New project will light up the pier at night

9 May 2007

New BrightonPier Lighting Project will be a big attraction

A night visit to the New Brighton Pier will be a must when a new lighting art work is unveiled in June.

Work will soon be underway to install LED lights along the underside of the pier which will bathe the pillars the length of the pier in a combination of red, green and blue lights. This will effectively  light all the columns and the sides of the pier structure creating a dramatic display of colour which will also be reflected in the water.

The $50,000 project has been funded by the Council’s Art in Public Places 2005/06 budget. The Burwood/Pegasus Community Board, which is supporting the project, commissioned local lighting expert Grant Robertson from The Light Site to create the art work which can be programmed and timed to create a myriad of different effects.

Control of the system is based in the pier building and is powered by an independent circuit. As the lights on each column are independently controlled, each column can be lit in a different colour allowing for dramatic sequences of colour changing, or subtle hue changes rolling along the columns.

Burwood/Pegasus Community Board chair Glenda Burt says “The lighting of the Pier is another significant milestone in the revitalisation of the New Brighton and it also marks the 10th anniversary of the opening of the Pier.

The Burwood Pegasus Community Board is delighted to have worked with the New Brighton Pier and Foreshore Society and the Christchurch City Council to light this amazing structure on the coastline.’’

Council arts adviser Marlene Le Cren says the lighting project will make what is already an iconic city feature even more attractive.

“The theatrical lighting used for this project will enhance a recognised landmark,’’ she says..”Residents and visitors will be able to enjoy a new aspect of the pier and beach through this exciting development,’’ she says.

The Pier and Foreshore Society will pick up the lighting costs for the first year. Chair Alan Cockburn says the New Brighton has the biggest ocean pier in Australasia and it is worthy of the project.

“The pier is such as strong attraction to visitors during the daytime and this will be an added attraction at night. It is an iconic civic structure that lends itself well to the lighting.’’

The project will be unveiled on 21 June in a brief ceremony followed by a short demonstration of the lighting.  People will be able to listen to the ceremony at 6.45pm and see the lights go on for the first time at 7pm.

Salt on the Pier Café will be open and will provide a good vantage point. A PA system will broadcast the ceremony in the café from 6.45pm.

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