Joseph McGirr Engineer

The Trinity Congregational Church is a Category 1 heritage building and is a striking example of Gothic revival architecture. Designed by the prominent architect Benjamin Mountford, it is now the oldest remaining stone building in Christchurch. This building was severely damaged following the Canterbury Earthquake sequence and was officially signed off for demolition. In order to save this building we had to develop a structural stabilsation solution within days, meeting code and CERA requirements, and limit the structure to not extend outside the building footprint onto the adjacent roadside. Utilising both tension structure internally and inplane braced framing externally and integrating with Mountford’s remarkable double vaulted ceiling structure a very effective structural solution was developed and enacted.