People power key for Christchurch - Sutton

Cera chief executive Roger Sutton says the positive reaction to his appointment creates pressure to perform. Photo / Getty Images

The newly appointed chief of Christchurch's recovery effort says as long as there is positive energy in the city, it will advance.

Roger Sutton, 46, was named chief executive of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (Cera) last week and will leave his current role as head of Christchurch lines company Orion, where he has worked since 1991, to take on the job.

Mr Sutton gained nationwide attention after his constant and frank media appearances in the aftermath of the September and February earthquakes.

Since his appointment last week, there has been an overwhelming positive reaction from the public, and Mr Sutton told NZPA this did put some pressure on him to perform.

But it was reassuring that people were reacting positively and it meant they had the energy and motivation to rebuild and move forward, he said.

"I am relaxed about the job because of that."

Cera is the agency established by the Government to lead recovery work following the September and February earthquakes. Among its roles and responsibilities will be co-ordination, planning and governance of the recovery effort.

His first reaction to his appointment was one of excitement, though he acknowledged it was an "enormous job" to take on.

Mr Sutton's short-term priorities centre around land issues and finding certainty for home owners as soon as possible.

"In the long-term we need to build a city that people who have left will want to come back to and we need to find energy and vibrancy and a place where people feel safe and secure as well."

Mr Sutton lived in Gisborne and Hamilton before making Christchurch his home. He lives here with wife, former television journalist Jo Malcolm, and their three children.

It was the physical nature of Christchurch that had kept him and his family living here, he said.

"There was a day after the February earthquake when I went running in Hagley Park and thought even though so much of our city has gone, we at least still have the park."

He was married in the now-ruined Christchurch Cathedral and said he felt "strange" every time he saw it.

He will reportedly earn about $500,000 in his new job - less than his current job of around $700,000 - but said the decision to take a paycut from his Orion salary was an easy one.

"I was offered the job at a price and I took it because I believe in it. I wanted the job and I am ready for the challenge."

Mr Sutton finishes at Orion at the end of this month and will begin his job at Cera on June 13.

- NZPA