Old YMCA building demolition almost finished

Diggers are demolishing the last part of the old YMCA site in central Christchurch this week.

Demolition crews started work on the Hereford St site last week, clearing the last remaining building to make way for a car park.

The $51 million development project is being funded through the previous Government’s post-Covid shovel-ready scheme.

The Christchurch branch of YMCA decided to leave the global organisation last September after 161 years.

It's been rebranded as 'The Kind Foundation', part of a modernisation process aimed at broadening its reach in the community.

The foundation opened its new three-storey Papa Hou complex last November.

The facility includes a gym, theatre, childcare centre, cafe, dance school and physiotherapy clinic.

The first stage of the project in 2021 saw the YMCA’s former hostel on the corner of Hereford St and Rolleston Ave, refurbished as Hotel Give, billed as a "socially sustainable stay".

- By Geoff Sloan, made with the support of NZ On Air