Summer Par-Tee Time Planned In Ashburton

Thursday, 17 April 2025, 8:02 pm
Article: Jonathan Leask - Local Democracy Reporter

Mini Golf is coming to EA Networks Centre in Ashburton by the end of the year.

Ashburton District Council plans to build a terraced 18-hole mini golf course in front of the sports stadium.

People and facilities group manager Sarah Mosley said the Mid Canterbury-themed mini golf project is still in the planning stage.

“We are aiming to have it complete within the 2025 calendar year, so it can be enjoyed over summer.

The council set up a project management group including Mayor Neil Brown and councillor Leen Braam.

The group has been delegated the sign-off of the design and project expenditure, Mosley said.

“Since approval, project planning and design works have been the focus and following design sign-off in May, local contractors will be able to submit pricing for the civil works package.”

The project group and Creo, the design and build contractor, are working with a $500,000 budget - funded from the Reserves Contributions so it has no impact on rates, but there will be future maintenance costs.

The council had earmarked $400,000 for the project during its long-term plan deliberations but approved an increased budget in December.

Mosley said the physical build process is expected to take 12-14 weeks.

“The holes will be built offsite and transported to EA Networks Centre, reducing the chance of weather delays.

“The site preparation work will be completed by a local civil contractor.”

Once it’s built, the public can bring their ball and putter and play for free or rent them from the EA Networks Centre.

The mini golf course is going in next to the new $30,000 sand court that opened last month.

The court was originally scheduled to be built by June of 2024, but there were delays in sourcing the beach-soft sand.

The court is completely free for the public to use, with volleyballs available for hire from the centre's reception.

The court will be covered and locked when it is not in use to avoid it becoming a community litter box.

The sand court and mini golf projects are part of the 30-Year masterplan for the EA Networks Centre site that was adopted by the council in December.

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