Yes, been up a couple of weeks. Retail GF offices above.
CROWNE PLAZA HOTEL | COLOMBO AND ARMAGH ST CNR | 17L | 70 Metres | Refurbishment Completed
"international and local interests are considering turning Christchurch's badly damaged former Forsyth Barr building into a hotel, as the city gears up for next year's Cricket World Cup.
Colliers International says it has had interest from both overseas and local players in converting the damaged office block into a 200-room, 4.5 to 5-star hotel."
Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/10212169/Forsyth-Barr-building-eyed-for-new-hotel
Fingers crossed the Forsyth Barr is about to get a lease of new life!
Colliers International says it has had interest from both overseas and local players in converting the damaged office block into a 200-room, 4.5 to 5-star hotel."
Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/10212169/Forsyth-Barr-building-eyed-for-new-hotel
Fingers crossed the Forsyth Barr is about to get a lease of new life!
141 - 160 of 166 Posts
New Christchurch Crowne Plaza launching with conference spaces
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The new Crowne Plaza in Christchurch's repaired and redeveloped ex-Forsyth Barr House, which is the second tallest building in the city post-earthquakes.
The Crowne Plaza Christchurch is on track for reopening mid-year and will include four event and conferencing spaces.
The hotel overlooking Victoria Square at 764 Colombo St will reopen in the redeveloped former Forsyth Barr House which was damaged in the 2011 earthquakes.
The 17-level hotel will be the city's largest. It is the second tallest building in Christchurch after the Rendezvous Hotel in Gloucester St, and one of a handful of high rises remaining in the central city after the 2011 earthquakes.
The 204 new rooms and meeting spaces offering latest technology are online for bookings from August 1, 2017.
General manager Reinier Eulink said the kitchen had been completed and the first beds were being delivered.
He said he anticipated a slow start as occupancies grew over the next holiday period.
Eulink has returned to Christchurch to manage the opening of the hotel after five years leading Crowne Plaza Queenstown, when it won several travel and tourism awards.
Crowne meetings manager Phoebe Zwarts said the four spaces were designed with the flexibility to accommodate smaller meetings as well as large-scale presentations.
On the first floor of the hotel are three separate boardrooms featuring views of Victoria Square and a larger meeting space.
The Golden Fleece room seats up to 150 theatre or cocktail style, or 90 banquet style, and includes dual projection screens and built-in audio.
The Ellis, Gartner and Oram rooms cater for 10 to 14 guests around a boardroom.
Groups can combine two or all three of the rooms for a medium-sized space filled with natural light.
The names of the meeting spaces reflect the early history of Victoria Square. One of the city's first hotels, The Golden Fleece, once occupied the site of the Crowne Plaza.
Other spaces in the hotel available for event bookings include Café 1851 on the ground-floor, the 80-seat Market Place Restaurant, plus the more intimate first-floor hotel library.
The bedrooms also offer executive, deluxe and superior configurations.
Conference guests can stay connected online with free WiFi. Guest rooms include Samsung smart TV's with Bluetooth, and USB docks.
The hotel is close to city attractions, shops and entertainment, and Hagley Park.
Conference bookings can partake in the IHG Business Rewards programme. Points can be redeemed for free room nights, gift vouchers and other offers.
With the opening of the new Crowne Plaza Christchurch, IHG will operate six properties in New Zealand including Crowne Plaza hotels in Auckland, Queenstown and Christchurch, two Holiday Inn properties in Rotorua and at Auckland Airport, and the InterContinental Wellington.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/914...crowne-plaza-launching-with-conference-spaces
Interesting to know that the hotel will have its own library, never seen that in a hotel before.
The new Crowne Plaza in Christchurch's repaired and redeveloped ex-Forsyth Barr House, which is the second tallest building in the city post-earthquakes.
The Crowne Plaza Christchurch is on track for reopening mid-year and will include four event and conferencing spaces.
The hotel overlooking Victoria Square at 764 Colombo St will reopen in the redeveloped former Forsyth Barr House which was damaged in the 2011 earthquakes.
The 17-level hotel will be the city's largest. It is the second tallest building in Christchurch after the Rendezvous Hotel in Gloucester St, and one of a handful of high rises remaining in the central city after the 2011 earthquakes.
The 204 new rooms and meeting spaces offering latest technology are online for bookings from August 1, 2017.
General manager Reinier Eulink said the kitchen had been completed and the first beds were being delivered.
He said he anticipated a slow start as occupancies grew over the next holiday period.
Eulink has returned to Christchurch to manage the opening of the hotel after five years leading Crowne Plaza Queenstown, when it won several travel and tourism awards.
Crowne meetings manager Phoebe Zwarts said the four spaces were designed with the flexibility to accommodate smaller meetings as well as large-scale presentations.
On the first floor of the hotel are three separate boardrooms featuring views of Victoria Square and a larger meeting space.
The Golden Fleece room seats up to 150 theatre or cocktail style, or 90 banquet style, and includes dual projection screens and built-in audio.
The Ellis, Gartner and Oram rooms cater for 10 to 14 guests around a boardroom.
Groups can combine two or all three of the rooms for a medium-sized space filled with natural light.
The names of the meeting spaces reflect the early history of Victoria Square. One of the city's first hotels, The Golden Fleece, once occupied the site of the Crowne Plaza.
Other spaces in the hotel available for event bookings include Café 1851 on the ground-floor, the 80-seat Market Place Restaurant, plus the more intimate first-floor hotel library.
The bedrooms also offer executive, deluxe and superior configurations.
Conference guests can stay connected online with free WiFi. Guest rooms include Samsung smart TV's with Bluetooth, and USB docks.
The hotel is close to city attractions, shops and entertainment, and Hagley Park.
Conference bookings can partake in the IHG Business Rewards programme. Points can be redeemed for free room nights, gift vouchers and other offers.
With the opening of the new Crowne Plaza Christchurch, IHG will operate six properties in New Zealand including Crowne Plaza hotels in Auckland, Queenstown and Christchurch, two Holiday Inn properties in Rotorua and at Auckland Airport, and the InterContinental Wellington.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/914...crowne-plaza-launching-with-conference-spaces
Interesting to know that the hotel will have its own library, never seen that in a hotel before.
Hoardings are down and reinstatement of surrounds , footpaths etc, is underway.
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http://www.rebuildchristchurch.co.n...allmarks-of-the-new-crowne-plaza-christchurch
Great little story showcasing what the new Crowne Plaza is about. Lots of photos of rooms and hallways, worth a read.
Great little story showcasing what the new Crowne Plaza is about. Lots of photos of rooms and hallways, worth a read.
Christchurch's new Crowne Plaza hotel to open this weekend after 'long haul'
Christchurch's tourism scene is about to get a major boost with the opening of the new 204-room Crowne Plaza Hotel on Saturday. In a two-year multi-million dollar project, the 17-storey building's local owners have converted it from the earthquake-damaged Forsyth Barr office tower into city's biggest executive-style hotel. The hotel, opposite Victoria Square, began taking bookings in April and has sold 11,000 room nights for its first eight months. Another 500 rooms will be ready by next winter in other new hotels under way, including Distinction Christchurch in Cathedral Square and the Airport Novotel. Shane Le Compte, director of local company MC Holdings which owns the land, building, and business, said the conversion had been "a long haul". They were very excited to be almost ready to open their doors, he said. "It's been a huge mission. We'd love to see Cantabrians come and have a look and support us." The company bought the earthquake-damaged building in as-is condition for $8 million in 2014. It negotiated the removal of the building's government designation for purchase for the Performing Arts Precinct, and signed up international hotel chain IHG, which owns the Crowne Plaza brand, to manage the business. Le Compte said work to transform the building took five weeks longer than expected. The company has not disclosed how much the project has cost. Building a new hotel from scratch in the central city would not have been financially viable, he said. Bruce Garrett, chairman of the Tourism Industry Association's hotel section, said the opening would help put back some of the nearly 3000 hotel rooms lost in the Canterbury earthquakes. "Hopefully it will help attract back some businesses that have been avoiding the city," he said. "It will certainly give some of the tour operators that have been holding back from coming to Christchurch more options." Hotel bookings in the city were returning to their pre-earthquake seasonal pattern of quiet winters, and steady progress on the anchor projects and other attractions was needed to draw visitors to the city, he said. As well as boosting the city's bed supply, the Crowne Plaza opening will return the site to its original colonial use. From 1851, the corner housed the two-storey timber Golden Fleece Hotel. Sitting initially among flax and toi toi bushes, the hotel burned down in 1866 and was rebuilt on the same site. It reportedly became known locally as the Cold 'n Fleas hotel. The existing building on the site was built as the Robert Jones House office building for property magnate Bob Jones in the late 1980s, and is the only office tower surviving from that era. In the February 2011 earthquake, the building losts its stairs, forcing trapped office workers to abseil out of high windows. The hotel now has five new lifts and a new scissor staircase. On the ground floor it has a cafe called Mojo, a bar called Social Winebar, and a hotel lobby. Upstairs will be first-floor restaurant The Market Place, and function rooms and a gym. Rooms include suites and accessible rooms and are priced from $180 to $300 a night. The hotel will replace the city's first Crown Plaza on the other side of Victoria Square, which closed with earthquake damage in 2011 and was demolished.
The Press
141 - 160 of 166 Posts
