25 May 2017

The public will get a chance to have their say on the Ministry of Education’s proposed Redcliffs land swap from the start of next week.

The Council has today agreed to consult the public about the proposed land swap, which could see the Ministry of Education exchanging the Redcliffs Primary School site it owns in Main Rd for Christchurch City Council-owned Redcliffs Park.

Redcliffs Primary School

The Ministry of Education want to swap the Redcliffs Primary School site for Redcliffs Park.

“The community is likely to have strong views on the land swap and we want to hear what they have to say before we proceed any further with this proposal,’’ says Council Head of Parks Andrew Rutledge.

“The proposed land swap will have advantages and disadvantages that the Council will need to carefully weigh up before it makes a decision on whether the swap should go ahead.’

The Ministry has proposed the land swap because it wants to relocate Redcliffs Primary School to Redcliffs Park.

Since the February 2011 earthquake students and staff from Redcliffs Primary School have been based at the van Asch Deaf Education Centre in Sumner because of concerns about the stability of the cliffs behind their school.

Last October then Education Minister Hekia Parata announced Redcliffs Primary would not re-open on its Main Rd site and would instead move to a new location.

The Education Ministry want to use Redcliffs Park as the site for the replacement school because of its development potential, easy access for transport, and close proximity to the old school.

It has offered the Council the former Redcliffs Primary School site in return for the park.

After considering a report on the proposed land swap today, the Council agreed to put the proposal out for public consultation. The consultation period will begin on Monday and run until June 26.

Public submissions received during the consultation period will be considered by a Hearings Panel.

The Hearings Panel will then make a recommendation to the Council on whether it should proceed with the land swap.