The convention centre is to be located on Colombo and Armagh Streets. It will cost $475 million, with completion due early 2020. International groups have already expressed interest in holding events from October the same year.
A huge development for the regeneration of Christchurch’s CBD, the construction has already signaled the expansion of the travel industry in the city as a whole, with development plans emerging for the airport and the hotel industry.
New Zealand’s second largest airport, Christchurch Airport has expansion plans to accommodate 12 million passengers annually by 2040, an increase of 50% from current figures. The proposed plans include a new entry tunnel, a second multi-level car park building, and a larger, more flexible terminal design with high tech screening to speed up passenger processing.
The new terminal design is based on the expectation that the trans-Tasman travel experience will continue to improve and become more like travelling domestically.
As the major gateway to and from the South Island, Christchurch airport is served by 11 direct international services to Australia, the Pacific, and Asia. This number is sure to increase in coming years, as interest in New Zealand as a destination for business and leisure continues to grow, with many countries beginning to view the South Island as a luxury destination.
Major hotel developments are also underway to accommodate the increase in visitors to the city, with four new major hotels due to open by the end of next year.
This includes the Ramada Encore (late 2017), Sudima Christchurch Victoria (late 2018 - pictured below), the Distinction Hotel (early 2018) and the Novotel Christchurch Airport (July 2018). The combined capacity of these four new properties is an additional 544 rooms.
APX has long established relationships with these hotel brands, and we look to the added value they will bring to the city, in the form of revenue and employment, as well as adding to the colour and landscape of the city. Christchurch, in many ways, is in a unique position in New Zealand, where the roadmap for the city’s development is broad enough to permit real innovation and future-thinking. With the advent of re-thinking of transport design and city-planning, we may well see Christchurch become a frontrunner in New Zealand’s modernisation.
