Ashburton’s CBD revitalisation project has been highly commended at local government awards that celebrate the creation of special places.

Ashburton Mayor Neil Brown said the $17 million project finished late last year and had been intended to help breathe new life into the town centre, attracting businesses as well as people.

“We are really proud of the new streetscape and we thank local businesses, their staff and customers for their patience while the work was done. It was not always easy, especially with the added challenge of covid lockdowns, but this is now an attractive space that will serve the town well for years to come.”

The CBD renewal project was highly commended in the Beca Award for Placemaking, which is part of the Taituarā awards for local government. The category recognises projects that shape or promote the local economy and foster positive social outcomes.

Judges said they liked the holistic approach of the project, which was about upgrading infrastructure as much as providing a vehicle for retail.

Ashburton District Council Chief Executive Hamish Riach said the judges recognised it was a significant project for the town.

“This project has also been significant for staff and our contractors, Tru-Line Civil. Congratulations to the many people who took it from conception and early planning, through to the design and delivery.

“It was always focused on achieving the best outcome for our community so to have that acknowledged at a national level is rewarding, particularly as the project had an amount of stress and tension because of covid pressure and disruption.”

Part of the CBD entry in the local government awards was a video showing before and after shots of the CBD. People can see the video here and on social media channels.

The new streetscape features wider footpaths and roads, landscaping and outdoor furniture, and a new slower centre, where the speed limit is now 30km/h for vehicles.

Mr Riach said the space needed to be vibrant and viable for businesses and their customers, and it had been future-proofed by ensuring underground infrastructure was renewed, and cables and power lines were relocated.

The project was completed to its original programme, despite some of the challenging work and the impacts of Covid-19, which struck just months after the work began in early 2020.

Contractors started on Cass Street then spread street by street through the CBD, working on Moore Street, Havelock Street, East Street, Tancred and Burnett Street.  Big changes have included Tancred and Burnett Street becoming one-way, with angle parking.