Sports Hub foundations progress, fields in sight

Council contractors are kicking goals at Te Puāwaitanga – Bay of Islands Sports Hub Project with foundations for a large carpark now completed and the beginnings of four sports fields coming into sight.

When completed, the sports hub will provide facilities for a range of sports including football, rugby league, cricket, competitive gymnastics, hockey, softball and croquet.

The expansive carpark, which will hold over 300 cars as well as trailers, vans and coaches, is designed to fully accommodate competitor and spectator vehicles and remove the need for overflow parking on surrounding roads. The levelled area will next receive a base coarse layer of metal before the finishing road surface is added as the final stage, later in the year.

The layout of the first four sports fields is now visible at the 46.77-hectare site. As part of Stage 2 of construction, grass behind the carpark area has been treated ahead of removal. A layer of soil will then be trimmed from the top and stored onsite for later use for a professional turf surface to be developed by a field specialist.

Construction started last November and despite it being the wettest November on record in Northland, progress has been steady since. Work completed so far includes the installation of manholes throughout the site and approximately 500 metres of stormwater drainage laid beneath the fields and carpark areas. Work is being completed under the supervision of cultural monitors.

The site has capacity for up to seven sports fields, although funding is currently allocated for four fields and one practise field. The council has set aside $8.758 million for the $10.758 million project, with the additional $2 million being provided through the government’s COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund.

You can find the concept plans and project background on our Te Puāwaitanga – Bay of Islands Sports Hub webpage.

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Below - a base course layer of metal will be added to the carpark area before the final surface is applied later in the year.

Below - the treated grass behind the carpark shows where four sports fields will be located.