Today we are celebrating the return of Christchurch Community House to permanent premises after four years of uncertainty and disruption.
I love attending events like this opening because they symbolise the positive aspects of the recovery.
Some of you may have heard the slogan 2015 Christchurch: 'It's happening'. And it really is.
I love attending events like this opening because they symbolise the positive aspects of the recovery.
Some of you may have heard the slogan 2015 Christchurch: 'It's happening'. And it really is.
I feel truly optimistic about our city's future.
Of course there are still many residents and organisations that still have a distance to go in terms of their own recovery, and we as a council still haven't settled our insurance, but occasions like this give us cause for celebration and I welcome that.
I often say that I am not the same person I was four years ago. The world changed for many of us 22 February 2011.
I remember going to Community House on many occasions, but I also remember going to Cashel Street before that. Tuam Street will become your home just as those places were.
I have my necklace on – quote – community, leadership and resilience. I wore it today, because it speaks to the occasion.
You serve Christchurch's communities of place, of identity and of interest.
You provide leadership.
You have exemplified resilience.
As Mayor of Christchurch, I'd like to sincerely thank you all for continuing your important work serving the community under these trying conditions – working from home and enduring many moves.
But now you are reunited under one roof – stronger and closer than ever before.
Adapting in the face of adversity will hopefully have instilled Community House members with the sense that anything is possible.
I often use this quote by Rahm Emanuel, former White House Chief of Staff.
"You never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that: it's an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before."
We have all learned to do things we didn't think we could do before. And that is why I start this year with such optimism for our future as a city.
I love the fact that it was Mayor Vicki Buck who presided over the official opening of Community House when it opened in 1991 (It would later move Hereford Street).
I was there as MP for Christchurch Central and now 24 years later I am here as Mayor to officially open your new home.
Thank you to each and every one of you and the volunteer effort that sits behind your organisations. Thank you for your innovation and creativity and for your passion and commitment and for your leadership.
And thank you to the funders and sponsors who have helped make it happen.
2015: Christchurch: It's Happening!
Congratulations and welcome to your new home.
Photos here.
Of course there are still many residents and organisations that still have a distance to go in terms of their own recovery, and we as a council still haven't settled our insurance, but occasions like this give us cause for celebration and I welcome that.
I often say that I am not the same person I was four years ago. The world changed for many of us 22 February 2011.
I remember going to Community House on many occasions, but I also remember going to Cashel Street before that. Tuam Street will become your home just as those places were.
I have my necklace on – quote – community, leadership and resilience. I wore it today, because it speaks to the occasion.
You serve Christchurch's communities of place, of identity and of interest.
You provide leadership.
You have exemplified resilience.
As Mayor of Christchurch, I'd like to sincerely thank you all for continuing your important work serving the community under these trying conditions – working from home and enduring many moves.
But now you are reunited under one roof – stronger and closer than ever before.
Adapting in the face of adversity will hopefully have instilled Community House members with the sense that anything is possible.
I often use this quote by Rahm Emanuel, former White House Chief of Staff.
"You never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that: it's an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before."
We have all learned to do things we didn't think we could do before. And that is why I start this year with such optimism for our future as a city.
I love the fact that it was Mayor Vicki Buck who presided over the official opening of Community House when it opened in 1991 (It would later move Hereford Street).
I was there as MP for Christchurch Central and now 24 years later I am here as Mayor to officially open your new home.
Thank you to each and every one of you and the volunteer effort that sits behind your organisations. Thank you for your innovation and creativity and for your passion and commitment and for your leadership.
And thank you to the funders and sponsors who have helped make it happen.
2015: Christchurch: It's Happening!
Congratulations and welcome to your new home.
Photos here.