$50m cut off sports centre budget
Christchurch is to get a trimmedback metro sports centre, and a business case will be put together for a roofed stadium big enough for major events.
After halting work on the metro sports centre due to a $75 million cost blowout, the Government announced on Friday that it has re-designed it with the help of the city council, and will restart the project in time to complete it in late 2021.
Greater Christchurch Regeneration Minister Megan Woods said cosmetic changes and an altered contract process had carved at least $50m from the cost. Construction could be tendered out soon, confirming the price, she said.
Money will be saved by removing some decorative features, substituting materials including replacing bluestone with concrete or tiles, reducing windows and skylights, removing an entrance canopy, downsizing the car park, and removing the childcare centre and outdoor sports area.
The main sporting features will remain, including a 50-metre 10-lane pool plus smaller pools, hydroslides, a gymnasium and fitness rooms, sports courts including nine netball courts, and fixed and retractable seating.
In November, it was revealed the $75m over-run had pushed the total cost to $321m. The Crown will not reveal how far over budget the project remains after the changes. Any extra funding required will be prioritised from existing unallocated Crown budgets.
ta¯karo will begin looking for a main contractor for the project shortly, hoping to have an agreement in place within 12 months. Earthworks are to begin in the interim, expected to start within 10 weeks.
The Government has rejected the possibility of incorporating some metro sports features into the stadium.
Woods said a fast-tracked business case for the stadium, to be done by ta¯karo, ¯ O would determine its style and size; ‘‘but we foresee a roofed stadium large enough to allow the city to host major test matches as well as entertainment events’’. The council also had the option to bring the stadium timetable forward, as part of its longterm plan, she said.
A stadium big enough for major rugby test matches would need at least 30,000 seats. The cost has been estimated at up to $500m.
The metro sports centre will go on a 7-hectare site bordered by Moorhouse, Antigua and St Asaph streets, and was to have been built by 2016. The 6ha stadium site is between Tuam, Hereford, Madras and Barbadoes streets.