Former Red Zone residents given sneak preview of Christchurch walkway where their homes once stood

One much-loved neighbourhood in the Garden City's Red Zone has had former residents catching up and caring for the area they forced to abandon. 

This week a handful of them had their first peek at the new riverside walkway.

Cilla Clements loves a laugh. It's her tonic when times a tough, but her biggest passion is the community. 

Her neighborhood was wiped out when 78 homes were red-stickered in the wake of the Christchurch earthquake. 

The Avon Loop, which for the longest time was bursting with life, was changed forever. 

"This whole thing of actually having a pathway, finally completing this project...is really, really important because it's the first bit of the Red Zone that we are actually going into," says Ms Clements. 

"It's our tūrangawaewae. It's where my kids grew up. For me, I still process the grief," says one local. 

It may have only been five month in the making, but for this community, it's been a nine year wait. 

In preparation for the walkway's opening, the 'river warderns' set out to replant daffodil bulbs, kept from the original plants after the earthquake. 

The plan is to link this walk with Christchurch's central city promenade, to help bring people back to the area like they once did. 

The riverside walkway opens to the public this weekend, a breath of new life for the Red Zone.