Is it Time to Bring Back the Ministry of Works?

Alice in Videoland is one of the most beloved of all central Christchurch businesses. The reasons are pretty clear once you get there. It's a world class collection of movies that is available to all members. It would easily be the best video store in New Zealand if not Australasia. In fact it would be hard to find a better video store anywhere. Last year I embarked on an epic journey of trying to watch a classic movie per week from Alice's. I generally seemed to stick to Kurosawa movies, but even though I fell into the trap of sticking to a genre I liked, there were heaps of Kurosawa movies to choose from week after week.

One of the frustrating things for the movie lovers of Christchurch at the moment, is it looks like all the Alice's staff have to do, is pick up the DVD's off the floor and put them back on the shelf. They could then carry on trading. The problem is many buildings around that area have been destroyed and it is in the cordon zone. However, the building Alice's is in, looks completely unscathed.

Part of the reason may be that Alice's building used to be the High Street Post Office and it was built following the Napier earthquake by the Ministry of Works. The Ministry of Works had a high reputation for not only having world class engineers as staff, but also for over-engineering their projects so they didn't only meet the building codes of the time, but met the standards set by the Ministry of Works. Many projects done by the Ministry of Works have been true engineering wonders.

The Ministry of Works still exists in some form as Works Infrastructure. The MOW was split apart with some becoming Works Infrastructure and the rest going to Opus. So now Works Infrastructure competes on the open market for projects. And there will be compromises that have to be made on the open market.

My own earthquake experience in a Ministry of Works built building has given me food for thought. With so much reconstruction needed, shouldn't we employ the best? And if that is the case, shouldn't we be the best again? No privately run company could possibly carry out the scale of reconstruction needed in Christchurch at the moment so why not have a Ministry of Works who get a similar budget to roading to carry out much of this work. Then in 80 to 100 years when Christchurch next has an earthquake there will be a lot more buildings standing intact around the Alice in Videoland building. And that generation of people will be grateful for the Ministry of Works.

A Tale of Two Cities

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. My very basic knowledge of Charles Dickens finishes at that point. However, since 4 September and more poignantly, since 22 February, this has become the story of Christchurch.

There is a line in Hagley Park where the ground rises. It looks like a hump in the ground except it keeps going to the edge of the park. I'm not sure of terminology, but if you look at Christchurch as a relief map, it looks a little like waves radiating out from the Canterbury Plains. What this means is the Canterbury Plains gradually slope up to the Southern Alps. What is a particularly striking feature of this rise in Hagley Park, is this seems to mark the point where the destruction and liquefaction of the city comes to an abrupt halt. When you enter Hagley Park from the town end, there is masses of silt lying over the fields and two uprooted trees. When you get about halfway across, it looks like nothing has happened.

That doesn't mean there was no liquefaction beyond this point. Around waterways and in small pockets, there is piles of silt, but nowhere the amount that has occurred to the east of this line. It also doesn't mean that everything is 100% to the west of this line. Only 50 metres from the exit at the Riccarton roundabout is a second hand book shop that collapsed and claimed a life.

However when you speak to most people, the damage they have experienced to their homes is nowhere the scale of destruction suffered by people in the eastern suburbs. So while people in Riccarton, most of Fendalton, Burnside, Hornby, Papanui have power, water and most can even flush toilets; people in Aranui, Dallington, Burwood, New Brighton, Bexley and Shirley are lining up in the streets for water, unable to cook and using portaloos.

In fact, it's reached the point where people, like the woman I met while walking the dog tonight, will say "No we're fine. No damage apart from the wall we lost, but nothing compared to people on the east side of the city. Here we are walking our dogs while they hunker down for another night". Most people in western suburbs when you ask, will just say "No damage", and shake their heads in disbelief. People who have lost their houses, might not respond directly but say instead, "We're staying with relatives". Even those who have lost their homes and have only the clothes they stand in, are taking stock, and are thankful they and their family are in one piece.

In this disaster there has been talk about the heroes. There have been tales of ordinary folk throwing aside pieces of masonry to free victims. Firefighters climbing rubble to get to people. Search and rescue crawling through gaps to find survivors. Police and army working tirelessly to ensure people stay safe. The Student Army, the Baking Army, the Rangiora Earthquake Express. I'll add to those, people who have lost their homes and can still smile or even remain positive. They are genuine heroes. Whenever I've heard interviews with these people, the only thing that has annoyed them has been the rubber-neckers - just out for a look around.

I'm not a rubber-necker so I will never venture to the eastern suburbs just to see what has happened. I would go there to help a friend.