With the help of the community, we have prepared a neighbourhood plan to help guide the growth of the South-East Central city.
South-East Central (SE Central) is already transforming rapidly. We are seeing Te Kaha – Canterbury's Multi-Use Arena – emerging from the ground, new residential developments being built, with more possibly to come under the Government's urban development legislation, and new businesses regularly opening in the area.
The neighbourhood is becoming a thriving hub for art, cuisine, retail, innovation and learning opportunities, and we want to support South-East Central as a great place to live, work and visit as it continues to grow and change.
South-East Central - everything on your doorstep! This vibrant, green neighbourhood is a key destination for study, work and play. People are attracted to the creative vibe, a range of affordable, quality homes, the proximity to Te Kaha and the friendly community spirit.
South-East Central covers the area bordered by Fitzgerald Avenue, Moorhouse Avenue, Colombo Street, St Asaph Street, Manchester Street and Armagh Street, and is made up of the South East and Latimer neighbourhoods, and part of the Central City South neighbourhood.
This includes Latimer Square, One Central, the SALT District, the Atlas Quarter, Te Pukenga (Ara Institute of Canterbury), Te Kaha, and the commercial area between Barbadoes Street and Fitzgerald Avenue.
South-East Central is an area of diversity, home to people from all walks of life and where a wide range of businesses thrive – development here is already transformational, and we want that to continue in a planned and sustainable way.
Te Kaha – Canterbury’s Multi-Use Arena – is emerging from the ground, becoming a strong presence that hints at future entertainment, sporting and other events it will draw to the city.
This neighbourhood is made up of existing communities; learn more about the Latimer neighbourhood, the South-East growth area and Central City South.
This neighbourhood plan is part of the Central City residential programme Project 8011, endorsed by the elected council in 2018. A key ambition of the programme is to have 20,000 people living in the Central City by 2028.
Encouraging and supporting growth in this area will help us deliver on our post-earthquake plan to create a vibrant, green and thriving city centre.
The South-East Central Neighbourhood Plan helps to guide future improvements and decisions for the area and supports their alignment with the overall vision for the neighbourhood.
Community feedback has shaped this neighbourhood plan. We will seek to continue to involve the community as we move into delivering on this plan.
Good mixed-use neighboursBusinesses and residents adapt well to one another with an improved offering to meet the needs of residents and visitors.
More people in quality housingAccelerated housing growth and diversity to meet the needs of all ages and abilities.
Healthy, green neighbourhoodIncreased tree canopy, more open space and native and productive plantings.
Easy and enjoyable to get from A to BMore appealing pedestrian, cycle and bus journeys with green links, street furniture, safety improvements, attention to vacant sites and well-located bus stops.
Strong sense of communityResidents are well-connected, feel safe, enjoy an established identity for the area and are engaged in community place-making initiatives.
The areas marked in yellow provide the greatest opportunity to house more people. The stiped yellow area shows vacant and underused land. Proposed public realm improvements will make this a desirable place to live.
Potential upgrades to enhance active travel across the neighbourhood are marked in red and may include safer crossing, wider footpaths and improved amenities.
Green links, pocket parks and more trees throughout the neighbourhood are marked in green and will create a more pleasant place to live.
The neighbourhood is mostly commercial, with pockets of residential areas that are continuing to pop up.
The area is not visually attractive, lacks vibrancy and needs more trees to provide shade.
We anticipate this area will attract more investment when Te Kaha is completed and open.
Streets immediately surrounding Te Kaha will be upgraded, there will be opportunities for private investment and new homes will be built to meet demand.
We expect to see a mix of housing alongside existing businesses, with some new three and four-storey developments.
Our collective vision is for a green neighbourhood that’s easy to get around, with a growing residential population.
There will likely be more multi-level apartments and more mixed-use developments.
With Te Kaha operating, and a larger population, the area will be attractive for business activities, including hospitality, everyday service providers and office work.
Project implementation – progress will be added every 6 months.
| Action | Progress | |
| 1 | Support land-use transition | |
| 2 | Support residents to adapt to the mixed-use environment | September 2024 - Sound in the Central City(external link) webpages prepared to help address noise in mixed-use environments (external link) |
| 3 | Grow mixed-use development | |
| 4 | Accelerate housing growth | |
| 5 | Develop diverse housing to meet market demand | |
| 6 | Increase the tree canopy cover | July 2023 – Trees added to Southwark Street. |
| 7 | Create mid-block open spaces | July 2024 – Investigations are underway for new mid-block open spaces. |
| 8 | Explore climate change mitigation | |
| 9 | Improve pedestrian and cyclist journeys |
December 2024 - Temporary streetscape improvements(external link) at the Cashel Street and Clarkson Avenue intersection have been delivered in response to community feedback to increase the amenity in this evolving mixed-use area. February 2024 - Investigations to improve Welles Street; draft plans prepared following early engagement in October 2024. |
| 10 | Encourage a reduction in car-use | |
| 11 | Strengthen neighbourhood connections | November 2024 – Neat Places feature on the St Asaph Street Block. Hear from nightlife enthusiast Kendra Walls(external link) about why she chose Central City living. Discover the hub of music venues, art spaces and hospitality on the gritty St Asaph Street block.(external link) |
| 12 | Create a vision and identity for the area | July 2024 - Two new murals built on the neighbourhood's identity have been delivered as part of the Enliven Places Programme. |
We invited people to provide feedback(external link) on what they enjoy about the area, aspects that could be improved, and to share any valuable local knowledge that should be considered. We also hosted an in-person workshop. Summary of the feedback [PDF, 175 KB].
We shared the draft plan for people to have their say(external link).
We presented the South-East Neighbourhood Plan to Waipapa Papanui-Innes-Central Community Board for endorsement. You can read the meeting minutes(external link) which include the formal resolutions. You can also watch the decision(external link) being made.
The South-East Central Neighbourhood Plan was adopted by the Council as a guide to decision-making. We will keep you up to date as we begin to deliver actions of the plan.
We invited people to provide feedback(external link) on what they enjoy about the area, aspects that could be improved, and to share any valuable local knowledge that should be considered. We also hosted an in-person workshop. Summary of the feedback [PDF, 175 KB].
We shared the draft plan for people to have their say(external link).
We presented the South-East Neighbourhood Plan to Waipapa Papanui-Innes-Central Community Board for endorsement. You can read the meeting minutes(external link) which include the formal resolutions. You can also watch the decision(external link) being made.
The South-East Central Neighbourhood Plan was adopted by the Council as a guide to decision-making. We will keep you up to date as we begin to deliver actions of the plan.
If you want to know more about the South-East Central Neighbourhood Plan, talk to the team at urbanregeneration@ccc.govt.nz.
