9 November 2000

Items arising from the Christchurch City Council’s Parks and Recreation Committee meeting on 8 November.

Chapel in land swap

The committee has decided to ask the Council to promote a parliamentary Bill to amend the Christchurch City (Reserves) Empowering Act 1971 by removing 1520 sq. m of land from Hagley Park.

This land has been used for about 75 years by Christchurch Hospital, in recent years as a tennis court for hospital staff and is now used for public car parking.

It has long been proposed that the land be exchanged for land on which the Memorial Nurses’ Chapel is sited. The effect would be that the hospital would become the owner of the land now in Hagley Park and the Council would become the owner of the land on the Nurses’ Chapel is situated.

Further information: Peter Mitchell, legal service manager: 941 8549.

Petition presented

A petition with 600 names calling for stage two of the Washington Reserve skateboard facility to be installed as soon as possible was given to the committee.

The committee chairman, Graham Condon, said he had a lot of sympathy with the skateboarders but the delay in starting stage two was due to legal matters.

He said the matter was taking its legal course and he could give no date when progress could be made.

Record attempt next year

Leisure Unit manager Alistair Graham told the committee that another attempt on Christchurch’s world record for the largest pavement art drawing would made during KidsFest next year. The record was set at this year festival and would be in the Guinness Book of Records, he said.

It will be the 10^{th KidsFest next year. It was the largest festival of its kind in New Zealand and is the only Christchurch festival that caters solely for children.}

An events co-ordinator, Gillian Galbraith, told the committee that this year’s festival was an outstanding success with total tickets sold at more than 52,000.

She said the festival grew each year and the demand was such that "several events are always sold out without hours of the booking office opening."

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