The Equestrian Hotel in Hornby before demolition began. Property owner Tower Rail Precinct Ltd is an offshoot of Kirk Roberts Consulting – which was involved in the development of the Sudima Hotel on the Kaikōura waterfront. Hornby’s commercial area has already been expanding fast in response to population growth in Christchurch’s western suburbs and satellite towns including Rolleston and Lincoln. Existing shopping centres include The Hub Hornby with close to 80 tenants, outlet mall Dress-Smart, Hornby Mega Centre and Hornby Green which both house bulk retail stores. Major retailers with stores in Hornby include The Warehouse, Harvey Norman, Mitre 10 Mega, Farmers, Countdown, Pak’n Save, Briscoes and Rebel Sport.