Forsyth Barr Building facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Crowne Plaza Christchurch |
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Crowne Plaza Christchurch as former Forsyth Barr Building in February 2013
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| General information | |
| Status | Complete |
| Type | Office high rise |
| Location | Christchurch Central City |
| Address | Corner of Armagh and Colombo Street, Christchurch, New Zealand |
| Coordinates | 43°31′44″S 172°38′13″E / 43.529°S 172.637°E |
| Completed | 1989 |
| Height | |
| Roof | 70 m (230 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 19 storeys |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Warren and Mahoney |
| Developer | Paynter Developments |
| Main contractor | Fletcher Construction |
The Crowne Plaza Christchurch is a tall building in Christchurch, New Zealand. It's located at the corner of Armagh and Colombo Streets. It used to be called the Forsyth Barr Building. Before that, it was known as Robert Jones House or the Bob Jones Tower, named after its first owner, Bob Jones. Some people even called it Bob's Folly. During the big 2011 Christchurch earthquake, the building's stairs broke, trapping people inside. After repairs, it reopened in July 2017 as the city's Crowne Plaza hotel.
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Building History
The land where the Crowne Plaza stands once held the Golden Fleece Hotel, built in 1851. In the 1980s, a company called Paynter Developments planned to build a new high-rise there. They hired Warren and Mahoney, a Christchurch architecture firm, to design it. Holmes Consulting Group worked as the structural engineers. Fletcher Construction built the tower.
The building was finished in mid-1989. It was then sold to Robert Jones Investments (Canterbury), a company owned by Bob Jones. Bob Jones was a well-known property developer. He named the building Robert Jones House and put his company's initials, "RJI," on it.
Bob Jones and the "Folly"
Bob Jones had a very public image. In 1984, he started a political group called the New Zealand Party. His goal was to oppose the leader at the time, Robert Muldoon. However, this split the votes of people who usually supported conservative parties. As a result, the Labour Party won the election. David Lange then formed the Fourth Labour Government.
Because of his role in the election, some people jokingly called the building Bob's Folly. It was more commonly known as the Bob Jones Tower. Later, the building was sold again and renamed after Forsyth Barr, a New Zealand company that helps people with investments.
Building Design and Height
When it was built, the Forsyth Barr Building had 17 floors. It was about 70 metres (230 ft) tall. This made it Christchurch's second-tallest building at the time. The tallest was the Hotel Grand Chancellor, built in 1986, which was 85 metres (279 ft) tall.
Over time, two other buildings became taller than the Forsyth Barr House. The PricewaterhouseCoopers building, built in 1990, reached 76.3 metres (250 ft). Then, the Pacific Tower was built in 2010, standing at 86 metres (282 ft).
The design of the Forsyth Barr Building was different for Warren and Mahoney. They usually designed buildings with exposed concrete. But for this one, they used a glass curtain wall with aluminum panels. This design hid the building's structure. This type of construction became very popular for office buildings in the next 20 years. Some architects, like historian Geoffrey Rice, called this building Warren and Mahoney's "ugly duckling."
The 2011 Christchurch Earthquake
After the September 11 attacks in 2001, the building had emergency supplies. These included ropes, sledgehammers, and axes, in case people needed to escape from high up.
During the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, the staircases inside the Forsyth Barr House collapsed. This trapped the people who were inside. One person who was trapped was a trained mountain guide. They knew how to do mountain rescues. This person broke windows and used ropes to help people climb down the side of the building onto a nearby car park. A photographer from The Press newspaper, John Kirk-Anderson, took a famous photo of someone climbing down the glass wall. This picture became one of the lasting images of the earthquake.
Rescue teams found it hard to search the building. They had to carefully take apart heavy stair sections. But thankfully, no victims were found inside.
After the earthquake, the Hotel Grand Chancellor and the PricewaterhouseCoopers building were both taken down. This meant the Forsyth Barr Building became Christchurch's second-tallest building again. For a while, it was unclear if the Forsyth Barr Building would also be torn down or if it could be fixed.
The Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA) created a plan for rebuilding Christchurch. A large area, including the land where the Forsyth Barr Building stood, was set aside for a new Performing Arts Precinct. This meant the government could have bought the land from its owners. However, the Christchurch City Council decided to fix the existing Christchurch Town Hall instead of building a new one. So, the plan for the large Performing Arts Precinct was changed, and the land designation was removed.
Becoming a Hotel
The earthquake-damaged building was sold "as is, where is" for NZ$8 million. This means it was sold in its damaged state. In December 2014, it was announced that the building would become a hotel. The Crowne Plaza hotel chain would lease it. This new hotel would replace the old Crowne Plaza hotel that was destroyed in the earthquakes. The old hotel was located across Victoria Square.
In late 2015, new staircases were put into the building. The new Crowne Plaza hotel officially opened on July 1, 2017. It has 204 rooms for guests.
