23 Jun 2016

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The sale of 11.5 hectares of Council-owned land at QEII Park to the Ministry of Education has been approved.

The Ministry will use the land, which is in the southeast corner of the park, for the relocation of Avonside Girls' and Shirley Boys' High Schools.

The decision follows community consultation, which raised a number of issues which have been addressed in the conditions of sale. These include ensuring the some of QEII Park's historically significant plaques and trees are protected, that some land is retained to enable the adjacent Travis Medical Centre to continue using it for customer car parking, and enabling a publicly-accessible walking track to be created that circles the entire park, covering the land owned by the Ministry and the land retained by the Council.

Both schools will sit alongside the Council’s QEII Recreation and Sport Centre by 2018, which is set to begin construction in October 2016.

Avonside Girls High Principal Sue Hume and Shrirley Boys’ High Principal John Laurenson today both welcomed the Council’s decision to sell part of the QEII land so their two schools could co-locate.

“This takes us a step closer to having our brand new campus alongside the Eastern Recreation and Sport Centre. It is great news for the city’s eastern residents who have been calling for a high school to be built in the area since before the earthquakes,” said Mr Laurenson.

The two schools will be built alongside each other and will share some facilities, including a performing arts auditorium and theatre, a library and learning centre, a café and a dedicated cultural space.

Those facilities will be made available for community use.

Ms Hume said the schools were determined to make the most of the wonderful assets that the QEII site had.

“Avonside Girls’ is leaving behind a very beautiful, tree laden campus right next to the river. But we are going to a campus that also has wonderful natural attibutes with mature trees and the Travis Wetlands on our doorstep. Best of all this new campus will mean both schools will be able to offer our students more than ever before,'' she said.