Latimer Square facts for kids
Latimer Square is a green park in the middle of Christchurch, New Zealand. It's about 400 meters east of the city's main square, Cathedral Square. Many special events happen here. The park is between two big streets, Gloucester Street and Worcester Street. Madras Street also runs next to it. The square is actually a rectangle covered in grass with concrete paths and old trees. It's a bit bigger than 1.8 hectares.
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History
Like its nearby park, Cranmer Square, Latimer Square was named after an early Protestant leader, Bishop Hugh Latimer, who died for his beliefs. Latimer Square was part of the first plan for Christchurch, drawn up between 1849 and 1850 by Edward Jollie.
Latimer Square was used for horse races, sports, and the Agricultural and Pastoral (A & P) Show until the 1880s. In 1885, Worcester Street was extended through the square so that the tram line could reach the city center. A bandstand was built then, but it was removed in 1894.
The Prince of Wales visited Latimer Square in 1920. During World War 2, air raid trenches were dug in the square to protect people. In 2006, the square was closed off to Worcester Street again.
Buildings around Latimer Square were badly damaged during the Canterbury earthquakes in 2010 and 2011. After the big earthquake on February 22, 2011, Latimer Square was used to help injured people. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited the square in April 2014 to help promote the 2015 Cricket World Cup. A sculpture called "Spires" was put in the square in 2014. It was created by artist Neil Dawson to remember the loss of ChristChurch Cathedral in the 2011 earthquake.
Notable Buildings
Many buildings around Latimer Square were either destroyed or pulled down after the 2011 Christchurch earthquake.
Christchurch Transitional Cathedral
Since the earthquake, the square has been home to the city's temporary Anglican Cathedral. It is also known as the Cardboard Cathedral because it uses cardboard tubes in its design.
St John the Baptist Church
One of Christchurch's first stone churches, St John the Baptist Anglican church, was built south of the square in 1864. The architect was Maxwell Bury. This stone church had an eight-sided tower. It was a busy church before the earthquakes in 2010.
Fletcher Building Housing Developments
After many buildings around Latimer Square were demolished, Fletcher Building was chosen to plan and build new homes in the area. New apartments are being built, but early sales have been slow.
Christchurch Club
The Christchurch Club's buildings are also on Latimer Square. They were repaired after the earthquake. This club is a very important historic place, built between 1861 and 1862.
Occidental Hotel
The Occidental Hotel was built in 1861. It was first called Collins' Family Hotel. In 1889, it became the Occidental. It was renovated in 1982 and had different bars over the years. By 1998, it became a backpackers' hotel. It slowly became run down and closed in 2006. The hotel was pulled down in 2011 because of earthquake damage.
Charlie B's Backpackers Site
Charlie B's Backpackers was at the north end of Latimer Square. It was demolished after the Canterbury earthquakes. There have been several plans to build new homes on this site. In 2013, Italian architects won a competition to design new buildings. However, their plans did not go ahead. Later, in 2018, another group planned to build 150 homes. This plan also fell through in 2020. In 2021, new developers bought the land. They plan to build over 100 homes, including apartments and townhouses, around a shared garden. Work is expected to start soon.
Park Tower
Park Tower is one of the few tall apartment buildings left in Christchurch. It was on a list of buildings that were slowing down the city's rebuild. Repair work on Park Tower was finished in October 2020.
Radio Network House
Radio Network House was a 14-story building that was badly damaged in the Canterbury earthquakes. It was brought down safely using 60kg of explosives. This was the first time a building in New Zealand was brought down this way on purpose.
Rydges Latimer Hotel
The Latimer Lodge was one of the first hotels to be rebuilt after the earthquakes. It cost about $25 million. Its foundations were designed to withstand future earthquakes. The Latimer Lodge then changed its name to Rydges Hotel. It has about 138 rooms.
