Two South Island judicial buildings took out top honours for their redevelopments in last week’s Property Council’s annual awards.

The $300 million Christchurch Justice and Emergency Services Precinct received the Excellence award at the prestigious awards held at the Spark Arena in Auckland.

The Precinct, which was opened late last year by then Prime Minister Bill English, is the largest multi-agency government co-location project in New Zealand.

Located on the corner of Lichfield and Durham Streets, the development brings together all of Christchurch’s justice and emergency services in one purpose-built precinct made up of three buildings.

The 1902-built Dunedin Law Courts in Stuart Streceived a Merit award for a  $20 million project to strengthen and refurbish the building which was vacated in 2011 due to earthquake safety concerns.

The Court building is considered a historic centrepoint in Dunedin and is listed as a heritage building.

More than 475 cubic metres of concrete and 66 tonnes of reinforcing steel were used throughout the project, with the restoration of the building’s 66 leadlight windows taking a year alone.

As part of the rebuild, the courts also had modern cabling and audio-visual equipment installed in the courtrooms.

Property Council New Zealand is a not-for-profit organisation that works closely with central and local government. Their awards acknowledge quality property developments that have contributed to urban growth in both national and local economies.