Auckland's historic Santa has started his rise from the ashes.
Construction workers yesterday morning began the mammoth job of erecting the 18m, five-tonne Father Christmas that has been a much-loved feature in central Auckland since the 1960s.
The work comes just a month after Auckland's downtown business association Heart of the City said it could no longer afford to finance Santa's presence in the CBD.
But he earned a reprieve following contributions from Mansons TLCM and Skycity.
Work will continue today, and the giant Christmas display is set to be fully installed by next weekend.
