RSA re-opens after liquor licence compromise
The Christchurch Returned Services Association has returned to its central city site.
The Christchurch Returned Services Association has returned to its central city site – although not before a stoush with some residents about opening hours.
A few residents in nearby apartments were concerned the RSA members would raise a ruckus if the liquor licence allowed it to remain open until after midnight. A compromise was negotiated.
The $6.5 million Warren & Mahoney-designed building at 74 Armagh St was opened by Governor-General, Sir Jerry Mateparae ahead of celebrations planned for 100th anniversary celebrations of Anzac Day.
The original clubrooms were destroyed by the February 2011 earthquake.The replacement building on the same central city site includes 11 steel-bladed columns that stand on the northern edge of the central plaza forming an open colonnade to the street. They are meant to symbolise the Armistice Day agreement signed at the 11th hour, on the 11th day of the 11th month and ended the fighting in World War I, according to project architect Simon Brown.
A function room, seminar room and offices on the first floor can be hired by business and community groups. A well-equipped kitchen has the capacity to extend the options for hospitality.
On the ground floor, the fully licensed Trenches Restaurant and Bar is a new addition to the dining scene, with tables spilling out into the sheltered Memorial Plaza. Rotating displays of Canterbury and New Zealand military memorabilia will be on display in the restaurant. The 200m2 plaza is a modern reinterpretation of the marae atia, the open area in front of the wharenui. It provides a formal space for RSA activities. Stone walls on two boundaries are engraved with names, and the western wall is for sunset ceremonies of the last post.
Chris Hutching for NBR NZ Property Investor
Thu, 02 Apr 2015
Thu, 02 Apr 2015
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RSA re-opens after liquor licence compromise
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