Christchurch to expedite Hagley Oval upgrade plans

Christchurch City Council is set to push through plans for development at the city's Hagley Oval irrespective of the whether the two long-serving cricket clubs based there, St Albans and Riccarton, are supportive or not.

Council General Manager of Sport and Recreation, John Filsell said there was urgency in establishing a wicket capable of staging international matches with the Cricket World Cup, to be hosted by Australia and New Zealand, on the horizon in 2015.

Filsell explained "if we cannot show in Christchurch that we have a facility capable of hosting such games that opportunity will pass us by and leave cricket in the city out in the cold for goodness knows how long."

The development, likely to begin at the end of the current cricket season, is necessary as the city's former major venue, AMI Stadium, was so severely damaged in the 22nd February 2011 earthquake that demolition seems an increasingly likely option. The earthquake has also ruled out QEII Park.

Filsell said the Council wants to see the new wicket block preparation begin before winter or in early spring at the latest, stating that the ground was council property designated for cricket and that the nature of the ground was not to be changed.

Filsell said the Council expected Canterbury cricket to work with the affected clubs and report back to the Council on their plans.

He also felt that the recent Canterbury v South Africa T20 match at the ground had been a "very timely exercise", adding "overall we thought it went very well. Hagley Oval is a great setting and would be a wonderful showcase for selling Christchurch to many of our major trading partners overseas."

Plans by Canterbury cricket to have an embankment around the ground and with floodlights so they could stage World Cup games needed consultation with the public under the Hagley Park management act.

The inner western suburbs of Christchurch seem to be developing as a hub for the temporary and future leisure venues in the city.

The CBS Canterbury Arena in Addington was undamaged in the earthquakes while the city's new temporary rugby stadium, on the site of Rugby League Park in Addington, is set for completion in late March.

The Court Theatre has been staging productions at former grain silo in Addington, known as The Shed, since December.

The theatre company, which was evicted from the Arts Centre after the February earthquake, has plans to build a permanent $4.6 million theatre in the former grain store.

Rebuilding leisure facilities and planning the future of leisure in the new Christchurch will be a feature in the March/April 2012 issue of Australasian Leisure Management.