Lancaster Park lives on
Lancaster Park’s boilers now run the hot pools in Franz Josef, Te Puke Sports Club has some of its seats and a lifesaving club some of the tables.
More than 53 community, sport and other groups own items recovered from the now demolished stadium.
The demolition, one of New Zealand’s largest, resulted in just 1.8 per cent of the entire stadium ending up at landfill. The rest of the complex was recycled, reused and sold, helping to offset the cost of the demolition.
Christchurch City Council originally estimated the work would cost $20m, but that was revised down to $12 million and the final cost was just over $9m.
More than 18,000 of the stadium’s 32,000 seats were sold to 9000 people or groups, another 14,000 seats were recycled for plastics, lead and metal.
More than 3000 tonnes of metals were recycled. Steel scrap from the roof netted the council $300,000.
About 36,000 tonnes of gravel from the Tui Stand was re-used at Nga¯ Puna Wai sports hub in Wigram and 58,900 tonnes of concrete went to a private development in Flaxton, on the outskirts of Rangiora.
More than 100 items of cricket, tennis, rugby and football memorabilia were recovered and rehomed.
Council head of parks Andrew Rutledge said, by managing the demolition itself, the council had managed to make significant savings. The $3m left over from the demolition would be put towards preparing the site so it can be redeveloped into a park.
However, the site needs to be made safe and level first, because the stadium’s foundations are still on site.
Rutledge said the council planned to seek tenders for the remediation work to finish the site clean-up and complete the earthworks to enable the park to be built.
That work would begin in spring. Once the site has been levelled, a grass platform will be laid to allow three sports fields, used by rugby, football and cricket, to be created. Funding for future development of a playground and other community facilities will be considered next year as part of the council’s 10-year budget.