New $5.5m stadium for Waitomo
A four-year project to create a new sub-regional sports stadium for Waitomo is only a few months away from signoff, its co-ordinator says.
North King Country Indoor Sports and Recreational Centre project co-ordinator Bruce Maunsell said the $5.5 million centre, to be built on the grounds of Te Kuiti High School, is planned to meet the needs of the Waitomo, Otorohanga and Ruapehu region for the next 50 years.
‘‘We are just about to sign off the concept plans to allow for accurate costings to be calculated.
‘‘The Project Game-On Trust has been formed as an entity that will own and operate the facility,’’ he said.
‘‘Our timeline is now four months to detailed planning, and then out to tenders.’’
Funding for the project has been a community and regional effort. Some funds have come from Te Kuiti High School, while the Waitomo District Council agreed in principle to cover about 25 per cent of the cost, and Trust Waikato offered $750,000.
‘‘We are more than halfway towards our funding goal and we have other community and private funders interested,’’ Maunsell said.
‘‘Once we sign off the footprint, we can work out what will be our structural requirements and engage a contractor.’’
The contractor was likely to be Christchurch-based Apollo Projects, he said.
The 3000-square-metre stadium will include two full-size basketball courts, two sets of changing rooms, a large multipurpose room and a community fitness centre, which will be privately run.
Use of the stadium is expected to be split about 60/40 between the community and Te Kuiti High School.
School principal Bruce Stephens said the facility would replace an old gymnasium that was also built as a community project 48 years ago.
‘‘It was built in a different age with different views of sport. It didn’t have a full basketball court.
‘‘We have a strong basketball team and what the new stadium will enable us to do is host home games. At the moment we have to travel for all our sports, often a two-hour trip for a one-hour game,’’ he said.
‘‘We have good community support in basketball and the new stadium will give us the opportunity to grow the sport.’’
The stadium would have seating for about 300 spectators on bleachers and an independent entrance will be created from George St, which would allow public access without the need to come through the school grounds.
It will arrive in good time for the school, which was experiencing roll growth of 8 per cent to 10 per cent this year, Stephens said.
Waitomo mayor Brian Hanna said the stadium was an opportunity to build something to suit the needs of the community.
‘‘It was too good an opportunity to turn down and we can get 50 per cent of the funds involved from outside the area. The process hasn’t been rushed.
‘‘As a council we have offered to put funding into the stadium and we will be going to public consultation as part of our LTP [longterm plan].’’