Press statement Friday 20 November 2009

Postponement of Hearing Inevitable

"An inevitable postponement which we had already requested" today said Richard Sinke, Chair of the Save Our Arts Centre Inc. He was commenting on the news that the resource consent hearings, due to start on 7 December, had been postponed until February, on the joint application of the University of Canterbury and the Arts Centre Trust Board. The hearings, in front of two independent Commissioners, are on the controversial School of Music at the heritage Arts Centre land.

"Last week, Save Our Arts Centre submitted to the two Resource Hearing Independent Commissioners that now the total number of people to be heard was known, the pre-Christmas time table was simply not long enough. We pointed out that each submitter would only get 11 minutes on average on the pre-Christmas timetable.!

"We were confident that had the joint applicants not asked for a postponement of proceedings until February 2010, the Commissioners themselves would have ordered one anyway", said Mr Sinke.

"Save Our Arts Centre has also asked the independent Commissioners to rule on some other matters, including the issue that there are in fact three related resource consent applications - for the Music School itself, for an extension of the proposed underground car park, and for the subdivision of land - and we believe these must be heard together, not separately as lodged, as the applicant has done.

"On the matter of the University looking again at the design of the proposed building, it is really very simple. The building is too big and bulky for the small Arts Centre site, but conversely it is too small, according to Music staff for current and future use. It cannot be redesigned to be both bigger and small, even by Sir Miles. It should be abandoned, as a proposal."

ENDS

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