AUCKLAND CITY COUNCIL MEDIA RELEASE

19 February 2007

Auckland City Council's arena open for events

Vector Arena will host its first public event, international rock band Supernova, on 24 March 2007.

Mayor Dick Hubbard said that Auckland City Council is immensely proud to have led the development of the 12,000-seat indoor arena in Quay Park, which will benefit Aucklanders first and foremost.

"They say good things take time. Today the dream of having a world class venue in Auckland's CBD is realised. Vector Arena will put our city, and our country, on the world map as the entertainment hub of the pacific.

The arena will be a magnet for major international acts and we can expect to see some of the biggest names in sport and show business right here in the centre of Auckland," says Mayor Hubbard.

Vector Arena will attract national and international events, people, jobs and business opportunities to Auckland making it an even more exciting and prosperous place to live and work.

The arena has the capacity, facilities and operational flexibility to host an enormous variety of sports, music and entertainment events as well as large community events.

The council provided the principal funding for Vector Arena under a BOOT (build, own, operate, transfer) arrangement with Quay Park Arena Management (QPAM) - the first example in New Zealand of such an arrangement for this type of facility.

The mayor said the arena BOOT arrangement is a forerunner of the kinds of partnerships the council is encouraging to combine private sector resources and expertise to help provide new public sector assets and services.

"Under this arrangement the risks associated with building, owning, managing and maintaining the arena belong to QPAM, which has the experience and expertise to manage them, and we have been very grateful for all the effort that has gone into getting this building complete and operational," says Mayor Hubbard.

Vector Arena took longer to finish than originally anticipated due to its state of the art design and structural complexity. All works on the roof structure are complete and approved by the structural engineer and peer reviewers.

Councillor Vern Walsh, Chairperson of the Arena Working Party, said the planning and development of the arena has taken many years of hard work and has resulted in a facility that the entire country can be proud of.

"We sincerely thank QPAM, Mainzeal and the many suppliers, designers, engineers, architects and council officers who contributed to creating Vector Arena and look forward to hosting the kinds of events that have bypassed New Zealand in the past," he says.

The development of Vector Arena is one of many projects that Auckland City Council is investing in as a part of a 10-year action plan to create an even better CBD for Auckland, including upgrading Quay Street, Queen Street and Beach Road.

The arena is centrally located alongside the old Auckland Railway station, within walking distance of public transport, parking buildings, hotels, restaurants and central city entertainment.

Mr Walsh said the arena's central city location allows patrons to walk or catch a bus from car parking buildings, apartments, business premises and other entertainment facilities in the CBD.

"The downtown ferry terminal and the Britomart transport interchange are just a 10-minute walk away and Quay Street and Beach Road have been upgraded to make this walk safe and pleasant. Some buses, like the Link bus, stop virtually at the door of the arena.

Parking in the street in the CBD or Parnell will not be a viable option because most streets near the arena have parking limits or are resident-only parking and these restrictions will be enforced," he says.

A map showing central city car parking buildings and public transport links near Vector Arena will be available to the public via the Auckland City Council and Vector Arena websites.

ENDS

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