Long battle over demolished building site earmarked for Christchurch stadium

Thursday, 20 February 2020

Karen Selway lost her sister and a building in the Christchurch earthquake, but her woes continue nine years on.

Nine years after the earthquake killed her sister and destroyed her historic workspace, Karen Selway is still battling.

Fighting for accountability over her sister's death alongside 114 others. Fighting with the Crown over the still vacant plot where her building once stood.

When the earthquake hit at 12.51pm on February 22, 2011, Selway was at a meeting near the airport. She initially tried to get back to town, but the roads were jammed. Her market research business, Opinions Market Research Limited, was based in the brick building she owned on the corner of Madras and Lichfield streets.

Karen Selway remains in dispute over the value of the land where her heritage building once stood.

A few blocks away, her sister Susan was working in the Canterbury Television building. The clinical psychologist had been working in the CTV building a matter of weeks and planned to leave because she did not feel safe in it. She died when the building collapsed and caught fire.

**READ MORE:

Susan Selway, a clinical psychologist, was among the 115 who died in the CTV collapse in Christchurch in February 2011. (composite image)

* CTV site reopens as peaceful shared space, seven years after 115 died in building collapse

* CTV families vow to 'keep fighting' following police meeting over criminal charges

Opinions Market Research Limited was in a heritage building on the corner of Madras and Lichfield streets before it was destroyed in the earthquakes.

* Susan Selway a rock for police and family

* Christchurch quake survivors' lives irrevocably changed**

Karen Selway at the CTV site, where her sister, Susan, died in the 2011 earthquake.

'My sister and I were very close. As soon as it stopped shaking, I knew something terrible had happened,' Karen Selway said.

Dr Maan Alkaisi, whose wife was killed in the CTV building collapse in 2011, has campaigned for accountability over the engineering of the building. He spoke to media before attending an earlier court hearing. (File video)

The destruction of her special building only added to the grief.

Time living in England gave her an appreciation for the value of older historic buildings. Her building, known as Wilburn Antiques, was a 'work of art, the way it was built and the material used meant it had a unique soul'.

'It was not just a functional space but it had a unique sense of place about it.'

She had 70 employees and rented out the extra space; it was a hub of productive and inspired activity.

When the earthquake hit, no staff were hurt, but the building suffered significant damage. Officials ordered it should be demolished.

'It was like one minute we were working in the space and next minute, it was gone,' she said.

Although she would have liked to build a replica, the land being designated for the city's new stadium threw 'a spanner in the works'.

The Government's valuation of her land was lower than what Selway's experts found. This discrepancy has resulted in a deadlock.

She discussed doing a land swap with the Crown so she could rebuild her business, but there was no land available.

Selway eventually cash settled with her insurer for her building, but negotiations with the Crown over the land continue.

She said a lot of people had been in a similar situation to her, but had 'given in and accepted what the Crown had to offer'.

Selway said she was asking for the market value of her property. Meanwhile, the loss of income from the building had been significant. Rubble left by the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (Cera) was still a blight on the site – preventing her from using it for another purpose, she said.

Her 25 years of running a business had given her the skills to keep negotiating, though she admits it gets exhausting.

'It is just a process I've got to get through and resolve. It's about being more mechanical than emotional.'

Despite everything that had happened, she said she felt lucky and there were many good things in her life.

Selway has since relocated her business to Merivale and recently bought the house next door with plans to open a wellbeing centre in Susan's honour. It had a lovely garden and was a tranquil space, she said.

She continues to campaign for accountability of those involved in the construction of the CTV building. She wants 'practices in the building industry to change in order to make New Zealand safe for innocent people'.

'It has all been a big journey. Life is full of ups and downs, some not quite what I would have wanted, but I suppose it is all part of life's rich tapestry.'

'I'm going to make the most of what we have, so Susan's loss has not been in vain.'

She plans to go sailing on Saturday, the anniversary of her sister's death.