Our capital spending funds physical infrastructure projects, such as roading and Three Waters improvements, community, sporting and recreation facilities, and upgrades to our parks and reserves. These projects are funded through a combination of rates and debt, subsidies and grants, and development contributions. Since these projects will benefit future generations, we use borrowing to spread the repayment cost over 30 years.

The Draft Annual Plan reflects our priorities for the capital programme:

• Maintaining and renewing our water supply and stormwater infrastructure.

• Improving our roads and footpaths.

• Enhancing our parks and riverbanks.

• Building our facilities.

• Adapting to climate change.

The Draft Annual Plan shows a current capital spend in 2025/26 of $736.1 million (including $92.5 million for One New Zealand Stadium at Te Kaha) – an increase of $30.2 million compared with the forecast in the Long Term Plan 2024–2034.

We are reviewing the capital programme to assess its deliverability. We want to avoid charging ratepayers for work in 2025/26 that we may not deliver within that year. By the time of adopting the Annual Plan, we will have a more detailed understanding of what will be delivered in 2025/26.

Adjusting the timing of spending on certain projects does not necessarily mean the project is slowing down or will be delayed. Many projects are delivered over several years, and when we initially establish project budgets, there is often uncertainty about the exact timing of construction to be undertaken in each year. This is why we review our capital programme during the Annual Plan process, to ensure that we remain focused on what we can realistically deliver in a cost competitive way in the upcoming financial year.

The reprioritised capital programme budget for 2025/26 includes changes in the following areas.

Community facilities

• Moving $9.5 million of Jellie Park renewals from 2025/26 to 2026/27. This will allow Jellie Park to remain open until Parakiore has opened.

• Moving $2.0 million of Akaroa Wharf renewal from 2025/26 to 2026/27 to align with the construction of the project.

• Moving $3.1 million for One New Zealand Stadium at Te Kaha from 2025/26 to 2026/27 to align with construction of the project.

Three waters

• Adding an additional $10.8 million, over and above what was indicated in the LTP, to the water supply mains renewals programme to help reduce water leaks across our network.

• Prioritising the Addington Brook and Riccarton Drain filtration devices, by bringing $4.7 million of the budget from 2030/31 to 2025/26 to allow the project to be delivered earlier.

• Moving $16.2 million from 2025/26 to 2027/28 for the Christchurch wastewater treatment plant activated sludge reactor, as the initial budget phasing was done before the insurance settlement was reached.

• Moving $8.8 million from 2025/26 to 2027/28 to upgrade the biogas storage at the Christchurch Wastewater Treatment Plant while we work through cost-effective solutions.

• Adding $3 million to the Ōtākaro Avon River Corridor stopbank project budgets in 2025/26 to deliver stopbanks from Pages Road to Bridge Street.

• Combining the Duvauchelle wastewater treatment project with the Akaroa Wastewater Treatment Plant project in order to achieve efficiencies.

Transport

• Carrying forward 9.7 million from 2024/25 to stage the delivery of the Papanui ki Waiwhetū Wheels to Wings major cycle route, focusing initially on linking the Te Ara O-Rakipaoa Nor’West Arc and Puari ki Pū-harakeke-nui Northern Line major cycle routes and making road safety improvements to three parts of Harewood Road.

• Moving the Lincoln Road (Curletts to Wrights roads) Public Transport project from 2026/28 to 2029/30 while we work on a business case for New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi funding (see breakout box for more information).

• Adding an additional $2.5 million in 2025/26 and $1.0 million in 2026/27 to enable us to complete the Te Aratai Cycle Connection project.

• Adding an additional $2.0 million in 2025/26 and $1.5 million in 2026/27 to address the speed limit changes announced by the Government.

• Adding an additional $2.0 million in 2025/26 and $2.8 million in 2027/28 to improve the hairpin bend on Evans Pass Road.

• Adding an additional $751,000 in 2025/26 and $759,000 in 2026/27 to complete the Simeon Street cycle connection project.

• Adding an additional $1.25 million in 2025/26 for Antigua Street Cycle Network (Tuam – Moorhouse) to support the initial design for the project.

• Adding an additional $1.0 million in 2025/26 and $7.8 million in 2026–2028 for Major Cycleway – South Express Route (Section 1) Hei Hei Road to Jones Road, to complete the route to Templeton.

• Transferring $1.5 million into 2025/26 and $3.0 million into 2026/27 from the 2028/29 budget for the Major Cycleway – Ōpāwaho River Route (Section 3) Waltham to Ferrymead Bridge, to the Major Cycleway – Heathcote Expressway Route – Scruttons Road KiwiRail Crossing.

An easy way to see all our proposed changes at a glance is using our online search tool, a handy guide to the Council projects that are affected by theDraft Annual Plan. Search by the area you live in, the type of project, the project name or even just a key word, and see at a glance which project’s funding has been updated for the next three years.

Papanui ki Waiwhetū Wheels to Wings major cycle route

Due to escalating project costs and confirmation from New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi that no government funding contribution will be available this year for Wheels to Wings, the Council has had to reconsider how it delivers the cycleway. This cycleway would provide a connection from Papanui to the airport via Bishopdale and Harewood.

The proposal is now to take a staged approach to construction and for 2025/26 we propose to spend $9.7 million to:

• Link the Te Ara O-Rakipaoa Nor'West Arc and Puari ki Pū-harakeke-nui Northern Line major cycle routes, and install a signalised pedestrian crossing on Harewood Road, between Matsons Avenue and Chapel Street.
• Install traffic lights at the Harewood Road, Gardiners Road and Breens Road intersection, and install a signalised pedestrian crossing on Harewood Road at Harewood School Te Kura o Tāwera.

The construction of the remainder of the route is yet to be finalised and will be confirmed through future Annual Plan or Long Term Plan processes.

Lincoln Road (Curletts to Wrights Roads)

We are proposing to defer the Lincoln Road (Curletts to Wrights) Public Transport project from 2026/28 to 2028/30. When completed, this project will mean there are peak time bus lanes all the way from Addington to Halswell, allowing one of the most well-used and fastest growing routes in the city to operate quickly and reliably at all times of day.

By delaying this project, there will be a gap in the bus lanes between Barrington Street and Curletts Road. However, for New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi to consider contributing to the cost of the works, we need additional time for the business case process.

If the deferral goes ahead, some of the money expected to be spent in the meantime will be redirected towards other public transport projects – for example, reducing the waiting time for buses at some intersections, and improving the operation of existing bus lanes.