Posts Tagged ‘christchurch earthquake’

What future for Christchurch?

Written By: - Date published: 9:34 am, June 15th, 2011 - 35 comments

Lack of certainty is killing the spirit and economy of Christchurch. Before the latest quakes there were already threats of protests because Brownlee has failed to announce which areas can’t be rebuilt on. That information is even more needed now. Brownlee says it’s ‘blindingly obvious’ which areas must go. He needs to drop the arrogance and inform people.

Another quake

Written By: - Date published: 2:25 pm, June 13th, 2011 - 34 comments

The nastiest quakes since February. A 5.5 closely followed by a 6.0. Damage, injuries, utility outages reported.  How much more can Christchurch take?

No plan, no worries?

Written By: - Date published: 12:55 pm, April 5th, 2011 - 9 comments

A unemployment disaster is slowly unfolding in Christchurch. For now, the tide of job losses is being partially held back by wage subsidies supporting nearly 70,000 workers, but those will be phased out by June. Then, all hell will break loose. The Government has no plan for this and, according to Key, hasn’t even bothered to understand the scope of the crisis.

Whatever happened to “we’re all in this together”?

Written By: - Date published: 7:44 am, April 5th, 2011 - 63 comments

Displaced Christchurch residents are being told they need to pay at least $190 a week to stay in emergency campervan housing.

Meanwhile picking up the tab for wealthy SFC investors just got another third of a billion more expensive.

A fraction liquefaction

Written By: - Date published: 8:53 am, April 2nd, 2011 - 11 comments

More Christchurch black humour (or maybe “brown” humour?)…

30% of Chch workers jobless by quake

Written By: - Date published: 9:08 am, March 24th, 2011 - 14 comments

62,000 Christchurch workers are now receiving special earthquake payments. Most of these workers’ businesses have been closed by the earthquake and plan to re-open at some point by 6,300 jobs are gone for good That’s about 30% of Christchurch workers out of action and 3% without the hope that their workplace will re-open.

Informed consent

Written By: - Date published: 10:08 am, March 23rd, 2011 - 47 comments

Owners of businesses in the red zone CBD want brief access to their premises to retrieve items and data that are vital to whatever remaining chance they have of keeping their enterprises alive.  The government is refusing access on the grounds of safety.  There’s right on both sides of the issue, but whatever happened to informed consent?

Vanishing rebuilding rhetoric

Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, March 21st, 2011 - 7 comments

We’ve had the memorial service. Now we need action.  Now we need the plan.  Christchurch needs rebuilding.  How is it going to happen?  Does the current government have the will?  I went looking for clues in John Key’s three big speeches to date.  What I found was not encouraging…

20 March

Written By: - Date published: 7:36 am, March 20th, 2011 - 94 comments

Here’s my prediction for 20 March 2011.

Who will do the rebuilding?

Written By: - Date published: 8:26 am, March 19th, 2011 - 38 comments

Who will plan, oversee and administer the rebuilding of Christchurch?  Public servants.  The kind of “back room bureaucrats” that the Nats love to hate.  But governments can’t get anything done without them.

Who’s bulldozing Christchurch business?

Written By: - Date published: 8:47 am, March 18th, 2011 - 73 comments

There’s a large number of reports coming out of Christchurch of businesses that have been demolished without Civil Defence consulting with the owners, as is procedure, and giving them a chance to recover vital equipment and records first. Disturbingly, some of these demolitions seem to have been carried out by ‘cowboys’ without CD approval.

Christchurch memorial service

Written By: - Date published: 7:03 am, March 18th, 2011 - 183 comments

A memorial service will be held in Hagley Park today to pay tribute to victims of the February quake.  Proceedings begin at 10:30am, with the service starting at 12:30, and two minutes silence at 12.51pm.  This event has strongly polarised opinions in Christchurch…

The building blocks of new Christchurch?

Written By: - Date published: 11:01 pm, March 16th, 2011 - 97 comments

Me & others: How come the government seems to have no plan for rebuilding Christchurch or desire to get one?
Righties: Well, um, Key’s awesome and, anyway, what’s your plan, smart-arse ?
Me: I’m not the government, rebuilding Christchurch isn’t my job. But here’s where I would start.

The Wrong Stuff

Written By: - Date published: 12:03 pm, March 16th, 2011 - 17 comments

This week’s Sunday Star-Times was full of stories about unaffordable food, housing and fuel affecting the country’s urban dwellers, nowhere more so than in Auckland. Meanwhile the shortage of housing after the earthquake promises huge rent and house price hikes for Christchurch, assuming the locals don’t flee and push up house prices elsewhere.

Christchurch RWC

Written By: - Date published: 7:03 am, March 16th, 2011 - 76 comments

I don’t think that anyone who has been paying attention to events in Christchurch could seriously have expected the city to host a major sporting event like the RWC within a few short months.  So why is John Key the last person left in the country who is denying the obvious?

Labour exposes planless Key

Written By: - Date published: 12:04 am, March 16th, 2011 - 128 comments

There’s been increasing concern over the past week or two that not only has the government failed to communicate its plan for the Christchurch recovery, it doesn’t actually have one, and isn’t particularly worried about getting one. Yesterday in the House, Labour took Key to task on this important issue. And he was found terribly wanting.

Weeping for Christchurch

Written By: - Date published: 4:27 pm, March 15th, 2011 - 13 comments

Sometimes we take comments here and put them up as posts.  Here’s one from long time contributor vto.

Go well

Written By: - Date published: 5:33 pm, March 14th, 2011 - 18 comments

Forty two Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) workers left New Zealand this morning for Japan.  Straight off the back of three hard weeks in the rubble of Christchurch, they are flying in to help out with an even bigger disaster.

Key pledges: a photo-op a week for Chch

Written By: - Date published: 12:05 am, March 14th, 2011 - 83 comments

Stung by Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee’s admission that the eastern suburbs were neglected after the Christchurch Earthquake, John Key is redoubling his efforts: “For the first few days, I stuck my head down and got on with designing the emergency benefit policy but, winter’s approaching, so the people need me to return to my strengths.”

Christchurch Earthquake Bulletin #2

Written By: - Date published: 12:10 pm, March 11th, 2011 - 14 comments

Apparently Christchurch Labour MPs will be putting out their bulletin daily. Here’s the second update from Clayton Cosgrove (Waimakariri), Ruth Dyson (Port Hills), Lianne Dalziel (Christchurch East) and Brendon Burns (Christchurch Central).  In future you can get to them here.

Looting by another name

Written By: - Date published: 7:22 am, March 11th, 2011 - 126 comments

Mayor Bob Parker has described landlords hiking rents in Christchurch as “looting by another name”.  I think the majority of us would feel as Parker does — it seems simply wrong to exploit people for profit in a time of tragedy.  But look around.  It’s just unregulated capitalism in action.  There’s an awful lot of it about.

Christchurch Earthquake Bulletin

Written By: - Date published: 12:31 pm, March 10th, 2011 - 22 comments

The Labour Party’s Christchurch electorate MPs are today starting a regular bulletin designed to keep people in their electorates and media informed about what is happening at grass roots level in their electorates.

Building our future

Written By: - Date published: 12:00 pm, March 10th, 2011 - 69 comments

Facing a housing shortage in Auckland now and a massive rebuilding programme in Christchurch to come, the Government has announced the biggest public building initiative since World War 2. Thousands of unemployed young people will be paid to train as apprentices in building trades and contribute to their country’s future.

Beyond a joke

Written By: - Date published: 12:50 pm, March 9th, 2011 - 60 comments

John Key and Gerry Brownlee are the two most powerful men in the country right now. In their actions and in their words they hold the hopes of tens of thousands of people whose lives have been turned upside down and the future of a major city. We really need these men to do a good job. So, this Laurel and Hardy impersonation has to stop.

Show some leadership, please

Written By: - Date published: 6:12 pm, March 8th, 2011 - 136 comments

Key has been caught out bullshitting about the earthquake again.

This time about how many houses will have to be destroyed.

With so much uncertainty surrounding the quake and its aftermath already that’s not good enough.

Key needs to show some leadership.

Cometh the Hour

Written By: - Date published: 9:19 pm, March 7th, 2011 - 53 comments

ChrisH submitted this incredibly knowledgeable and well-researched post on the rebuilding of Christchurch a few days ago. The announcement that large parts now lower-lying eastern suburbs will be abandoned lends more strength to his call for a visionary urban plan for the new, more resilient Christchurch. And Phil Goff has the history to present it.

Confirmed: Brownlee made it up

Written By: - Date published: 3:43 pm, March 7th, 2011 - 18 comments

More bad news for Gerry Brownlee today. No Right Turn has had confirmation that Gerry Brownlee makes his ‘policy’ up as he goes without seeking competent advice. This must be more than slightly terrifying to the people of Christchurch because Brownlee is currently their dictator by legislation in the rebuilding effort. His bulldozing ineptness is not just confined to buildings but is endemic to everything he does.

 

For God’s sake, be straight with us

Written By: - Date published: 1:50 pm, March 7th, 2011 - 115 comments

John Key and Gerry Brownlee made extremely foolish comments attacking the coronal staff trying to identify the dead and about knocking down all the historic buildings. Now, they’re lying about those statements. This crisis is too big for this childish bullshit. John, you need to be a real leader, not a naughty schoolboy lying to cover your mistakes.

I See Red

Written By: - Date published: 7:40 am, March 7th, 2011 - 62 comments

The government has a fair bit on its plate right now, like the  Christchurch quake, and  the hammering that ordinary folk are getting from the cost of living.  So its reassuring to know that the PM’s office has its eye on the ball.  It’s all over the “important issues”…

Bulldozer Brownlee

Written By: - Date published: 8:08 am, March 6th, 2011 - 109 comments

Gerry Brownlee thinks that most of Christchurch’s heritage buildings should be bowled tomorrow.  I wonder what Christchurch thinks of Gerry Brownlee.

Bexley, eventually

Written By: - Date published: 1:44 pm, March 5th, 2011 - 75 comments

Resources for the poor, eastern Christchurch suburbs have been lacking but everyone accepts things are stretched. Key did himself no favours trying to PR paper over real cracks. Helicoptering in to Bexley, talking to some hand-picked locals, and making excuses the whole time didn’t look good. For instance, portaloos have only recently arrived in suburbs […]

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