Christchurch will have its new multi-use arena and will pay for it, as far as Ashburton District Council’s chief executive understands.
The Christchurch City Council voted to increase the budget for its multi-purpose arena, Te Kaha, to $683 million, entering into a fixed price design and construction contract with lead contractor BESIX Watpac, protecting it from the risk of further cost escalations.
There have been suggestions that the rest of Canterbury help pay for it, but Ashburton District Council chief executive, Hamish Riach, believes the decision has locked the stadium in as a city council funded project.
“The Christchurch City Council decision to proceed has not required a contribution from any other council, so that says to me the city council has agreed to fund the full $683m,” Riach said.
“[They] agreed to fund and proceed without having asked for any support from other territorial authorities.
“It could come to other councils in the future and seek contributions to lessen their own costs, but as far as I can tell the decision to proceed has been made regardless of any of that.”
Whether the city council will still ask its neighbours is yet to be determined, but finding options to produce any additional funding that doesn’t lump it all on its own ratepayers will be on the city council agenda.
One solution is to turn other councils’ ratepayers into spades to dig themselves out of the financial hole.
Speaking at the city council’s meeting, former city councillor Helen Broughton said there needed to be a targeted rate across other councils in Canterbury to help pay the extra $150 million needed for the stadium.
But stating an idea does not simply make it happen, and even if the city council does eventually ask its neighbours for financial assistance, it doesn’t mean they will receive it.
Riach said if any request did eventuate it would require public consultation before any decision was made.
“If other councils like Ashburton were to be asked in the future, that request would have to go into our planning processes and involve consultation with our community.”
Ashburton has just adopted its 2022-23 Annual Plan and won’t be preparing the next Annual Plan for consultation until around March, so theoretically if a request was made Riach said that would presumably be the earliest it could discuss it with the community.

• By Jonathan Leask