Cardboard structure may replace earthquake-damaged cathedral in New Zealand

Christchurch, New Zealand, August 2 (ENInews)--New Zealand's second biggest city
could have a temporary Anglican cathedral as soon as February--but the 700-seat
structure will be made of recyclable cardboard. It would replace ChristChurch
Cathedral, which was destroyed in the 22 February earthquake that killed 181
people.

The $4 million portable A-frame building is to be created primarily out of
cardboard tubes, with shipping containers as the foundation. Architecture
students will assist in its three-month construction. A $50,000 feasibility
study is currently being undertaken, which could include an extension of planned
capacity to 1000 at additional cost.

A site has yet to be found, but the dean of ChristChurch Cathedral, Peter Beck,
said it would be in the inner city, "offering a sign of hope and confidence and
a thing of beauty in the midst of all the desolation."