Eden Park grandstand believed to leak

Govt and council asked for ongoing capital investment to ensure events go ahead

The mayor is very clear that the council is not in a financial position to be able to provide additional funding to Eden Park.

Mayoral spokesman

Eden Park is believed to have a leaky grandstand a year out from hosting the opening match of the Fifa Women’s World Cup — the biggest sporting event in New Zealand’s history.

Sources say the plastic membrane over the West Stand is leaking into the lounge facilities during bad weather and needs replacing.

The West Stand was upgraded for the 1992 Cricket World Cup with a new open deck stand incorporating lounge facilities and a players’ area at a cost of $12.5 million.

One source described the leaking stand as “wear and tear” stuff, saying other issues that needed addressing were lifts in the South Stand and technology and security with the turnstiles at the park.

Eden Park was central to New Zealand securing the month-long football tournament — one of the biggest global sporting events — in a joint bid with Australia.

Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington and Dunedin will share 29 of the 64 games with Australia.

Both New Zealand and Australia will host one semifinal. The final will be played at Stadium Australia in Sydney on August 20 next year.

The draw for the World Cup is being staged in Auckland on October 22 with a glitzy event at the Aotea Centre revealing the fixtures and opponents for the 32 teams.

Eden Park chief executive Nick Sautner declined to comment on the West Stand and whether it was leaking.

In a statement issued by the PR firm Joyce & Howse, Sautner said the waterproof membrane for all four stands was listed in a 2018 report by EY.

The report painted a bleak financial outlook and found Eden Park had no money for a $63 million maintenance plan, including $9.2m for roof, carpet, lighting, paint and plumbing at the West and North stands.

Sautner’s statement said maintenance work requires ongoing capital investment from the Government and the Auckland Council to ensure events, like next year’s football tournament, meet event delivery requirements.

Following the EY report, the Auckland Council bailed out Eden Park to the tune of $63m by consolidating bank loans and other amounts into a new $53.5m interest-bearing loan and making a $9.8m no-strings grant over three years.

An upgrade of Eden Park’s turnstiles is part of the $9.8m grant, Sautner said.

With the three-year grant coming to an end this month, the Eden Park Trust Board has gone cap in hand to the council for more grant funding of $6.28m for the coming year and beyond. This is to align with the 10-year $62.8m maintenance plan.

The funding request was down to be discussed at the crunch debate for the council’s budget this week, but was pulled.

The Weekend Herald understands there was a question over whether mayor Phil Goff had the numbers to get the grant request made an interest-free loan. In 2019 when Goff tried to make the $9.8m grant a loan he lost the vote.

A mayoral spokesman said officers were still working with the trust board to better understand its short-term funding needs.

“The mayor is very clear that the council is not in a financial position to be able to provide additional funding to Eden Park,” he said.

A spokesman for the Minister of Sport, Grant Robertson, said discussions were ongoing between the Government and venues in regards to funding for the Fifa Women’s World Cup and there would be more to say soon.

The Government gave Eden Park $1.7m in July last year to upgrade player facilities in the West and South stands, the spokesman said.

Talks of a single operator for the four stadiums, Eden Park, Mt Smart Stadium, North Harbour Stadium and Western Springs, are understood to be progressing at a high level. The talks, between the Eden Park Trust Board and the council’s events arm Ta¯taki Auckland Unlimited, are the latest attempt to streamline the current set-up and find a better model for ratepayers, sporting codes and fans.