March target for repairs to Event Centre seating
The Gore District Council may have to take out a loan to fix the bleachers at the MLT Event Centre
Chief executive Steve Parry said the council was aiming to have structural issues with the concrete bleacher seating area repaired in time for the next netball season.
‘‘We’re aiming for March. We need to get it tendered and get it done.’’
The seating area was closed in August after cracks were found in concrete supporting walls.
A structural engineer from WSP Opus carried out an assessment and a report from infrastructure general manager Ramesh Sharma was tabled at a council meeting on September 18.
The report says there is no risk as long as there’s no weight on the tiered seating, and the engineer has recommended a steel frame support be installed in the lobby area under the seating area to support the bleacher, and a frame installed in the female changing rooms.
The council also recommended a full assessment of the building be carried out because the structural engineer engaged for the project was Invercargill engineer Tony Major, who also worked on the original Stadium Southland, which collapsed in a snow storm in 2010.
That assessment will be completed this month.
Major, who was the registered consulting engineer on the project, told Stuff in August he believed the damage was cosmetic and could be chipped away and plastered over.
‘‘I’d be concerned if there were a problem but in my opinion there is not.’’
So far the bleacher assessment has cost $5600 plus GST and the assessment of the stadium will cost $29,000 plus GST. The cost of
‘‘I’d be concerned if there were a problem but in my opinion there is not.’’ Tony Major, engineer
repairs is not yet known.
The report says this work is unbudgeted and the only longterm funding solution is a loan.
The council’s insurance broker has been notified and the council holds a material damage policy on the MLT Event Centre.
‘‘However, these types of policies do not cover gradual damage as has occurred in this situation. Our broker is examining the policy further to see if a claim could be made, although this is unlikely,’’ the report says.