New Regent Street, Christchurch

New Regent Street is a pedestrian mall lined with Spanish Mission style shop houses with shaped gables, medallions, tiled window hoods, barley-twist columns and roofed arcades. The houses alternate in light pastel colors of yellow, pale blue and green. The effect is reminiscent of southern California or Granada.

The street was built in the late 1930s with 40 shops. Developing small shops as a compound or complex was an advanced idea. Some say it was a precursor to the modern shopping mall of today.

The original name proposed was Little High Street, referencing High Street south of the city center. The builders suggested Regent Street, as with Regent Street in London. There was a Regent street already in Sydenham, a suburb of Christchurch, so everyone went with New Regent Street. All the buildings are listed as Category I heritage sites.

The street was pedestrianized in 1994 in anticipation of the coming of the Christchurch heritage pram (electric trolly). The pram began operating in the street in 1995. The street offers bars, cafes, waffle houses, jewelers, dance wear boutiques and gelato stores.

The 2011 earthquake caused damage to some of the buildings on the New Regent Street, but most of the damages have been repaired. The street is once again a popular place to go for shopping, dining and people watching.