Charles Luney

Bronze bust of Charles Luney

Charles Seymour "Chas" Luney (28 June 1905 – 18 November 2006) was a builder and company director. He is notable for the many important buildings that his company constructed in Christchurch, of which his favourite was Christchurch Town Hall. His professional career spanned 80 years.

Early life

Luney was born in Lyttelton. His father was a carpenter who had immigrated from Canada. The family struggled financially and Luney attended several primary schools, including one in Canada for one year. He attended Christchurch Boys' High School for two years and was then apprenticed as a joiner.^[1]

Two events in his early life shaped Luney. He was unjustly partly held responsible for the death of his younger brother, and it made him determined to care for his family. Missing Scout camp because his father could not afford the ten shillings made him value money and realise that it only came from effort. He saved carefully and persistently all his life and he hated unnecessary wastage.^[1]

Family

Luney met his wife to be in 1923 at the Christchurch Show. He employed her as office secretary and office manager and one of his intentions with that was to keep other men away from her. They married in 1930 and had four daughters.^[1]

Professional career

Luney founded his own firm, C S Luney Ltd, in 1926. In the early years the company's projects were mainly garages for the growing number of car owners in Christchurch. In 1930 the firm completed its first major project, the Radiant Hall (now known as the Repertory Theatre, a Category II heritage building^[2]), which had been financed by Thomas Edmonds, the manufacturer of Edmonds Baking Powder.^[3][4]

The firm continued to grow and went on to build a number of prominent Christchurch buildings, many designed by Warren and Mahoney. Luney was awarded the Queen's Service Medal in 1982 and later made a member of the New Zealand Order of Merit.^[3] Luney was still supervising construction work in his 90s. Miles Warren said of him that he was a "pressure-wave of energy" and he called him "one of the great characters of Christchurch".^[1]

His favourite project was the Christchurch Town Hall, which was built between 1969 and 1972. For the construction of the Westpac Centre in Addington, he used "every piece of scaffolding available in the South Island", according to his biographer John Coley.^[1]

Death and commemoration

Luney died on 18 November 2006, aged 101. His wife, who had died before him in 2001, had said of him that he was he "too busy to grow old". He was survived by their four daughters, twelve grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.^[1] During his lifetime Luney was chosen to be included in the Twelve Local Heroes sculpture on Worcester Boulevard in front of the Christchurch Arts Centre.^[5]

Notable buildings

Luney's firm has constructed the following notable buildings in Christchurch:^[3]

• Christchurch City Libraries
• Christchurch Town Hall
• Christchurch Hospital
• Princess Margaret Hospital
• CBS Canterbury Arena

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Crean, Mike (25 November 2006). "Builder's skill legacy to city". The Press: p. D19. 
2. ^ "Repertory Theatre". Register of Historic Places. New Zealand Historic Places Trust. http://www.historic.org.nz/TheRegister/RegisterSearch/RegisterResults.aspx?RID=1919&m=advanced. 
3. ^ ^{a b c} "Charles Seymour Luney (Chas), QSO, CNZM 1905–2006". Christchurch City Libraries. http://christchurchcitylibraries.com/Business/People/L/LuneyCharles/. Retrieved 5 June 2011. 
4. ^ "Healthy Living in Christchurch: Thomas Edmonds and Radiant Health". Christchurch City Libraries. http://christchurchcitylibraries.com/Heritage/EarlyChristchurch/ThomasEdmondsAndRadiantHealth/. Retrieved 5 June 2011. 
5. ^ Whyte, Mark (2009). Twelve Local Heroes : a celebration : set of bronze busts commissioned by the Local Heroes Trust. Christchurch: Christchurch Art Gallery / Te Puna o Waiwhetu,. ISBN 9780473148782. 

Persondata
Name	Luney, Charles
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	28 June 1905
Place of birth	Lyttelton
Date of death	18 November 2006
Place of death