Leasing best bet for any new Council offices
For its proposed new civic offices Christchurch City Council favours using an associated organisation to own the land and buildings and leasing it back.
The Council last month considered a staff report about ownership options which recommended that any new building and land be owned by a council-controlled trading organisation and leased back to the Council. This was supported by the city councillors.
Such an arrangement would be similar to the ownership of the public buildings and venues managed by vBase Venue Management Group — the Christchurch Town Hall, Convention Centre, Jade Stadium and Westpac Centre.
A 20-year occupancy was used to compare five options, including full Council ownership, leasing from an unrelated owner or using a trust to own the building. Over that 20-year lifetime, the option of leasing from a council-controlled organisation was identified as having the lowest over-all cost to the Council.
No final decision has yet been taken to proceed and the site of any new building is still being investigated. It is expected staff will report this month to the Council about this.
A new central city office is needed because the current Tuam Street centre, built in the 1930s, is fast approaching the end of its life as useful office accommodation. The Council has for some time directed that nothing but necessary maintenance be done on it. |
