The St Albans Community Website

Developers are moving into St Albans and changing the face of the suburb, aided by a city council plan developed after the earthquakes to encourage medium density housing. The look of the buildings and the increased pressures they are putting on the environment is angering nearby residents and there are likely to be more of these. We look in on two neighbours impacted by two developments. All this and more in the February/March issue. Click on the image to the right to read the latest St Albans News.

We took a risk sending the election issue to the printer a couple of days before the nominations for candidates closed and one new candidate has joined the Christchurch Central electorate ballet, someone called Laurie Hayden who, in a field full of party representatives, describes themselves as independent. The Mana party also seems to have disappeared off the ballot.

Matiu Thoms is now contesting the Te Tai Tonga electorate for AdvanceNZ (which merged with the Public Party) while Raymond Tuhaka is standing for the New Conservatives.

In the pressure to get this issue finished, an error was made on page 11 and not picked up in time: there is a reference to David Farrier, it was in fact David Farrar who wrote the article published in Spinoff on September 14 (here is a shortcut to that page https://bit.ly/3hP2LQG) and apologies to both of those individuals for getting them mixed up and anyone inconvenienced. Even though our own fact checking could have been better in this instance, it’s worth a read if you want to see what happens when populism and a patchwork of unscientific ideas about how the world works converge and get a new party noticed. Do take care because there are lot of conspiracy theories out there. Disinformation is only getting worse, so use those votes wisely.

We feature the partly-built St Albans Community Centre on the front page of the August/September issue of St Albans News.It now has a roof and walls and the St Albans Residents Association, which managed the old centre for more than 17 years experience running a community centre will be doing it again from February 2021. St Albans is a hive of activity: the St Albans Skatepark is about to expand (in October). A former nurse at Calvary Hospital remembers times past and SARA celebrates St Albans Day with a picnic in the park. The road works have ramped up, apparently to get it all finished ASAP but it’s like living in a maze where we are marshalled with orange cones and no right hand turn signs, facing long trips to move from one part of the suburb to another. Walk to hospo outlets like Ristretto Cafe in Barbadoes St opposite St Albans Park, who have lost their street parking and are doing it tough, and enjoy a proper coffee.

We’ve come a long way in eight weeks – from CoVid19 Level 4 lockdown to Level 3 takeaways to Level 2 bars reopening. Level 1 with even more freedom looks likely before the middle of June. Life’s getting a little easier but we aren’t out of the woods yet. The June/July edition of StAN gathers some of the signs of the times we probably won’t remember in a generation’s time and we take a (virtual) walk with Grandad under Level 3. The Northern Corridor looks is now due to open in January, not because of a delay but so the new express bus services from Kaiapoi and Rangiora can open at the same time and help reduce the number of cars carrying only one passenger heading through St Albans. The CNC is on track for completion in December. There’s just so much going on with the roads in St Albans, where do we start – ah, let’s start with some of the intersections in Cranford St.

Looking forward to a takeaway flat white or a mouthwatering burger? After five weeks in lockdown shackles have been loosened slightly in the battle against the coronavirus so you can pick one up, at a distance. This special issue of St Albans News is devoted entirely to Covid 19. Lots of photos of Anzac Day poppies and teddy bears decorating St Albans front lawns. We are still meant to stay home but we can go out for exercise. Walls closing in at home? Head out with your bubble mates on the self-guided Great St Albans Treasure Hunt, created for your edification by Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb.