Christchurch's new mall

[mashman]

Just saw the new popup mall on the telly. Looks different and not too sure if I'd be too happy with it... Waddayathink?

[ellipsis]

...should have used the containers to ship cera, saint bullshit bob and fat cunt brownlee off to the personal little worlds they all inhabit...would need a bigger reinforced one for the failed school woodwork teacher tho..

[Swoop]

*Tag: Where are the BDOTGNZA when you need them!

[imdying]

I'm not sure why any out of town business are going into them, but as far as buildings go, why bother with regular ones if these will do the job. Flash buildings fall down just like old crappy heritage ones, these never will, and we're likely to get some more big shakes over the next few decades.

[far queue]

I've wondered from the start, why the rush to get Cashel mall up and running again? Before 22/2 there were thousands of workers in town that went to the shops. Now the buildings are gone and/or the workers are gone. There aren't going to be the people working in town to wander along to the shops like there used to be. The shops will probably do OK to start with as people make a special trip in to have a look out of curiosity but once the novelty's worn off, then what? People have moved their work to new areas and settled into a new normal. In time (years) when buildings are replaced and workers move back in into the CBD then shops will be become viable again, but right now it's just an expensive PR sideshow. Energy and money could be better spent elsewhere.

The company I work for were mostly in one big building in the CBD, but are now well setup mostly in 4 buildings in different parts of the city. The company has stated that we'll never all be back in one building in Chch again for the sake of risk management and business continuity in case of other events. The lease on the building I'm in now is for 5 years, so we're there for at least that long. I'm sure there will be plenty of other businesses that were forced into similar situations and have found that it's actually not too bad either.

Sorry, I got a bit off track, but you get the idea.

[Oakie]

I've wondered from the start, why the rush to get Cashel mall up and running again?

For the symbolic value of something coming back to the CBD (albeit in somewhat pre-fab format) rather than being torn down. Never underestimate the value of a defiant gesture from people on their knees.

[mashman]

I've wondered from the start, why the rush to get Cashel mall up and running again? Before 22/2 there were thousands of workers in town that went to the shops. Now the buildings are gone and/or the workers are gone. There aren't going to be the people working in town to wander along to the shops like there used to be. The shops will probably do OK to start with as people make a special trip in to have a look out of curiosity but once the novelty's worn off, then what? People have moved their work to new areas and settled into a new normal. In time (years) when buildings are replaced and workers move back in into the CBD then shops will be become viable again, but right now it's just an expensive PR sideshow. Energy and money could be better spent elsewhere.

The company I work for were mostly in one big building in the CBD, but are now well setup mostly in 4 buildings in different parts of the city. The company has stated that we'll never all be back in one building in Chch again for the sake of risk management and business continuity in case of other events. The lease on the building I'm in now is for 5 years, so we're there for at least that long. I'm sure there will be plenty of other businesses that were forced into similar situations and have found that it's actually not too bad either.

Sorry, I got a bit off track, but you get the idea.

great post... pretty much covers everything I was thinking about and some.

I get the idea behind the PR stunt being a grand gesture, but why didn't they put it up somewhere else? I get the feeling that Chch CBD is gonna be rebuilt in situ, although I can't understand why they're even considering it... but that's just my take. Those containers look feckin 'orrid, better paint may help, but I get why they're doing it, but would have thought they'd do it properly (or at least show the start of something permanent) somewhere closer to the working/living population as far queue highlights.

[onearmedbandit]

I agree with Bob Jones, forget rebuilding the CBD, it was dying before the 'quakes anyway. And if it is rebuilt, who's going to occupy it? There is a decent chance that rents will be higher than before (increased insurance costs and building costs), not forgetting that very few businesses have expressed an interest in going back there especially after re-establishing themselves in different areas of the city.

[mashman]

I agree with Bob Jones, forget rebuilding the CBD, it was dying before the 'quakes anyway. And if it is rebuilt, who's going to occupy it? There is a decent chance that rents will be higher than before (increased insurance costs and building costs), not forgetting that very few businesses have expressed an interest in going back there especially after re-establishing themselves in different areas of the city.

I figure they could save a fortune by not knocking the CBD down straight away. Build first, then knock down later.

[mashman]

... and then some cunt on the other side of the world gets all pissy over the terminology being used "Lawsuit threatens Chch Restart project"...

"A project to restart Christchurch businesses in shipping containers in Cashel Mall has been threatened with a lawsuit by the director of a London pop-up mall."

"References to City Mall being a pop-up mall had since been removed from advertising, but Mr Lonsdale said Restart's opening wouldn't be put off by the threat."

[imdying]

Mr Wade... another fuckwit who'll be getting white powder in the mail for Christmas

A bit of luck it'll scare the fuck out of him and he'll have a heart attack and die.