The Star: June 21, 2018

The Star Latest Christchurch news at www.star.kiwi
Thursday June 21 2018 3
News
Are you being spied on in Scarborough?
• By Sarla Donovan
• By Julia Evans
MORE THAN 100 people
have failed to save the longest
running experimental theatre
in the country from becoming
homeless.
Free Theatre Christchurch
has been forced out of its lease
at The Gym in the Arts Centre,
which it has used since 2014,
after failing to secure financial
viability.
Free Theatre
Christchurch
secretary Marian
McCurdy
said it was
“disturbing” it
would have to
leave. The group
has been part
of the Arts Centre community
since 1982.
“It talks about being a space to
support arts, culture and education.
We do all that, it doesn’t
make sense,” she said.
Arts Centre acting chief executive
Jane Parfitt said the free
theatre trust had not been able
to meet its commitments to the
Arts Centre for some time.
Ms Parfitt said she would not
release the details of private
tenancy agreements.
But said the Arts Centre has
SCARBOROUGH residents
are worried they’re being spied
on by drones.
Lucy Broadhurst, who lives
halfway up Scarborough Hill,
was sitting with her partner in
the bay window of their house
about 10pm on Monday night
when they spotted a red light
hovering about 20m away.
They initially thought it was
a vehicle’s tail light but recognised
it as a drone when it
started moving up and down.
Ms Broadhurst reacted by
pulling the finger, “which
supported free theatre’s return
to the city through providing
“favourable terms” on the lease,
but it was no longer sustainable.
But the group did not give up
without a fight, sending an open
letter to Ms Parfitt on Tuesday,
made whoever (was) controlling
the drone immediately
take it down,” she said.
“It felt really creepy that
somebody was looking into
our living room. Our conclusion
was it’s someone being
nosy or, it seems a bit drastic,
but scouting for stealing
things.”
Ms Broadhurst reported
the incident to police the following
morning after telling a
which attracted more than 100
signatures.
It received a response from
the Arts Centre yesterday, Ms
McCurdy said. However, she
said the response confirmed its
lease was terminated and it had
friend.
Lyttelton Police Station
supervisor Sergeant Franco
Lovrich said they would be
very keen to hear from anyone
with information about the
owner of the drone, or any
drones spotted at night.
It is illegal to use a drone
outside daylight hours without
special permission, or to film
a person or their private property
without their permission.
Free Theatre axed
Jane Parfitt
OUT IN THE COLD: Free Theatre Christchurch is without a
home after the Arts Centre ended its lease.
PHOTO: STUART LLOYD-HARRIS
to leave.
The two groups had been
investigating alternatives for
several months, trying to find
a solution in a partnership
arrangement.
“No agreement was reached
and therefore the lease has been
ended,” Ms Parfitt said.
Ms McCurdy said the Arts
Centre had hiked the price of
the space to $415 a day, which
was unfeasible.
She would not say what the
previous lease cost.
“We’ve been given 20 working
days to clear out our fit out,
lights, sound, curtains . . . so
we’ve got to be out by Monday.
We’ve spent almost every day
since in there clearing it out,”
she said.
The group had asked the Arts
Centre to extend that, but was
denied.
She said the group hadn’t been
given a definitive answer about
why rent is going up and why it
has to leave.
“We understand absolutely
that they’re trying to find $35
million for the restoration, but
we were bringing people in,
so we don’t understand,” Ms
McCurdy said. A replacement
tenant for The Gym has not been
found.
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in brief
Tunnel Rd crash
victim named
A woman who died in a twocar
collision on Thursday has
been named. She was Awhina
Aphen Bush-Te Hau, 31, of
Christchurch. She died at the
scene of the crash on Tunnel
Rd (State Highway 74), near the
Lyttelton Tunnel. The serious
crash unit is investigating.
Convicted killer in
court for crash
Convicted killer John Oliver
Jamieson appeared in the
district court on Monday
following a spectacular crash
while allegedly fleeing police on
June 2. He had been recorded
driving at 180km/h on State
Highway 1 before his Subaru
Forester crashed through
the Rolleston dog park fence.
Jamieson, who is facing charges
of driving at a dangerous speed,
driving while disqualified,
failing to stop, reckless driving,
careless driving and unlawful
possession of a firearm, entered
no pleas. He was remanded in
custody till July 9.
Law student
investigation
•From page 1
In February, Dr Cheer wrote a
letter on behalf of all university
law school’s in New Zealand to
Auckland law firm Russell
McVeagh over their handling of
sexual assault allegations. In it
she accused the firm of putting
clients above student victims and
misleading university authorities.
Dr Cheer called the culture,
which was tolerated at the firm,
“unacceptable.”
New Zealand Law Society
Canterbury-Westland branch
president Grant Tyrrell said he
didn’t want to interfere with the
university’s processes without
knowing the ins and outs of the
situation, when asked about it
yesterday.
“The university is entitled to
their own presumptions.”
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