Facilities  |  5 Oct 2020

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Companies interested in designing and building the new Canterbury Multi-Use Arena are being invited to submit proposals as work on the $473 million project steps up gear.

Today the funding agreement for the project was formally signed by Mayor Lianne Dalziel, representing Christchurch City Council, and  by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Sports Minister Grant Robertson, and Greater Christchurch Regeneration Minister Megan Woods, representing the Crown.

The agreement confirms that the Crown will put $220 million into the project, while the Council will spend $253 million on constructing the 25,000 seat covered arena.

It was also announced that well-known Christchurch property investor Richard Peebles and Steve Reindler, who has extensive board experience, will be directors of the new company that the Council has set up to oversee the project.

They will work alongside Murray Strong, who was appointed as chair of the CMUA Project Delivery Limited earlier this year.

“We now have all the building blocks in place to ensure that we can deliver this project for the people of Canterbury,’’ Mayor Dalziel says.

“This will be an arena for Canterbury and will ensure the region can once again host major events, including concerts and national and international sporting events.

“The Canterbury Multi-Use Arena will be world-class facility that attracts visitors and revenue from around the country and it will cement Christchurch’s reputation as an attractive, vibrant place to live.

“The Investment Case put together by Christchurch City Council shows this project will be a game-changer for the city and we are very proud to be leading its delivery,’’ Mayor Dalziel says.

Enabling works are already under way on the central city site where the arena is going to be built. It is anticipated that early construction works will start in 2021. The arena is expected to open at the end of 2024.

“As the final anchor project for the city, the Canterbury Multi-Use Arena will put an exclamation mark on Christchurch’s rebuild and will be a facility for the whole of the city that will link sports, events and concerts,’’ says Mr Strong.

“The CMUA will be a challenging build, but the opportunities this facility will provide to the region will be enormous.’’

Minister Woods says the arena will provide much needed jobs and investment through the COVID-19 recovery.

Who is overseeing the project?

Christchurch City Council has so far appointed three directors to the Board of CMUA Project Delivery Limited.

Murray Strong is Chair of the company. He has worked on a range of rebuild projects in Christchurch and has held governance and senior management roles across the education, aviation, professional services, events, tourism and sports sectors.

Richard Peebles is a name synonymous with property investment and Christchurch’s ongoing regeneration. His company specialises in property investment and renovations and is responsible for developments such as the Little High Eatery and, in partnership with other investors, the Riverside Market.

Steve Reindler has extensive construction experience and is currently the chair, or maintains a board position, on a range of boards. Mr Reindler is also an independent advisor to AgResearch, Lincoln University and Air NZ on infrastructure builds.

Additional directors will be announced in the coming months.