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Downtown Car Park

In 2023, the Mayor and Councillors approved $4.4 million to earthquake-strengthen the building so it could be safely reopened for public use. Work began on site in March 2024 and the building is reopened in November 2024. Status: Completed.

NPDC closed the 268-space Downtown Car Park in December 2020 after it was found to be earthquake prone.

A detailed seismic assessment report classed the building as “high risk” because it met 20 to 34 per cent of the new building standards (NBS) brought in since the Christchurch earthquakes.

The seven-storey car park, which fronts on to Powderham Street, was built in the late 1980s in line with the standards and building codes of the time.

In April 2022, the Mayor and Councillors approved a budget of $5 million to strengthen the building, but in 2023 they approved a revised proposal to carry out work essential to reopening the building within a $4.4 million budget.

Work at the site began in March 2024. 

This includes new steel supports for the pre-cast concrete floors, vehicle barriers along the outside walls, a new lift and a new parking system.​

The building reopened 30 November 2024.

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Page last updated: 10:56am Mon 19 May 2025

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