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CCC / Supplied
The dome of the Christchurch Edmonds band rotunda will rise in place on Tuesday morning.
The copper dome of Christchurch’s Edmonds gang rotunda has been put back in place as the $ 1.5 million project to restore it reaches its midpoint.
The band’s rotunda, a category two heritage building built in 1929, was canceled after the Canterbury earthquakes of 2010 and 2011.
Its distinctive copper-clad dome, which weighs 80 tons, was saved and removed in 2012. Since then, it has sat on the ground next to the site.
CCC / Supplied
The dome weighs 80 tons and will be supported by scaffolding before the columns are built.
The dome was put in place early Tuesday with a crane specially brought in from the North Island.
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It is now supported by scaffolding awaiting the construction of the new roundabout columns.
“It is a significant milestone in the restoration of the rotunda,” said Christchurch City Council Capital Delivery Manager Darren Moses.
“It’s great to see him back in his rightful place after so long.”
Work to restore the Rotunda began in March this year.
Iain McGregor / Stuff
The dome photographed in 2016, resting on the ground next to the damaged rotunda.
It is due to reopen at its original location on the banks of the River Avon, near Manchester St, in April 2021.
Once open, the roundabout is expected to be used for presentations, wedding photos, and as a sheltered place for people to sit and relax.
It will have lightweight roll-up panel screens to protect you from bad weather.
The restoration has suffered long delays.
The city council agreed that it would be restored in 2016, but the works never started for “budgetary reasons”.
In 2019, the council budgeted for the work, and in February this year, the project received a $ 1 million grant from the Canterbury Earthquake Appeal Trust.
The rotunda was built in 1929 as a gift to the city from businessman and philanthropist Thomas Edmonds, famous in powder and cookbooks, to commemorate his 50 years of business in the city.
