Update on the replacement of QE2.

[Mark]

The Sport and Recreation Earthquake Leadership Group (SRLG) has been committed to finding solutions for displaced sports such as athletics, tennis, hockey, and the possibility of one site to serve these diverse sporting codes.

 Many of these sports lost facilities as a direct result of the earthquakes and have been seeking permanent new homes ever since.

 Christchurch City Council (CCC) staff identified land at Nga Puna Wai, south of the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral site in Curletts Rd, as their preferred option for a new sports hub after ruling out 17 other potential sites around the city.

 The site's unique shape and size were identified as key advantages. It was also reasonably central, close to transport, in a growth area and council-owned.




Geotechnical investigations have indicated that the land, despite being Technical Category 2 (TC2), is suitable for use as a sports hub. Initial discussions have been held with potential interested parties and stakeholders, including Canterbury Tennis, Athletics Canterbury, and the Canterbury Hockey Association.


Pending councillor approval, the next step would be to complete a feasibility study and draw a concept plan for the sports hub.

 According to Sport Canterbury Chief Executive Julyan Falloon: "A careful process and thorough consultation with key stakeholders has indicated that Nga Puna Wai offers the ultimate location to serve a number of sporting codes, including but not limited to hockey, tennis, rugby league, football and rugby."

 If the Nga Puna Wai location is confirmed and a track is built within the time frame suggested, Athletics Canterbury will be in a position to apply for Christchurch to host the IAAF World Youth Championships in 2017, a potential coup for the city on many levels.
http://www.sportcanterbury.org.nz/new-zealand/news-article/index.cfm/2013/08/nga-puna-wai-opportunity-overshadows-concerns/

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[Mark]

Nga Puna Wai Sports Hub gets go-ahead


Thursday 12 March 2015

Christchurch City Council will get the ball rolling on a long-awaited sports hub, after Councillors today approved the development at Nga Puna Wai.

Nga Puna Wai will combine facilities for a number of sporting disciplines – including an athletics track, hockey turfs, outdoor tennis courts and sports fields – on a 32-hectare area of Nga Puna Wai, a reserve currently used mainly for livestock grazing and public recreation in southwest Christchurch.

The decision to proceed comes after a two-month special consultative procedure with 4725 submitters and public hearings with presentations from 26 submitters, which allowed Councillors and staff to consider all aspects of the proposal before making their final decision today (12 March).

“The Council’s consultation process demonstrated widespread support across the city for a sports hub at Nga Puna Wai – about 90 per cent of submitters were in favour,” says John Filsell, Recreation and Sports Unit Manager.

“Consultation also reinforced the need to keep local communities involved and engaged, especially over traffic and ecological issues,” he says.

“It’s great news for the whole city. A number of sports organisations were displaced by the earthquakes and have been crying out for facilities ever since, and today’s decision means we can start work in earnest. Nga Puna Wai will be an efficient way of doing things, it will let codes share facilities and it will give us the infrastructure we need to host national – and international – sports events,” Mr Filsell says.

“Now that we have the go-ahead, the next step is to get phase one of the development, which will include an athletics track, underway. Other facilities will be phased in gradually.”

The Council has committed $6.7 million towards the development of the athletics track and will work with sporting groups to determine their share of any financial contributions to the hub. As the plan proposes to create the hub over 10–30 years, the development of each component can be staged as required.

For more information, please visit Nga Puna Wai Sports Hub - Projects to improve Christchurch - Christchurch City Council
 http://www.ccc.govt.nz/thecouncil/newsmedia/mediareleases/2015/201503124.aspx