Te Puke Sports gains Council funding for grandstand

Monday 17 December 2018

Western Bay of Plenty District Council will contribute $100,000 toward the new covered grandstand for Te Puke Sports.

The funding is split between the Te Puke Community Board ($60,000) and Council ($40,000).

The grandstand project is part of the Te Puke Sports and Recreation Club's vision to become a major sporting and cultural centre for the Te Puke and surrounding eastern region.

Project coordinator Rick Hannay presented a request for $40,000 from Council to add to that already pledged by the Community Board.

The club bought 350 seats from Christchurch's former Lancaster Park stadium for use in the new grandstand at the Club's Atuaroa Avenue grounds in Te Puke. The seats were shipped to the Port of Tauranga earlier this year and were `sold' in a sponsorship fundraiser to kick-start the grandstand project.

Rick told Council the club was a major organisation in Te Puke positioning to cater for schools and community groups - including starting discussions with an Indian community group that is keen to use the facilities for tournaments.

"The inclusive culture of the Club is a new direction aimed at expanding the diversity of the club for other community groups so that we can become a diverse sport, cultural and community facility," said Rick.

Rick said the club had been virtually self-funding since it was established at the Atuaroa Avenue grounds in 1978. Grant applications have been made to TECT and Lotteries to help toward the total grandstand cost of $574,000 and Sport Bay of Plenty will also be approached for funding.

Councillors said was commendable how the Club had gained support from every organisation in the wider community for the grandstand project and it deserved Council support.

The $40,000 from Council will be funded from the General Rate Reserve and the $60,000 from the Community Board will come from the Board's Reserve Fund.

ENDS