Thursday 20 August 2015

Progress continues on new Eastern Recreation and Sport Centre

Christchurch City Council has appointed a project team to begin the design process for the new Eastern Recreation and Sport Centre to be built on QEII Park.

Warren and Mahoney, along with sub consultants Powell Fenwick Consultants, Holmes Consulting Group, Tonkin & Taylor, Acoustic Engineering Services, Resource Management Group, Traffic Design Group and Boffa Miskell are the multidisciplinary team chosen to progress the concept design. This is the first phase of the design process and is expected to be completed in March next year.

Collectively, this team brings a wealth of experience to the project. They have recently worked on a number of other pool developments including Dudley Park Aquatic Centre in Rangiora, Selwyn Aquatic Centre in Rolleston, Graham Condon Recreation and Sport Centre in Papanui, the Hanmer Springs Thermal Pools and Spa redevelopment and the EA Networks Centre in Ashburton.

Council Major Facilities Unit Manager Alistair McGuffie says this marks another major milestone in the development of the new facility. "We're pleased to have a project team on board that has worked on a number of well-known aquatic centres across Canterbury. This is an important project for the east so we'll be making sure that the concept design the team will be developing over the coming months reflects the needs of residents."

The Council agreed in June that the Burwood / Pegasus Community Board should have sign-off on each part of the concept design for the new Eastern Recreation and Sport Centre, on behalf of the community. It agreed the team working on the design of the facility should engage with the community board to ensure that the views of the wider community are incorporated into the concept design.

The recently appointed team will meet the Burwood / Pegasus Community Board on 7 September to begin discussions around the design brief for the facility. They will continue to meet regularly with the community board as the project progresses.

Features proposed for the facility include a 25 metre lane pool, hydroslides and water toys, a toddlers’ pool area, outdoor/BBQ areas, a fitness centre, a group exercise studio and a café.

A total of $30.5 million has been set aside for the rebuild of the facility. The Christchurch Earthquake Appeal Trust has also given $6.5 million for water attractions at the facility.

Construction of the new recreation and sport centre is expected to begin in late 2016. The facility is expected to open in 2018.

As well as the development of the new recreation and sport centre, the Council is continuing to work with the Ministry of Education over the co-location of Avonside Girls' and Shirley Boys' High Schools on the QEII Park site.

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