CSO gears up as hall nears opening date
An opening date for the restored Christchurch Town Hall could be announced within weeks, the head of the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra (CSO) says.
The news comes as the orchestra launches a fundraising campaign for part of the remaining
$450,000 needed to move its offices and rehearsal space from a Hornby warehouse to the Town Hall next year.
CSO chief executive Gretchen la Roche said the main expense for the move was paying up front for the 23-year lease on the rehearsal and office space in the Town Hall. She would not disclose the amount, but said it was millions of dollars. The CSO Foundation Trust had about
$4.6 million in cash and investments in the year ended March 31, 2017, according to Charities Services filings.
The orchestra moved its offices and rehearsal space to the warehouse in Hornby in November 2011. Since then, it has been fundraising for a move to a permanent home. It was granted
$1.25m from the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal Trust for the purpose in 2014.
La Roche said paying the lease up front would give the orchestra financial stability for decades.
‘‘It is a significant sum that we are paying,’’ she said.
‘‘We have a substantial amount of our reserves saved for this project. It has long been our vision to see the orchestra in a permanent home.’’
The CSO has launched a fundraising campaign to raise
$75,000 towards the Town Hall move.
The Christchurch City Council is paying for the construction of the CSO’s new space. The CSO will pay for specialist parts of the fitout, la Roche said.
The council is spending
$140.6m to restore the Town Hall, which includes about $7.5m for the construction of the CSO’s new offices and rehearsal space. With blood gushing from a split in her head, Sharron Jones huddled on a concrete slab in her secluded garden as early evening turned to night.
She tripped and whacked her head on the edge of a block of concrete while tidying her garden shed. ‘‘All I know is it was lights out and when I started moving again, it was dark.’’
On her hands and knees, she crawled inside, staggered up the stairs and hauled herself into bed next to her cat, Bob. The next morning, she retraced her steps by following the trail of bloody Sharron Jones