Removing barriers to the residential red zones

Kilometres of fencing inside the former residential red zones is being removed as the Christchurch City Council’s new residential red zone team makes the areas more accessible to the public and more efficient to maintain.

Residential Red Zone Manager Brenden Winder says most of the existing fences inside the regeneration areas (including the Ōtākaro Avon River Corridor, Southshore, South New Brighton and Brooklands) are no longer required; removing them will make the land more inviting for visitors and improve the Council’s efficiency in maintaining the areas.

“The majority of these fences were put up to improve public safety as the land was cleared of buildings following the earthquakes,” Mr Winder says. “With those buildings now gone, the internal fences are no longer required and we want to minimise obstruction for people wishing to use the area. We’ll look at ways to repurpose the posts, poles and wire elsewhere in the other regeneration areas.”

Perimeter fencing along roads that pass through the regeneration areas will remain in place to provide security and meet the community’s safety expectations. Fences around land containing existing lease holdings will also remain in place.

The Council has established a Residential Red Zone Parks’ team maintenance officers and rangers to maintain and look after Christchurch’s regeneration areas.

On 1 July 2020 the ownership of the Brooklands and Southshore-South New Brighton regeneration areas transferred from Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) to the Council. The Port Hills regeneration areas will transfer to Council ownership in May.

Ownership of the Ōtākaro Avon River Corridor land will gradually transfer from the Crown to the Council as LINZ completes title reconfiguration and surveying work. That work is already under way.