A high-powered delegation to Christchurch's American sister city, Seattle, will leave this week.
Christchurch's Mayor, Garry Moore, will lead the delegation whose members will include local government people, business
representatives and educators. His first port of call will be San Francisco for talks with Paul Hawkin, author of
Natural Capitalism and there he will have talks on new business opportunities.
Then he will go to Seattle, one of Christchurch's sister cities. There the delegation will have discussions on
hi-technology, education, the arts and crafts and some delegation members will look at central-city redevelopment which
the Mayor says the city "has done really well."
The Mayor will also meet Seattle's Mayor, Paul Schell, and business and educational people, and the sister city
officials. He will then drive to Vancouver for more discussions on central-city revival and then to Portland for similar
studies and discussions. "I believe this city has done amazing things in its city planning and has engaged its residents
in this," Mr Moore says.
He will be away a week. Other members of the delegation will go on to Shannon in Ireland for talks with the city's
development corporation on economic development. Some will visit Glasgow to view its recent central-city developments.
The visits to Shannon and Glasgow will follow the path taken by Mr Moore earlier this year. The Christchurch City
Council's chairman of the City Services Committee, Cr. Denis O'Rourke, will go to France to study an air-driven car that
has been invented by a Renault Formula 1 motor-racing mechanic. "I hope to see several of the cars in Christchurch," Mr
Moore says. Cr. O'Rourke will then travel to the Netherlands to study cycling initiatives.
The party going to Seattle will also include the Council's chief executive, Mike Richardson, the Vice-Chancellor of the
University of Canterbury, Professor Daryl Le Grew, the Assistant Vice-Chancellor (International), Professor John Raine,
and the principal of the Christchurch College of Education, Dr Ian Hall.
Tim Nicholls, chairman of the Christchurch-Seattle Sister City Committee, will go, too, along with the chief executive
of the Recovered Materials Foundation, Graeme King, the chief executive of the Canterbury Development Corporation, Chris
Pickrill, and eight business people.
The New Zealand Consul General based in Los Angeles, Darryl Dunn, will join the delegation in Seattle.
Last year a delegation from Christchurch, made up of sister city and business people, went to Seattle and returned
having determined that the American city was particularly interested in hi-tech and education matters.
This has been reflected in this week-long visit. The link between the two cities was formed in 1981.
Further information: Larry Podmore, Technical Development Adviser, Canterbury Development Corporation: 353 6863.
Sam Fisher Corporate Communication Co-ordinator Christchurch City Council 03 371-1762 025 229 3552