Shortsighted stadium

File under: urbanism, recreation, Wellington

Well, they've gone and done it. Today's Dominion Post has a front page story announcing that the council is going with the Evans Bay site for the indoor stadium, rather than next to the Westpac Stadium. As I said earlier, this is a terribly wasteful use of land, displaces existing sports, won't be used for national or international fixtures, and makes it much harder for people to get there on foot or via public transport. Not only that, but the intended users say it will be too small, and they've had to include 200 car parks to appease the local residents. Two hundred! But hey, it's cheaper in the short term, so why worry about the bigger picture?

Update: the council has a justification for the decision on their website. They are now emphasising its role as a community sports centre, rather than the more professional facility that Wellington Basketball had been lobbying for. In this context, the decision makes more sense, since they say that "there are 40 schools within five kilometres of Cobham Park and 14 within two kilometres, as opposed to 21 within five kilometres of the Westpac Stadium and nine within two kilometres". $29 million seems like an awful lot for a school sports centre, though.