(photograph © Kiwidutch)
Yesterday’s post was an explanation as to why the city centre of Chch remains mostly closed to the public…
Now I’m trying to piece together what’s been lost and what remains.
Older images from Google Street view made in 2007 are helping to refesh my memory, after all I have lived in The Netherlands for quite some time now.
Sadly, since the section of Cashel Street in the photograph (between Colombo street and High Street) is part of a pedestrian Mall, the Google street view vehicle didn’t go down it so I’ll have to seach my memory banks and see what I can remember (and do some internet research).
The building on the corner of Cashel and Colombo Streets, (now called “Crossing”) started life as the D.I.C. Department store.
Wiki tells me that the “D.I.C’ stood for the Drapery and General Importing Company of New Zealand” and there were a chain of these shops within New Zealand, the first started in Dunedin by Bendix Hallenstein in 1884.
I remember the shop in a vague way as D.I.C. as a kid, but have better memories of it when it was later called Arthus Barnett. (I bought my first douvet set here when I went flatting)
Wiki also tells me: “The Christchurch, Cashel Street shop (opened in 1885, burned down in 1908 and rebuilt, merged with Beath’s Department store in 1978 and shifted into their premises, rebranded Arthur Barnett/D.I.C. ,then again as Arthur Barnett, and closed in 2005.“
The Westpak Trust (a.k.a. Trustbank) building sits on the high street end, it’s about 14 stories high, and is the grey one with the red “w” sign on the top.Nestled in next to it is the Glasson’s building, a clothes shop where I shopped for most of my clothes in my early 20′s.
Next to Glasson’s if my eyes are not deceiving me is the beautiful Cashfields Building .. and yeah! it seems to be still standing, it’s situated close to the Canterbuy Trustbank/Westpak Trust building and is an arcade that links Cashel street with Lichfield Street .
Better photos and a more detailed history are available here on the Christchurch Historic Places Website: http://www.historic.org.nz/TheRegister/RegisterSearch/RegisterResults.aspx?RID=3096&m=advanced
(photograph © Kiwidutch)
I zoomed in as far as possible with my camera though the barrier fence, but can’t see enough detail to work out if the building is ok or of it has damage that means it’s waiting for demolition.
I liked this building a lot so I hope that it survives the quakes and lives on for future generations.
When I lived in Chrstchurch there were two walkways in the City Mall area, one here, crossing Cashel street, linking what was the Arthur Barnett department store with what was an arcade of shops that had Robert Harris Cafe and Coffee shop on the other end of the walkway on the first floor.
The other end of the same arcade of shops also had a walkway (over High Street) and once across the walkway there was a food court that did some great and inexpensive chinese food that I used to frequent often when I lived and worked in the centre town.
The Google Street View shows at least the Cashel walkway clearly, but Google satelite, maps of the area don’t (that I can make out) so had they been removed before the quakes?
It seems that the street view version isn’t of a similar date to the satelite version.
The newer walkway that is over Colombo Street is still standing, (and If I remember from a previous trip the Robert Harris café moved there too) but the Cashel street one isn’t.
Since it’s been a while since I was here pre-quakes, I’m now not sure if these had been removed earlier or not. Maybe someone local can fill me in with the details?
It’s clear that there is still so much demolition and repair work to be done, and that there are priorites that must be made.
Low on the list at this point are the potted plants laying around where they fell, the plants have long since died and they tave taken on the haunted look of urban tumbleweed…
…and since they really did literally get there by tumbling it’s less ironic a thought, than I first thought.
(photograph © Kiwidutch)
(photograph © Kiwidutch)
(photograph © Thanks to Google Street View)
(photograph © Thanks to Google Street View)
Looking back down Cashel Street towards Colombo Street (with the menswear company “Hallensteins” in the building at centre)
(photograph © Thanks to Google Street View)
Sadly I also spot a casualty… a grey painted Post Office that used to be here (It wasn’t a post office when I lived here but I’m struggling to think what it was previously)
(photograph © Kiwidutch)
(photograph © Kiwidutch)
(photograph © Thanks to Google Street View)
(photograph © Thanks to Google Street View)
(photograph © Kiwidutch)
