Your donation is welcome at any time. Donations help us undertake more programmes in heritage conservation than we might otherwise be able to do.
You may make a donation using our secure on-line form, when you join or renew your membership, at one of our properties, or even through one of our campaigns.
All donations over $5 are tax deductible in New Zealand. A receipt will be posted promptly to you.
Time is against us
"A lot of our work is around assessing the economic viability of repairing and restoring the damaged heritage buildings.”
Before the earthquakes of September 2010 and February and June 2011, Christchurch stood as a beacon of New Zealand’s early European settlement heritage. The city thrived because of it. It gave the people a sense of belonging and a sense of identity. It was also a magnet for tourism into the city.
Like the people of Canterbury, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust lost so much. Many of the buildings we loved and protected were destroyed or considerably damaged. But for all our people, staff, contractors and volunteers, there was little time for reflection or sadness. From day one, we’ve been on the ground supporting CERA (Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority), the Council, building owners and stakeholders to identify which buildings we could save.
The workloads are enormous, as you can imagine, and growing. We’ve been working hard to protect as many buildings as possible (we’ve already provided over 170 building reports to CERA), but the final decision with any demolition rests with them. The sad truth is that for some buildings, repair will be impossible.
We are providing expert architectural, conservation and cultural heritage advice and assistance to building owners and stakeholders. Normally we can’t provide structural engineering assistance but the Canterbury earthquakes have made it a necessity and we have reallocated our limited resources to make sure this happens.
After the June earthquake workloads sky-rocketed for our archaeological team who, in the first three months of this financial year, received over 250 applications to modify archaeological sites. An Order In Council dictates we have only three to five working days to turn around the applications from the time they are received. The pressure and sense of responsibility is immense.
Two additional archaeologists were contracted to record pre-1900 and registered heritage buildings being demolished or deconstructed in the CBD. This work is essential to capture important heritage information that otherwise would be lost.
"It is heartbreaking to see the destruction of so much we have sought to protect"
Whilst we invest heavily in the Canterbury region in terms of extra staff, time and resources (including the donations from you we’ve passed on to the Canterbury Earthquake Heritage Buildings Fund), we are determined to carry on with “business as usual” elsewhere and staff in other regions are making sure this happens.
We’re always grateful to our loyal members and donors for your support of our work. There has never been a greater need for your support than now. We’re stretched, it would be fair to say. These are extraordinary times that demand much from all of us. Your gift will help us to continue the essential work in Canterbury and help us support our nationwide staff and volunteers to protect and conserve our national treasures. We simply could not do the work we do, on behalf of all New Zealanders, without your help. It truly is a case of many hands make lighter work.