Less than a week ago, New Brighton's newest community space was an unkempt demolition zone.

A team of volunteers led by Lincoln University landscape architecture students invested up to 400 hours' labour over three days to transform a former Oram Ave cinema site into a park.

It was a project for the The Concert, where volunteers who commit four hours of their time received a ticket to a free concert at AMI Stadium on November 3.

Organiser Emma Taylor, who came up with the concept, said the project provided the students practical experience while beautifying the earthquake-hit suburb.

Greening the Rubble, a charitable trust creating temporary public parks and gardens on demolished building sites, arranged the space, which it had been caretaker of. Many materials for the project were donated.

About 60 students lent a hand, with many giving more than the minimum four hours to earn a ticket to The Concert.

The students' lecturer, Neil Challenger, said New Brighton had been hit hard by the quakes.

"This is a place that deserves a helping hand," he said.

Concrete remnants of the demolished building had been incorporated into the design.

"We aren't getting rid of that layer of history. Keeping this framework not only saves a lot of money and effort, but it also becomes part of the story," Challenger said.

Taylor said it was important to show Lincoln students were as much part of the quake recovery as their Canterbury counterparts.

"We're actually getting people who are enthusiastic about the project and the end product as well, which is important."

To volunteer, visit theconcert.co.nz. For more on Greening the Rubble, visit greeningtherubble.org.nz.

- © Fairfax NZ News

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