Lyttelton is already regarded as one of New Zealand's heritage rich areas, and its community had the opportunity to back that with official recognition with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust (NZHPT). In August 2009, the NZHPT registered the Lyttelton Township Historic Area in Canterbury on its National Register of historic places.
Registration is an advocacy tool and is intended to identify and inform people about New Zealand’s historic heritage. There are a number of individual historic places in Lyttelton already entered on the NZHPT Register - including the Timeball Station, built in 1876, which was given Category I registration in 1983.
Registration of the Lyttelton Historic Area enabled broad identification of the heritage values of the place as a whole and did not seek to remove any existing registration. Lyttelton is a special place with a unique history and the registration process allowed a full assessment of the heritage values of the town to be made.
The NZHPT made recomendations in the registration report to the Christchurch City Council regarding the long-term conservation of the area. The NZHPT Recommendations have been clarified as a result of feedback received during the submissions process.
No short-term or long-term regulatory impacts or legal obligations on property owners arise directly from registration under the Historic Places Act 1993, except in exceptional circumstances that will not apply in this case.
Protection comes when local authorities take the lead and protect local historic places in their district plan. Local authorities give regard to the NZHPT Register and may include items on the Register on their heritage schedules. However, amending heritage schedules is a separate process to registration and, if undertaken, allows input from property owners and the community.
NZHPT General Manager, Southern Region, Malcolm Duff said the Lyttelton Historic Area proposal was an ideal opportunity for the community to continue to show its support for heritage protection. "Lyttelton is blessed with its richness of tradition, history and heritage. NZHPT identifies, promotes and protects heritage, but the local community has considerable power in influencing those that make decisions on retaining our heritage. By being proactive the community's voice - and actions - can really help reinforce the message."
Explore registered historic places in Lyttelton
Final registration of Lyttelton Township Historic Area
Following careful consideration of the registration proposal and the letters received, the Board confirmed the proposal to register Lyttelton Township Historic Area at its meeting on 13 August 2009. The Board considered that Lyttelton Township Historic Area has sufficient significance to merit inclusion on the Register as a historic area.
One of the responsibilities of the NZHPT under the Historic Places Act 1993 is to promote heritage, and registration is a key way that this is done.
NZHPT Recommendations for Lyttelton
To ensure the long-term conservation of this place, the NZHPT recommends that the Christchurch City Council has particular regard to the Lyttelton Township Historic Area and uses it to inform decision-making about statutory and non-statutory methods for conservation and protection of historical and cultural heritage.
The NZHPT recommends that the Christchurch City Council ensures the retention of key elements of the Lyttelton Township Historic Area through appropriate planning processes. The NZHPT identifies the key elements of the Lyttelton Township Historic area as follows:
- Street names and street layout (including split leveling and ‘ramps’ on many of the steep streets);
- Public pedestrian walkways and steps
- The numerous 19th century timber cottages
- Predominance of volcanic stone walls
- Public spaces such as the cemeteries, former gaol site, and streets
- The archaeology of the town (especially the brick barrel storm water system under the entire town)
- Historic public and commercial buildings in the lower part of the town
- Historic kerb and channeling on Oxford Street and Simeon Quay
- Churches and lodges
- The streetscape views within the township, views to and from the crater rim skyline and views to and from the port and harbour.
The Banks Peninsula District Plan (administered by the Christchurch City Council) already contains a number of planning rules that seek the retention of the distinctive heritage values and character elements of the town (notably in the Town Centre and Residential Conservation zones in the current district plan). NZHPT recommends that the existing provisions which will result in the retention of the key features noted above are retained in any future amendment of the district plan.
The NZHPT further recommends that the Lyttelton Township Historic Area registration report informs upcoming Lyttelton heritage conservation and heritage character studies by the Christchurch City Council and that further community consultation is undertaken by the Christchurch City Council as part of those studies.
Registration Report
The final registration report includes information on why Lyttelton Township Historic Area was considered to be a good candidate for registration. There are two volumes, Volume One which details the overall history, and Volume Two which has 4 appendices that describe the range of streetscapes. You can download these reports (pdf files) below or if you prefer to view a hard copy, they are available at the several places in Lyttelton, and at the NZHPT's Southern Regional Office in central Christchurch:
- Christchurch City Council Lyttelton Service Centre - 33 London Street, Lyttelton
- Lyttelton Information Centre - 20 Oxford Street, Lyttelton
- Timeball Station - 2 Reserve Terrace, Lyttelton
- Christchurch City Libraries' Lyttelton Library - 35 London Street, Lyttelton
- NZHPT Southern Regional Office - first floor, Gough House, 90 Hereford Street, Christchurch
For more information
Check our frequently asked questions information sheet (pdf document). If you have any queries about the registration, please contact:
Robyn Burgess
Heritage Advisor Registration (Canterbury/West Coast)
Tel: (03) 379 2965
Email: rburgess@historic.org.nz