The February 2011 Christchurch earthquake destroyed the spire and the upper portion of the tower, and severely damaged the rest of the building.

[7] The area set aside for the college was found to be insufficient, and Henry Sewell suggested in June 1853 to move it to land reserved for the Christchurch Botanic Gardens.

[11][12] Most Christian churches are oriented towards the east,[13][14] and to comply with this convention, Harper lobbied to have the eastern side of Cathedral Square to be used.

[16][17] In 1858 the project was approved by the diocese[citation needed] and a preliminary design was commissioned from George Gilbert Scott, a prolific British architect known for his Gothic Revival churches and public buildings.

[2] Just before work on the foundations began, the alignment of Colombo Street through Cathedral Square was changed by introducing a curve towards the west, with the western side of the legal road having a radius of 3 chains 75 links (75 m),[18] to place the cathedral slightly further west, making its tower visible along Colombo Street from a distance.

[15] Scott's original design was for a Gothic-style cathedral, primarily constructed in oak timber to make it resistant to earthquakes.

Superintendent James FitzGerald suggested an iron or steel frame to reduce cost, but Harper rejected this as he believed some bishops refused to consecrate iron-framed churches.

[19] Continuing pressure for an all-stone church, and concerns over the lack of timber in Canterbury, led to Scott supplying alternative plans for a stone arcade and clerestory.

[2] The cornerstone was laid on 16 December 1864,[20] and by April 1865 the foundations had largely been completed,[21] but work stopped soon after due to a lack of funds.

[24] The reasons at the time had been that the bishop wanted an English architect, with Harper describing Mountfort's other buildings as lacking "taste and strength of composition".

[24] Mountfort adapted Scott's design, including: adding balconies and pinnacles to the tower; adding porches to the north and west; increasing the height of the south porch; extending the run of interior columns; and decorative details such as the font, pulpit and stained glass.

The spire reached to 63 metres (207 ft) above Cathedral Square, and public access provided for a good viewpoint over the centre of the city.

The operation and maintenance of the cathedral was costing close to NZ$1,000,000 a year, and it was decided that money from visiting tourists could be captured to meet the shortfall.

[39] The decision to add a visitor centre was controversial; some objected to the idea of operating a trade business in a church on religious grounds.

[40] The design of the new building was also a point of contention, with the Historic Places Trust threatening to block any alteration of the cathedral.

[72] She questioned the safety of the building and stated that rebuilding could cost NZ$50,000,000 more than insurance would cover and that a new cathedral would be built in its place.

[76][77] In September 2012, Bishop Matthews suggested sharing a new church with the Roman Catholic community, as their place of worship was also damaged in the quakes.

[85] Kit Miyamoto, an American-based structural engineer and expert in earthquake rebuilding, inspected the cathedral after the September 2010 quake.

[90] Earthquake recovery minister Gerry Brownlee claimed that nearby property owners wanted the cathedral demolished, but when contacted, they in fact unanimously supported restoration.

[93] She compared efforts from public interest groups getting involved in the process to "other people designing a person's damaged home".

[94] On 15 November 2012 the High Court issued an interim judgement[95] granting an application for judicial review made by the Great Christchurch Buildings Trust, challenging the lawfulness of the decision to demolish.

[102] Dean met engineers from all of the interested groups in order to draw a conclusion on the feasibility of restoring the cathedral.

They recommended broad reinstatement of the original building, with some alterations to add new church offices, choir practice rooms, visitor's centre, museum and cafe.

[105] On 9 September 2017, the Anglican synod voted with a 55% majority to reinstate the cathedral,[106][107] ending a long and acrimonious dispute about the future of the building.

Holmes Consulting has been appointed for structural engineering design, with Warren and Mahoney providing architectural services.

[113] The new plans include a museum and visitor centre, with a cafe, to the north, and an office building with parish hall to the south.

[121] The indefinite pause in restoration was referred to as "mothballing", and involved making the worksite safe, adding a temporary 4-tonne weathertight roof, removing all scaffolding and construction equipment, and pushing the perimeter fence back closer to the building.

[122] The site closure work was completed in December 2024,[119] and small visitor tour groups were allowed inside throughout the month.

[124] The site, on the corner of Hereford and Madras Streets, several blocks from the permanent location, was blessed in April 2012.

[126] In November 2012 the diocese began fund raising to pay for the NZ$5 million project, following a High Court judge indicating it may not be legal to build a temporary cathedral using its insurance payout.