CRL connection Feb 2017

CRL Connection

Grasshopper - a Thai cuisine showstopper If you’re looking for a stylish yet relaxed venue to enjoy a delicious Thai meal or host a catered business meeting, Albert Street’s Grasshopper restaurant has some great options.

Located at the front of the Stamford Hotel, Grasshopper offers a daily lunch special for $12.50.

Enjoy everything from green curry fried rice with chicken, to grilled pork satay and tender braised beef in soya sauce on rice. You can sit in the restaurant’s spacious and elegant main dining area or choose an intimate booth for two.

With two separate corporate meeting and dining rooms, Grasshopper is also popular for business lunches. The Lotus room seats 16, while the Elephant room can accommodate up to 30 people. The restaurant can accommodate up to 200 people in total.

After work, you can join your friends and colleagues for the $25 Happy Hour and Early Bird Diners’ special, which includes dinner and a drink. On Saturdays, customers can enjoy live jazz between 7.30 and 9.30pm.

Owner/manager Bo Manoonpong (who founded the Mai Thai Restaurant in Victoria Street 28 years ago) says

15 February 2017

Left to right: party in main dining area, head chef Somkid Koonkaew & owner Bo Manoonpong, Somkid’s signature dish Pad Krapao Gai.

her goal is to delight customers with delicious Thai cuisine in beautiful surroundings.

“We have lovely private rooms as well as a spacious main dining area with high ceilings, so we can be very flexible when catering to our customers’ needs,” Bo says.

“Our food is also very delicious and our staff are committed to giving the very best service.”

Head chef Somkid Koonkaew has been with Grasshopper since its opening in 2007, coming from Bangkok’s five-star Marriott Hotel. His signature dish is Pad Krapao Gai, a mouth-watering dish of chopped chicken with garlic, chilli and basil leaf.

Japanese

もし、 このファクトシートを理解する必要があれば、下記のメール経由で我々にご連絡ください。

Russian

Если Вам необходима помощь в разъяснении содержимого в данном бюллетене, просим адресовать Ваши вопросы на нижеуказанную электронную почту.

Simplified Chinese 如果您对这简报有任何疑问请以下的邮箱联系我们

Korean

본 자료표에 관한 더 많은 정보를 원하시면 하단의 이메일 주소로 연락 주시기 바랍니다.

Arabic ‫ةرشنلا اذه مهف يف ةدعاسم ىلإ ةجاحب تنك اذإ‬، ‫هاندأ ينورتكلإلا ديربلا ناونع ربع انب لاصتالا ىجري‬.

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Largest CRL tender process starts

The future Aotea Station The largest component of the City Rail Link (CRL) project – the construction of the tunnels and new stations - took a major step forward this month with the release of its first tender documents to the industry.

There will be two new stations as part of the build of the underground rail line linking Britomart with the existing western line near Mt Eden. The new stations will be near Aotea Square with entrances at Wellesley and Victoria Streets and a station in Mercury Lane, just off Karangahape Road. The present Mount Eden train station will be extended and redeveloped.

Tender documents sent out for the tunnel and station works involve: • Aotea Station: Cut and cover construction of a 15m-deep, 300m-long underground station and plant room box, including platforms, lifts and escalators to street level, plant rooms housing

station and tunnel equipment, full station fitout and entrances at either end at Victoria and Wellesley Streets.

• Karangahape Road Station: Mined construction of a 32m-deep underground station, including platform tubes and 150m-long platforms, lifts and inclined escalator to street level, plant rooms housing station and tunnel equipment within two shafts, full station fit-out, entrance at

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Mercury Lane and provision for a future entrance at Beresford Square. • Tunnels: Twin-bored tunnel construction between the Mt Eden station and the southern end of Aotea Station. • The provision of maintenance services for the new stations.

These developments show the considerable progress being made. As well as the tenders rolling

out for future construction, current works are well underway. The 2m-wide tunnel boring machine simultaneously excavating and installing a new stormwater pipe under Albert Street has finished the first leg of its journey. The nine-storey-high piling rig working in Albert Street has already dug more than half of the 376 piles required.

What will be a highly efficient and reliable transport choice for Auckland is now visibly taking shape!

Upcoming Albert Street traffic changes There are a lot of CRL preparation works occurring on Albert Street at present. A piling rig is in operation to support the ground before we start work on the cut and cover tunnels. Further south, the project is investigating the exact locations of various underground utility services prior to prior to starting work on the future mid-town station.

As a result, various alterations need to be made to traffic routes on Albert Street and its side streets, to accommodate the piling and utility works in particular. Pedestrian access is being maintained at all times, so people can continue to support their local businesses.

Next week, northbound traffic on Albert Street will be diverted left at Swanson Street and will continue north along Federal Street. This diversion is expected to be in place until the end of March as piling works continue.

Wyndham Street West will re-open to traffic as operations move to the opposite side of the street.

The Albert Street slip lane to Durham Street will be closed until mid to late March. During this time, access to Durham Street will be via Queen Street only.

Utility services under Albert Street For southbound traffic on Albert Street heading to Mills Lane, there are only left-turn movements in and out. To access Mills Lane or the businesses on the lower eastern side of Albert Street (such as Quay West, Stamford Hotel, CityMed and Commonwealth Vault), traffic will need to travel down Queen Street, turn left into Customs Street and then left into Albert Street.

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Britomart’s CPO interior being dismantled

The new temporary Britomart Station entrances on Commerce, Tyler and Galway Streets are now open and there is no longer access to the station from Lower Queen Street because the Chief Post Office (CPO) building is closed until 2019 for construction of the CRL tunnels.

preparation for the tunnelling work, with contractors removing all furniture, handrails, kiosks, timber flooring, floor and wall tiles, escalators and toilets.

Special care is being taken to protect the CPO’s heritage features, such as the ceiling, columns and arched windows.

The CPO interior is currently being dismantled in

Valerie completes first half of her journey Valerie - the CRL tunnel-boring machine named after New Zealand’s world champion shotputter Valerie Adams is due to begin the second half of her underground journey this week, to simultaneously excavate and install a new stormwater pipe under Albert Street.

Valerie has completed her first 290 metres of tunnelling and pipe-jacking work between Victoria and Swanson Streets and is now about to begin the final 200-metre stretch towards Wellesley Street.

She is expected to arrive at the Wellesley reception shaft in April.

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