have been seen?

The worst had passed. The skies had dumped a record deluge overnight, but by the time Tauranga’s red rainfall warning expired at 9am on Thursday, the sun had taken charge again. But half an hour later, just before checkout time at the Mt Maunganui...

Frantic dig for missing

Desperate families could only wait and hope as rescuers searched for people, including children, missing after torrential rain and devastating landslides in the upper North Island yesterday. In Tauranga, rescuers were digging in search of survivors...

‘Go through line by line’

The 2026 election will be held on Saturday, November 7. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon made the announcement yesterday at the National Party caucus retreat in Christchurch. Luxon said “continuing the recent tradition of announcing the election date...

Rates cap can’t work, council says

Christchurch City Council is taking aim at the Government’s proposed rates cap saying it is “unrealistic and unworkable”. The policy is not well considered and does not use the best evidence, the council says in a draft submission to the rates cap...

Feel full for longer

Looking for a high-protein breakfast? These oat pancakes with cottage cheese & berries have you sorted.

Beach fun a tradition

Camping has been Sandra and John Gow’s summer default since they were kids. Now, it’s an intergenerational joy. Their parents each took them camping. Then, when they met and got married, they carried on the tradition. Now, they take their...

Steep rise, steeper fall

Breakdancing across the Waikato Stadium turf after the Crusaders’ 2023 Super Rugby Pacific title, Scott Robertson was on top of the world. The man dubbed “Razor” had just guided the red-and-blacks to a seventh championship in as many seasons in his...

Stadium not an Airbnb boost – yet

Aside from New Year’s Day, Electric Avenue has the most Airbnbs booked in Christchurch for 2026, closely followed by Ed Sheeran next week. One New Zealand Stadium at Te Kaha’s opening events? About half the number of bookings. Winter timing and high...

More new homes than post-quake

More new homes are going up in Christchurch now than during the peak of the post-earthquake rebuild. In the year to November, more than 6400 homes were consented across Christchurch city and the Selwyn and Waimakariri districts, according to the...

The stench is back

The stench from Christchurch’s wastewater treatment plant has spiked again this summer, angering residents, and driving them inside behind closed windows and doors. Residents are at breaking point, and the city council must do more to support their...

Health NZ apologises for letter ‘sent in error’

A patient who feared an indefinite wait for surgery for his chronic pain condition because Christchurch Hospital only had “capacity to treat patients with a nondeferrable condition such as cancer” was sent the letter in error, Health NZ has...

Makeshift red zone camp a haven for many

Dozens of people, including workers, pensioners and a family, are sleeping in tents, cars and buses on land in Christchurch’s red zone. The group were directed to the area by the Christchurch City Council, but while it is a safe haven for the...

What’s next after Maduro?

The Venezuelan dictator was in a supposed safe house when the Delta Force commandos burst in just after 2am and snatched him and his wife, before his security team had time to secure the property’s final defence of two heavy steel doors. Even if they...

Critic's choice

Was 2025 a great year to go to the movies? Yeah, I think it was. Attendances were up, and there was a terrific return to form for dramas especially. I also reckon the NZ International Film Festival delivered some genuine gems. So, in no particular...

Road toll down sharply

The South Island road toll has dropped sharply this year, with 59 people killed on its roads, down from 82 deaths last year and well below higher tolls in the past four years. Across New Zealand, 272 people died on the roads, down from 292 at the same...

Festive start to 2026

Thousands of Kiwis across the South Island have ushered in the new year soaking up international artists at major festivals. In Christchurch, Rolling Meadows expected some 8500 attendees yesterday and Rhythm and Alps (R&A) 10,000. It was Rolling’s...

Ratepayers on the hook

Christchurch ratepayers have been quietly paying the cost of unstable ticket sales on the iconic central-city trams. Although the gap between costs and revenue significantly improved in 2024 – $282,970 compared with $105,302 the year prior – it was...

Where the ocean meets the vines

When winemaker Alejandro (Alex) Perez needs inspiration for his next vintage, he follows a trail in Whakanewha Regional Park, where the bush meets a crescent-shaped beach on Waiheke Island’s serene south coast, to a pā site with multimillion-dollar...

Music boom and bust

Call it the festival recession. Across New Zealand, iconic music festivals are unplugging their microphones – many for good. Splore, decades old. One Love, a household name. And, most recently, underground grassroots festival Twisted Frequency told The...

English couple fly in for Chch parkrun milestone

At 8am sharp on Christmas morning, thousands of people across New Zealand laced up their running shoes for the global exercise phenomenon, parkrun – but Riverlution parkrun’s first-ever Christmas Day event in Christchurch was particularly...

Sunburnt nation still tempts fate

Kaylee Mccormack checked her phone on a 29C day at Sumner Beach in Christchurch. Not for messages or Tiktok, but for the number that would determine her afternoon plans. UV index: 9. Perfect tanning weather. “I’m definitely not a re-applier,”...

A century on the edge

A new generation of climbers is aiming for the top with the Canterbury Mountaineering Club, which is celebrating 100 years of exploring the South Island’s peaks, with plenty of triumphs and losses along the way.

Quintessentially Kiwi

A love letter to the no-frills 1970s bach

Blessings and curse: The drugs that keep terminal cancer patients alive

Bronwyn Harris is defying the odds. When she was diagnosed with stage-four ovarian cancer two years ago, she was given a year to live – 18 months at most. She is still here and likely has years of life ahead of her. And luck has nothing to do with it,...

Small towns, big increases

It may be a buyer’s market across much of the country, but house prices in some of the South Island’s rural hubs are still trending upwards – and selling well. First-home buyers have been taking advantage of lower mortgage rates to maintain a record...

Hi-tech turf at Te Kaha

For months, the new Christchurch stadium has stood as an impressive concrete and steel shell looking largely naked on the inside. Now, with nearly a hectare of specially world-class grown turf laid across its floor, the venue is finally dressed up for...

Moneyball

Canterbury seamer Sean Davey finally quelled Auckland’s resistance at Hagley Oval to move the red-and-blacks to within one point of the Plunket Shield lead. Davey took 4-41 including the final wicket of Adi Ashok to dismiss Auckland for 324 and...

Student job applications hit record high

A record number of job applications were made by tertiary students in New Zealand last month, with some young people moving cities to find work. The “demoralising” search for employment is something Zita Fairbrass knows about first-hand. She spent 18...

Some residents stay put

City retirement village becomes ghost town

Be my guest

There’s a certain level of planning involved in hosting an event – even a modest one. But while time might be spent refining the menu, finding enough chairs or checking if the festoon lighting still works, there’s one room in the house that is too...