Eastfield Precinct, the new $40 million, 10,548m2 development in the heart of Ashburton, will respond to growing demand from the local visitor industry with a new 4-star, 70 to 80 room hotel, designed as part of the integrated town-centre precinct.

In May 2016, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise released a report focusing on the main centres, highlighting the critical shortage of available accommodation for the record numbers of domestic and international tourists.

A new report commissioned by Eastfield Investments Limited from hospitality and tourism consultant Chris Black has identified that the Ashburton District faces similar issues, with a small number of bed nights available locally to cater for visitors.

For the year to March 2015, tourists spent $128 million in the Ashburton District, with over 80 per cent of those visitors coming from the domestic market. International visitors to the district are predominantly from Australia and the UK, while only .03 per cent of guest nights come from the fast-growing Chinese visitor market.

Chris Black says there is a gap in the Ashburton market for a modern, full service 4-star hotel.

“A hotel at Eastfield would create an entertainment facility in a prime CBD location for use by local, domestic and international customers,” says Chris Black.

In the report, Mr Black focuses on several key areas of growing demand for the district, which the new Eastfield Precinct hotel would be uniquely placed to serve.

The local businesses interviewed for the report – particularly those in the agribusiness sector – were in favour of a new hotel development in the centre of Ashburton.

“A number of businesses in Ashburton currently elect to accommodate their overseas clients and guests – especially VIPs – in Christchurch due to the more up market facilities available,” says Chris Black.

“Businesses would also prefer to bring trainers to Ashburton and put them in a hotel rather than send staff out-of-town.”

The conference market, supported by the Ashburton Trust Event Centre, which has capacity for up to 500 delegates, has also increased demand for local accommodation.

Sports and leisure is also a growing source of visitor demand, according to the report.

“The EA Networks Centre has proven to be a huge driver of domestic tourists to Ashburton, some of whom will stay overnight,” says Mr Black.

Over the winter months, netball in the stadium draws over 1,000 people per day.

“While the majority of these visitors are assumed to be residents of the Ashburton District, it is the two-day or longer sporting events, and their competitors, coaches, officials, managers and spectators, that often require accommodation. Competitors and their support crew have been forced to stay in Timaru, Methven and Rakaia due to an accommodation shortage in Ashburton.”

The average tournament size for the region is 250 competitors, plus support crew. Sporting and leisure activities at Lake Hood, which attracts around 200,000 visitors a year, is also expected to contribute to local demand for accommodation.

Eastfield Investments chairman Brian Davidson says the new report underscores the importance of the hotel development, which was contemplated in the original masterplan for Eastfield Precinct.

“This kind of investment is an important way of attracting and supporting both the business and domestic accommodation market to Ashburton,” says Brian Davidson.

“By bringing guests right into the centre of town, there’s also considerable flow-on to other local businesses – especially when the alternative for many is to stay outside the district altogether.”

Mr Davidson says the proposed hotel development, which will include a quality food and beverage offering as well as meeting rooms, will create around 40 to 50 new jobs and allow local young people in particular to learn valuable new skills.

“The hotel at Eastfield will complement what’s currently on offer in the Ashburton District, and drive new demand for overnight and longer stays in the centre of town.”

“A development of this quality is proven to be an excellent way to stimulate the whole local market, and provide quality support for other tourism providers.”

There is also potential for larger existing facilities based outside of the town’s centre to consider redevelopment to meet alternative demand, such as addressing the critical shortage of accommodation for elder care in the area.

Mr Davidson says the developers are now working to identify appropriate investors and operators for the planned hotel.

Work is already underway at the new Eastfield Precinct, with construction commencing on the new MSD building in May. The masterplan allows for a staged process of development, with the total project estimated to take over three years to complete.

For further information, please contact:

Brian Davidson
Chairman
Eastfield Investments Limited

021 855 238

Sealy doctors on the move

Sealy Street Medical Centre will move to a new health centre in the Eastfield precinct as part
of a regeneration of Ashburton’s central business district.

The plan for Eastfield was revealed to Ashburton district councillors yesterday as they heard submissions on their CBD revitalisation project, which will include a 30km/h speed limit, angle parking and some one-way streets.

Chairwoman of Eastfield Health Mary Ross said the Sealy Street practice would relocate to the first floor of a new purpose-built facility to be built on Tancred street.  A pharmacy and complementary health professionals will occupy the ground floor.

The health centre has sought a “non-negotiable” patient drop-off zone on Tancred Street and
space for four general practitioners. Work on the centre will begin as soon as possible.

A 90-bed hotel is planned on Burnett Street as part of the Eastfield development.

Eastfield director Graham Kennedy said the Health Centre was important for the regeneration
of the CBD and was a long-term viable business that would bring people into town.

The Eastfield development would be a catalyst to bring the wider CBD back to life, he said.

The health centre needed easy access from the street, which the developers hoped could be incorporated into council’s plans to convert Tancred Street into an eastbound on-way street,
with parallel parking on the left and angle parking on the right.

Eastfield Health business manager Tony Dann said designers would work with council to
ensure pedestrian safety.

He said up to 20 people a day could need to be assisted from vehicles in the drop-off zone and
twice a month patients might have to be transferred out to an ambulance.

Eastfield Health would also be delivering a service different from historical models in the town, providing the opportunity to use technology to make a difference. GPs would work alongside a
 wider clinical team and be able to handle higher numbers of patients.

Council’s CBD revitalisation plans attracted 66 submissions with all but a couple saying the area desperately needs a new look.

Plans will include moving the parking restriction in the West Street carpark from 120 minutes
to 180, dropping the speed limit from 50km/h to 30km/h, one-way east bound traffic on Tancred Street and one-way west-bound traffic on Burnett Street. The one-way streets will have parallel parking on the left and angle parking on the right

Linda Clarke, The Ashburton Guardian

New hotel offers attractions for community and visitors

The planned 75-room four-star hotel in Ashburton’s Eastfield Precinct will offer a range
of new attractions for both the community and the region’s growing visitor industry.

New designs by Christchurch-based architects The Buchan Group, just released to the public, showcase a number of features for the new hotel, which will sit on the north of the site along Burnett Street next to the Braided Rivers Restaurant and Bar.

The hotel will feature a range of new dining options, including a breakfast café, orientated to capture the morning sun, an all-day dining area with open-display kitchen and a craft beer operation which will open into the central piazza. A dining laneway will provide a sheltered connection between the restaurant, café and bar and the development’s extensive public spaces.

In addition to the new food and beverage options, the local community will also be able to
take advantage of the planned first floor events centre, designed as an attractive wedding
 and conference venue to cater to groups of up to 200. Entered by a grand central staircase and overlooking the central piazza, the events centre includes a full-service bar and balcony area.

For hotel guests, along with 75 generously proportioned rooms, the hotel also features an on-site gym and other amenities.

Scheduled to open in May 2019, the hotel will be an anchor operation for the new $40 million, 10,548m2 development in the centre of Ashburton. The development of the hotel is being facilitated for Scenic Hotel Group by Eastfield Investments Ltd.

Eastfield Investments chairman Brian Davidson says the design reflects Scenic Hotel Group’s desire to create a destination for the local community and a guest experience that reflects the best of what’s on offer in Mid Canterbury.

“After extensive research and planning, what we’re aiming to achieve with the Eastfield Hotel is
an operation that not only meets a range of demands for the visitor industry but adds a great deal to what the community can enjoy in the centre of town,” says Brian Davidson.

“Adding new choices of hospitality and events offerings will create a real foundation for
a dynamic entertainment precinct in the heart of Ashburton.”

The hotel will also provide a strong connection to the Eastfield Precinct’s central public piazza, which is accessed from surrounding streets by a series of laneways, including the hotel’s own dining lane. The piazza will be activated with a series of retail and food options, to provide an open civic space, sheltered from the elements and orientated to capture the sun.

The Buchan Group project architect James Burgess says the design has been inspired by the colours, forms and production of the mid-Canterbury heartland.

“The Eastfield Hotel designs have been inspired by the region, particularly in the use of local produce, materials, tones and textures in the series of distinct public areas,” says James Burgess.

“Eastfield Developments was also clear in their desire to have the development sit comfortably within the Ashburton townscape. The architecture is a direct response to this, with a strong
 two-storey form along the main Burnett Street frontage, broken down into a series of smaller elements that are consistent with the predominant Ashburton style.”

Mr Burgess says The Buchan Group’s team also has a close affinity to the region.

“Charlotte Cochrane grew up in Ashburton and heads our interior team nationally. Charlotte
 is leading the interior design on the Eastfield precinct and with her local connection it makes
the scheme deeply personal to us.”

Mr. Davidson says, with planning now underway, Eastfield Investments Limited expects
to commence construction in 2018.

Brian Davidson, Chairman Eastfield Investments Limited

Eastfield Investments confirms addition of Eastfield Health to Eastfield Precinct

The people of Ashburton will soon have access to a new centre for health care, as Eastfield Investments Limited confirms their next focus for development is a state-of-the-art primary health service.

Eastfield Investments chairman Brian Davidson says the planning stage is well underway for Eastfield Health, with services expected to be offered from next year.

“We’re very excited to be progressing detailed development of Eastfield Health which will
provide an opportunity to increase community health care, which is accessible, central and
close to other services.”

Mr. Davidson says the Ashburton District is a fast-growing community with a clear need for additional health and well-being services.

“The steady growth of the region reinforces the need to support the services available in the
area,” says Brian Davidson.

Detailed planning for Eastfield Health is being led and co-ordinated by a Steering Group of
Mary Ross (co-opted Chairperson) and Eastfield Directors, Roger Bonifant and Graham Kennedy.

“Eastfield Health will provide a truly modern service that is tech-enabled and will provide an approach that utilises the clinical skills of a team of health professionals with the patient as their collaborative focus. The new development allows for a purpose built facility which is mindful of this team approach and also has the ability to grow in line with demand“ Mary Ross says.

Located in the heart of Ashburton, Eastfield is a comprehensive lifestyle precinct, combining commercial, residential and retail opportunities with a range of services and spaces for the
local community.

Eastfield Health will be the latest addition to the Eastfield Precinct, with the development of
a 75-room four-star hotel now underway for Scenic Circle and a new centre for the Ministry of Social Development completed.

Brian Davidson, Chairman Eastfield Investments Limited

Eastfield Investments Limited and the Scenic Hotel Group have now confirmed the proposed development of a 75-room four-star hotel in Ashburton’s Eastfield Precinct, expected to open
in early May 2019.

The new hotel, being constructed as part of the new $40 million, 10,548m2 development in the centre of Ashburton, has now reached the formal planning stage, with the execution of a Heads
of Agreement (HOA) between Scenic Hotel Group and Eastfield Investments Ltd.

Eastfield Investments chairman Brian Davidson says that the agreement signals the start of the planning process to enable the opening of the hotel within two years.

“We can now move to the next stage with confidence,” says Brian Davidson. “This will mean getting underway with the preparation of concept and design plans to be agreed on by both parties.”

“The agreement also underscores the confidence we are seeing in the Eastfields project and
could well bring forward the development of the central destination area within the CBD.”

The Scenic Hotel Group is New Zealand’s largest independently-owned and operated hotel group, currently operating 18 hotels throughout New Zealand and the South Pacific. The new Eastfield hotel will have no fewer than 75 accommodation rooms, supported by a bar, restaurant and meeting rooms. Planned opening day is 1st May 2019.

The hotel will be situated on Burnett Street, next to the Braided Rivers Restaurant and Bar, and will respond to the growing demand from the local visitor industry. As well as creating a number of new local jobs and bringing more tourists to the area, the new hotel will create wide-ranging benefits for the region and will cater to a part of the market not currently served by the hotel sector.

Mr. Davidson says, with planning now underway, Eastfield Investments Limited expects to commence construction in early 2018.

Brian Davidson, Chairman Eastfield Investments Limited

Ashburton District councillors were yesterday given every reason to put the new Eastfield development off Cass Street at the top of the list for the district’s new civic headquarters.

Chairman of the Eastfield board, Brian Davidson and urban planner Craig Pocock made a comprehensive submission on the council’s long term plan and when they spoke to that submission, they gave councillors a raft of reasons why the Eastfield site should be chosen.

”In our view there is no other suitable site,“ Mr Davidson said.

Eastfield could build the council a new headquarters complete with parking options well within the $16 million it had tagged as the cost of a new civic centre, he said.

”There are really only two options, the current building site and Eastfield; in our view there are no other suitable sites.

”We’d like to be the preferred site but we understand the council has to move cautiously.”

The council could be part of the inner town development through outright ownership of its building, through to tenancy, with a range of options in between.

Having the civic centre as part of a central town development was also good urban design, Mr Pocock said.

A central green area is planned as part of the development and this would automatically become a civic square if the civic building was on the site, he said.

No specific site in the complex, bounded by Cass, Burnett and Tancred streets had been tagged for a civic centre, but the corner of Cass and Tancred street was clear and available, Mr Pocock said.

Sue Newman, Ashburton Guardian

The Eastfield Development board may have made the Ashburton District Council an offer it can’t refuse.

With the council planning a $16 million rebuild of its civic administration building and library within three years, Eastfield board chair Brian Davidson believes the giant inner town development planned on a site bounded by Burnett, Tancred and Cass streets would be the ideal site for the new civic complex.

The council is a 30 per cent shareholder in the Eastfield company and Mr Davidson said the inner town site would offer many advantages to both the council and the community.

”As a major employer, a significant local property owner in its own right and a provider of a wide range of services for the local community, it makes complete sense that the council’s operations are brought into the centre of town,” Mr Davidson said.

Eastfield has made a lengthy submission on the council’s long-term plan, putting forward a raft of reasons why the inner town site should be the preferred location for the new civic building.

A civic building in the centre of Ashburton’s CBD would bring a large number of people into the heart of town to work, boosting retail traffic and making it easier for people to access shops, the council and the library on one visit to town, without having to cross the state highway and railway line, he said.

“Having all these complementary services and assets in the one place offers real synergies, not just for the council, but also for our community.”

By having the civic headquarters in the heart of town and in a complex that was designed around a public square the council would have access to an attractive outdoor space for civic functions and community events, Mr Davidson said.

No decisions had been made on where the district’s new civic building would be located and there were quite a few options on the table, council chief executive Andrew Dalziel said.

“They’ve come to us and said they’ve got a proposal but I’m quite open to a whole lot of options,” he said.

Bitten by the fallout from the construction of the district’s recently opened art and heritage centre where consultants Morrison Lowe were critical of the lack of a feasibility study, Mr Dalziel said the council was committed to making this a fundamental requirement for all site assessments for the new civic building.

With that process still to be gone through, the council was a long way off making a commitment to any one site, he said.

“All I’ve said to Eastfield is that it (their proposal) is certainly not a no-goer.”

Among the other options for the new civic building are the North East Business Park, land on the corner of Cass and Cameron Street and a large tract of land on and to the west of the current council building in Baring Square West.

Sue Newman, Ashburton Guardian

When staff emptied the Ashburton District Council mail bag this morning, the number of individuals and organisations having a say on the district’s long-term plan could create a record.

Late yesterday more than 130 individuals and organisations had filed comments on a plan that details spending and subsequent rate rises for the next 10 years and through the submission process the community has stated what it thinks of the way in which the council plans to spend rates money.

One of the big ticket items is a $16 million spend up on a new headquarters for council staff.

This may or may not include the district library.

Because the civic building is also the district’s civil defence headquarters it must meet 67 per cent of the building code in terms of earthquake strength.

Currently both this building and the library meet 34 per cent of the standard.

Staff numbers have also outgrown the ability of the civic building to accommodate all employees.

While the council has tagged $16 million to be spent over the next three years on a new building, mayor Angus McKay said no decisions have been made on where the new complex will be built or when.

“Right now we haven’t decided on any site or type of building.

“We’ll look at the options that are there and put those out for consultation,”Mr McKay said.

First, however, the project has to be given the green light by ratepayers.

Indications from submissions are that the community is divided on the need for the $16 million spend up.

While many submitters simply agreed there was a need to look at options for the future, many of those who opposed the idea wanted the project put on hold until debt on the art gallery and museum and the EA Networks Centre was reduced.

Others had strong opinions on location, with several wanting the option of building at the North East Business Park taken off the list.

“It’s too far out of town…“ one submitter said.

Another wanted the council to consider leasing a premises rather than buying while there was also a plea for the new building to be ‘all encompassing’ including the library as well as a headquarters for Experience Mid Canterbury and Grow Mid Canterbury.

All options were on the table, Mr McKay said.

Those options include among others, council owned land on the corner of Cameron and Cass Streets (Balmoral Hall site), the current council site and adjoining car park and villa, as part of the Eastfield site development bounded by Cass, Burnett and Tancred Streets.

The former county council building, most recently the home of the district’s museum and art gallery is also in the mix.

The project was not a guaranteed runner, he said.

“We have to get the okay to proceed first.”

The council has completed an assessment of its space needs and this will be key to determining which site options will be viable for the new complex, Mr McKay said.

The council is likely to go the community with options next year.

Sue Newman, Ashburton Guardian

To read the full article please click here.

TOWN HUB: An artist’s impression of the $40 million integrated Eastfield precinct, which landowners have planned for the heart of Ashburton.

A $40 million precinct aimed at both tourists and locals is planned for central Ashburton.

The Eastfield Precinct will create 77 apartments, hospitality outlets, shops, offices, a medical hub, car parking and a public square.

The project comes from a group of private landowners with earthquake-damaged buildings, who have decided to join forces. The Ashburton District Council has a 32 per cent stake in the company and owns some of the land.

The combined site covers more than a hectare of land bordered by Tancred, Burnett and Cass streets and the Ashburton Arcade.

Under the name Eastfield Investments Ltd, the group gave the council a briefing on the plan yesterday.

Company spokesman and shareholder Brian Davidson said the development had evolved over 3 a half years from what was initially a response to the earthquakes. They hope to start construction in the middle of next year and stage it over three years.

Eastfield Precinct would give tourists more choice of accommodation, provide an attractive place for private apartments and professional offices, and bring "more life and activity" to the area, Davidson said.

"With so many landowners, experts and the council working together on the project, Eastfield Precinct is a real demonstration of what we can achieve in the district."

The plan includes 55 serviced tourist apartments, which he said would be a first for the town, and 22 two and three-bedroom apartments available for purchase. Alongside would be the offices, outlets for cafes, bars and restaurants, and a small number of boutique shops.

The "state of the art" medical complex was in response to an identified need in the town.

It would house doctors surgeries, a pharmacy and physiotherapist, and other specialist services.

The project has been designed with the help of a retail geography specialist, an urban designer, and Christchurch project architect Bill Skews.

Davidson said this meant the plan made sound commercial sense and offered a "vibrant and dynamic place to visit, enjoy a range of hospitality and entertainment, work and even live in the heart of Ashburton".

Mayor Angus McKay said the precinct would help revive the damaged town centre and complement rather than compete with existing facilities.

"It's good news - it will bring people back into the central business area."

AT A GLANCE

$40m cost

10,548 sqm site

55 tourist apartments

22 residential apartments medical complex

shops and offices

public square

car parking

The Press

The announcement of the new development between Burnett, Cass and Tancred Streets is terrific  news for Ashburton.

The immense 9000m2  site will replace a dozen buildings and businesses east of the Arcade that have been demolished or are about to be torn down.

Aside from the Braided Rivers complex and one council-owned complex that will be redeveloped, the other 18 titles will be combined to create a modern business and retail centre, Eastfield.

The council has been working for years to get land owners, developers, builders and architects to work in tandem, to avoid a hideous CBD filled with bits-and-bobs businesses.

Instead, the block between Burnett and Tancred Street could be complementing the new Arcade shopping precinct.

Together this new retail area has the potential to revitalise the centre of Ashburton and become a destination for shoppers from around the district and beyond.

Even though all parties will still have to cross several bridges before they can present the new design, the basic principle of their co-operation and combined vision is the most important first step.

It is a breath of fresh air to hear about plans for a new complex while the Stewart and Holland building is still being torn down.

This is a stark contrast to many areas in Christchurch where a lack of co-operation and decision-making and an abundance of red tape, has created thousands of square metres of empty lots of dust and rubble.

Ashburton also has a few bare spots, like the former Westburn Courts site that desperately needs a vision and some action to fill this gaping hole on West Street.

Even though we yet have to see what the vision for Eastfield will look like, the fact that all owners are long-term Ashburton residents should create some confidence that they have the best interests of the community at heart, along with their commercial needs.

As we await the designs, they need to be congratulated for this significant move for the future of Ashburton.

 Coen Lammers, Ashburton Guardian