Central city  |  5 Sep 2023

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Christchurch residents and businesses have an opportunity to have their say on Central City noise, with a community engagement phase beginning today.

Head of City Growth and Property Bruce Rendall says the Council wants to hear from Central City residents, businesses, as well as the wider Christchurch city on the noise levels they expect in the Central City, at what times and in what locations.

“We want to further support the development of mixed-use, vibrant, Central City neighbourhoods, but this means addressing some of the noise tensions that have arisen as the Central City continues to grow and evolve,” says Mr Rendall.

“While this will ultimately involve a plan change to the Christchurch District Plan, we want to start these conversations now and gain an understanding of what people – particularly inner city residents and businesses – expect from a vibrant Central City.”

Council staff are beginning work to review how the District Plan manages the effects of different activities in a mixed-use environment, including the locations of Central City entertainment precincts, noise limits and insulation requirements.

“Our current District Plan was created after the earthquakes when the city looked a lot different to what it does today, and we acknowledge that it's no longer fit for purpose for some areas,” says Mr Rendall.

“The review will look at how we balance happy inner-city residents and a thriving night-time economy and environment.

“As we start this work, we want to gather the thoughts of the Central City community about current noise levels, and whether there’s any additional support we can provide.

“We encourage as many of our inner-city residents and businesses as possible to complete the survey that’s just gone live on the Council’s Let’s Talk website. This feedback will help to shape the proposed plan change, which we expect to have ready for public consultation in 2025.”

People and businesses can complete the online survey until 2 October 2023.