Kerre Woodham: What is our obsession with shiny new stadia?

What is this mania for the building of stadia when this country has so many already and very, very few of them are economic assets? The decision over whether to upgrade Eden Park in Auckland or to build a brand spanking new stadium on the waterfront is such an old debate. And before I go on, I will say I've been a guest of Eden Park, but it does take more to buy my opinion than a very nice lamb chop and a glass of non-alcoholic rosé, I promise you. 

The contest for Auckland's main stadium yesterday ended with neither Eden Park nor Te Tōangaroa proving feasible without public funding. Eden Park's upgrade is technically feasible but requires $110 million from the Government. Te Tōangaroa’s proposal lacks technical and commercial feasibility. So right there I'd say, “well, I'm gonna stop you there” if I was a councillor. If it lacks technical and commercial feasibility, wouldn't we go, “well, thanks very much, bit of a waste of our time, ka kite anō” to the people behind it? Anyway, they plan to progress land acquisition over 12 months.   

Now, most of you will be familiar with Eden Park, even if you're from around the country. Te Tōangaroa is more ambitious, includes a 50,000 seat stadium —which is the capacity of Eden Park— that can be scaled down to 20,000 capacity for smaller events. It’s the centrepiece for the redevelopment of Quay Park with up to four hotels, hospitality, scope for 2000 apartments, plus commercial offices.   

Different parties have been trying to build a waterfront stadium for years now. You'll remember Trevor Mallard had a plan to build a stadium in time for the 2011 Rugby World Cup, and that came to naught. Another proposal in 2018 was floated and came crashing down to earth. Developers would build a shiny new waterfront stadium, in exchange, they'd get the land at Eden Park, plus the ability to build apartments on the waterfront land. There's always something in it for the people behind the developments. Of course, there is, otherwise, why would they do what they do? And it ends up being chumps like you and me who pay for it. We have stadia. We have stadia up the Yin Yang, all over the country, all over Auckland that are underutilized and uneconomic.  

As the chief executive of the 2011 Rugby World Cup, Martin Snedden told Mike Hosking this morning we need to get over ourselves and consolidate into just one stadium.   

“It's time people really got collaborative, and I know, you know, you may not agree with me here, but the Warriors, Auckland FC, they should be incorporated into the program at Eden Park, so that, you know, that venue is... This is what's happened, you know, places around the world is the multi-use of one venue.  

"Look at what happened at Eden Park over the weekend, where on Friday they had White Ferns and Black Caps internationals played there, Saturday it was the Crusaders and the Blues, and Monday it was the All Whites qualifying for the World Cup. That's the right use of the stadia, and that's what we need to move towards. We don't need to keep propping up other stadia that are just not fit for purpose, let's just concentrate it all on what we've got.” 

Absolutely. But why is it too, that every city around the country, every large town, big city, wants its own stadium when they don't make economic sense? There's a great piece in the conversation by Robert Hamlin and he points out, there have been just 30 major events at Forsyth Bar in Dunedin since 2014. He wrote the piece last year, so that's three a year. Te Kaha in Christchurch is being funded mostly by ratepayers —the Crown's put in a bit— and the stadium was solely responsible for a 2% increase in rates last year.  

We come to Hamilton, and these figures are from 2015 so there might have been a remarkable turnaround – I doubt it, but there migh

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Kerrywood and Mornings podcast from News
Talks hed B.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
What is this mania for the building of stadium when
this country has so many already and very very few
of them are economic assets. The decision over whether to
upgrade Eden Park in Auckland or to build a brand's
spanking news stadium on the waterfront is such an old debate.

(00:34):
It's been going on for decades, and before I go on,
I will have been a guest of Eden Parks. But
it does take more to buy my opinion than a
very nice lamb chop and a glass of non alcoholic rose,
I promise you, but I'll put that out there. The
contest for Auckland's main stadium yesterday ended with neither Eden

(00:57):
Park nor Too Sorry proving feasible without public funding. Eden
Parks up Great is technically feasible, but requires one hundred
and ten million from the government for initial stages. Tayotaur
Angarowa's proposal lacks technical and commercial feasibility, so right there,

(01:19):
I'd say, well, I'm going to stop you there. If
I was a counselor, if it lacks technical and commercial feasibility,
wouldn't we go?

Speaker 1 (01:28):
Well?

Speaker 2 (01:28):
Thanks very much, but if a waste about time, cakita
no to the people behind it anyway, They plan to
progress land acquisition over twelve months. Now. Most of you
will be familiar with eden Park, even if you're from
around the country. Tae taur Angarora is more ambitious. Includes
a fifty thousand seat stadium which is the capacity of

(01:51):
eden Park, that can be scaled down to twenty thousand
capacity for smaller events, as the centerpiece for the redevelopment
of Key Park, with up to four hotels, hospitality scope
for two thousand apartments plus commercial offices. Different parties have
been trying to build a waterfront stadium for years now.
You'll remember Trevor Mallard had a plan to build a

(02:14):
stadium in time for the twenty eleven Rugby World Cup
and that came to nought. Another proposal in twenty eighteen
was floated and came crashing down to earth. Developers would
build a shiny new waterfront stadium. In exchange, they'd get
the land at eden Park, plus the ability to build
apartments on the waterfront land. There's always something in it

(02:36):
for the people behind the developments, of course there is,
Otherwise why would they do what they do and it
ends up being chumps like you and me who pay
for it. We have stadia. We have stadia up the
Ying Yang, all over the country, all over Auckland that
are underutilized and uneconomic. As the chief executive of the

(02:57):
twenty eleven Rugby World Cup Martin Snedden told Mike Costking
this morning, we need to get over ourselves and consolidate
into just one stadium.

Speaker 3 (03:07):
It's time people really got collaborative. And I know you know,
you may not agree with me here, but the Warriors
Auckland f C, they should be incorporated into the program
and even part so that that venue is This is
what's happened places around the world, is the multi use
of one venue. Look at what happened at Eton Park
over the weekend. We're on Friday they had white fans

(03:30):
and black Caps Internationals played their Saturday it was a
Crusaders and the Blues, and Monday it was the all
Whites qualifying for the World Cup. That's the right use
of the stadia and that's what we need to move towards.
We don't need to keep propping up other stadiums that
are just not for purpose. Let's just concentrate it all
into what we've got.

Speaker 2 (03:51):
Absolutely, But why is it too that every city around
the country, every large town, big city, wants its own
stadium when they don't make economic sense. There's a great
piece in the Conversation by Robert Hamlin and it he
points out there have been just thirty major events at

(04:11):
Forsyth Bar in Dunedin since twenty fourteen. He wrote the
piece last year, so that's three a year. Takaha and
christ Church has been funded mostly by ratepayers. The Crowns
put in a bit the stadium was solely responsible for
a two percent increase in rates last year. We come

(04:32):
to Hamilton and these figures are from twenty to fifteen,
so there might have been a remarkable turnaround. I doubt it,
but there might have been. Since Claudland's Events Center opened
in twenty eleven, it has runned around a ten million
dollar deficit per year and who pays for that? Ratepayers?
Palmerston North. In the twenty twenty one ten year plan

(04:54):
it showed a budgeted income of nineteen million but expenses
of seventy three million. Come on. It does have facilities
for some indoors, but much of the money that's going
to be spent is on the main stadium in sport
of stock car activities, including four million dollars budgeted for
new pits and more millions for a new grandstand on

(05:15):
the south end. Non stock car income is negligible because
the stadium struggles to attract higher level rugby matches or
large concerts because of the car track, and variably, if
you do, we end up building a bloody stadium. It's
not good for something else, so they're not multipurpose. They
can't be used for other events. So you build this
stonking great White Elephant, and we pay for it us

(05:39):
and then we're not allowed in it unless we pay
a fortune for a ticket to go to something that's
on inside the stadium that we built. As a rate payer,
you should get a free ticket to anything that's in
there for the rest of your life. I just don't
get why we're so obsessed with wanting new shiny stadium.
Even Helen came in, most sensible, fabulous, intelligent producer who

(06:04):
provides the common to the show. She came and go, oh,
wouldn't it be nice to have a lovely, shining new
waterfront stadium. No, Helen, No, I wouldn't. No, we've got
an Auckland, We've got Eden Park, Go Media Stadium formerly
Mount Smart, Western Springs Spark Arena, North Harbor Stadium. No,
we don't need another one bowl the others and everybody

(06:30):
can play nicely together in one big stadium. At the moment,
it looks like Eden Park's the most likely. There you go,
I've paid for me, lamb Chop. But right now the
I mean, it's imagine your family budget at the moment. Oh,
wouldn't it be nice if we built a beautiful new
swimming pool at the back because the kids are getting

(06:51):
a bit older now, be lovely with a nice little
poolhouse next to it. Yes, it would be lovely. Can
we afford it?

Speaker 3 (06:58):
No?

Speaker 2 (06:59):
And that's what the Waterfront Stadium is and why every
city in the country wants their stadium. Honestly, as Robert
Hamlin said, it's the reason why is that people just
get so excited, the decision makers get so excited with
all these reports of the extra economic benefit that's going

(07:20):
to come to this city and it's going to prosper
and it's going to it's just going to be the
making of the city.

Speaker 1 (07:25):
No, it's not.

Speaker 2 (07:26):
No rate payers end up paying and paying and paying
for generations for a white elephant that nobody's allowed to
ride unless you pay a bloody fortune to get on
its back.

Speaker 1 (07:39):
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