An 18-hole mini golf course featuring local landmarks is one of several projects to enhance EA Networks Centre next year. Ashburton’s stadium and aquatic facility will also see major upgrades in January, including pool maintenance, entrance and car park improvements, and internal reconfigurations.
Ashburton is teeing up a one-of-a-kind mini golf course that celebrates the district’s unique character.
But it has required a budget boost.
The Ashburton District Council voted on Wednesday to use up to $500,000 from the Reserves Contributions Reserve to build a terraced 18-hole mini golf course at the EA Networks Centre next year.
The council had earmarked $400,000 for the project during the long-term plan deliberations.
The course will be district-themed, with holes featuring the Rakaia Salmon, Ashburton’s clocktower or a pivot irrigator, and will be the only public course in the district.
As it is using reserve funds, there is no rates impact for its construction, but there will be in the future for maintenance costs.
Once it’s built, the public can bring their own ball and putter or rent them from the EA Networks Centre but there could also be a booking system to use the course Mosley said.
People and facilities group manager Sarah Mosley said the budget increase was proposed to ensure the course was built to a high standard.
The increase was about “not wanting to skimp on something that longer term is not advantageous to the asset itself or the community.
“One hit and do it once”
Councillor Phill Hooper said that while he was disappointed the budget had gone up, he had played both good and bad mini-golf courses, and “the good ones you go back to”.
If it’s done right it can become a real destination and a boost to the EA Networks Centre he said.
Councillor Ricard Wilson was not happy with the budget increase and voted against the motion.
“We can’t just have budgets being greater than what we have looked at.”
With the councillors deciding on the 18-hole terraced option, the project moves into detailed design, before construction drawings, procurement and commencement of the build which is estimated to take 12-14 weeks.
Next to the mini-golf will be a new sand court.
The $30,000 project was scheduled to be completed by the end of June this year but was carried over into the 2024/25 financial year because contractors couldn’t source the appropriate beach-soft sand.
The two out-door projects will be welcome additions to the EA Networks Centre which celebrates its 10th anniversary next year.
In the meantime, Ashburton’s stadium and aquatic facility will undergo some big projects in January.
Mosley said the planned work gives effect to the $580,000 budgeted in the long-term plan which were both topics of discussion with the community earlier this year.
Pool maintenance
The aquatic centre will shut down for maintenance from January 3 until February 2.
“This maintenance closure is the longest we have done since opening the facility,” Mosley said.
“Given the type of work that is being performed, this time the whole aquatic area is required to be closed, however, the next year’s maintenance tasks should be able to be performed in a shorter period or without a full aquatic area closure.”
The Hampstead Pool will be open to the public during this period, with lifeguards on duty from 1-6pm on warm weather days.
“While visitors will see construction work in the area, the gym and stadium remain accessible in January.”
Entrance and car park
The only entrance, off River Terrace/State Highway 77, will be widened and the carpark area improved with an overall project budget of $155,000, but staff expect savings to exist, Mosley said.
Work to widen the entrance to create left and right exit turning bays will start on January 6, as well as additional landscaping, security, street lighting, and speed bump improvement work.
A specimen tree will be removed for the driveway widening at the base, with a replacement planned for planting next winter.
Two evergreen trees will also be removed near the start of the entranceway.
Reconfiguration
Internal modifications will be carried out to make better use of space inside the facility – including creating a new multi-purpose space.
The overall project budget is $325,000, with Bradfords and several other contractors carrying out the work from early January.
“Works within the café and new Sports House have been prioritised for completion within January, whereas the 100 square metre multipurpose studio space is expected to be completed by the end of February.”
The far end of the café and the current walkway directly to the pools will become the replacement staff room.
Scoreboards
The four electronic scoreboards in the stadium will replaced early next year.
They were due to be replaced in the next financial year, but the council decided to bring the work forward after the old scoreboards started to malfunction.
There was a $100,000 budget for the new scoreboards, but they will be replaced for around $74,000.
“They have been ordered, we hope that they will be installed late January/early February,” Mosley said.
Installation should take about 3-5 days she said.
By Jonathan Leask
