March 2018
Landscape Architect Tony Milne muses on the makings of successful inner-city living in Christchurch.
Historically, we have taken to nesting in suburbia. This tendency is understandable given Christchurch is flat, which supports the proliferation of spread. However, with the majority of our urban population in ‘depopulated car-centric suburbs’, these have become monocultural landscapes with very little soul.
One of the post-earthquake initiatives has been a drive towards a concentration of residential housing in the heart of the city. However, this notion is proving difficult to realise – largely due to the cost of development, but also in part because of the psychology of the typical Christchurch resident, who is used to the idea of more space.