The adaptive precinct: Strengthening cultural identity through adaptive reuse

Abstract

RESEARCH QUESTION: How can adaptive reuse of post-earthquake Christchurch buildings regenerate the sense of place between a disengaged community and its city?

ABSTRACT There has been an apparent disengagement between the people of Christchurch and their central city, which was severely impacted by the 2011 earthquakes. Many initiatives have been founded, such as Regenerate Christchurch, to work with the community and local businesses to drive social regeneration to get more happening and make it a place for the people again. Unfortunately, buildings that were deemed irreparable were senselessly demolished. The mass destruction of cultural and heritage significant buildings and clearing of sites around the central city has adversely impacted the community’s vitality due to the disconnection between the people of Christchurch with the inner urban area caused by the earthquakes.

With the current global concerns of climate change combined with the need for community revitalisation post-natural disasters, adaptive reuse presents itself as a viable architectural solution to investigate. This research will explore the concept of place and provide a set of heritage strategies and urban design principles to be used as a design framework to answer the question, how can adaptive reuse of post-earthquake Christchurch buildings regenerate the sense of place between a disengaged community and its city?

The senseless annihilation of existing structures is not only ecologically wasteful but is also a destruction of local identity, socio-economic, and cultural heritage values. The retention and adaptation of remaining earthquake damaged structures may provide a more financially viable and environmentally sustainable approach instead of new development. This research explores the intangible value added through adaptive reuse to host the proposed mixed-use community precinct to analyse and assess its significance as a strategy for urban regeneration.

This research proposes a framework that clarifies the processes of re-programming an unused heritage building in Christchurch post-earthquake into a collaborative precinct for creative industries through a designbased approach. This framework consists in integrating strategies dealing with the conservation, program, and urban design and coordinating them with meaningful aspects of the chosen site to demonstrate the benefits of adaptive reuse and its potential ability to repair the lost connection between the people of Christchurch and their city.

SITE: Hereford Chambers Building (Hereford Lane and Manchester Street), Christchurch, New Zealand