Latest news with #ŌtūmoetaiIntermediate
Scoop
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Scoop
Slam Dunk! New Indoor Courts A Hit With The Community
Press Release – Tauranga City Council Tauranga Mayor Mah Drysdale says its great to see so many people already enjoying the citys newest community sport facility the first to open in over a decade. Tauranga City's newest indoor courts have been a hive of activity this week, with over 3,000 people testing out the new facility at an Open Day last Saturday before it officially opened for use on Monday. The University of Waikato Haumaru Sport and Recreation Centre has been transformed in the last 18 months from a former The Warehouse building to a fit-for-purpose indoor arena. Tauranga Mayor Mahé Drysdale says it's great to see so many people already enjoying the city's newest community sport facility – the first to open in over a decade. 'The opening of Haumaru really is a win-win for the community. Purchasing and repurposing an existing building was a quick and cost-efficient way to address a community need, while at the same time being prudent with ratepayer money,' says Mahé. 'Both our city's population and participation in indoor sports is on the rise, so Haumaru adds much-needed court space to the recreation network across Tauranga.' With four new indoor courts, Mahé says Haumaru will be a place where hundreds of people of all ages and abilities can come together on a regular basis – to play and watch sport, and take part in the other activities on offer. 'Onsite car parks, along with its central location and ease of access, are features that help make Haumaru a great facility. It also contributes to the wider transformation of Tauranga city centre, as we work to make it an even better place for people to live, learn, work and play.' Max Pringle, a keen basketball player and student at Ōtūmoetai Intermediate, has given Haumaru the tick of approval after attending the Open Day and playing on the courts there this week. 'It's awesome to have more courts to play at. Our basketball team had our first game there on Monday and the courts, rims and backboard were perfect,' says Max. 'Mum said it was easy to find a park and that me and my mates could even catch the bus there sometimes.' Bay Venues Chief Executive Chad Hooker says along with regular community sports events and activities, Haumaru will help host large sports tournaments that come to the city. 'Haumaru is already proving its worth to the community, as the venue is fully booked for the foreseeable future.' Chad emphasised the importance of partnership and collaboration in delivering high-quality public amenities. 'The creation of Haumaru has been a combined effort. We've worked closely throughout with Tauranga City Council, mana whenua, community sports organisations, The University of Waikato as naming right partner, Apollo Projects as the main contractor, and many other key stakeholders in the city,' he says. The total cost of the venue is approximately $28 million. That includes the price of the land, the building, seismic strengthening, all the improvements and construction work, and the equipment. It's important to note that building a brand-new indoor court facility of this scale at Memorial Park was estimated to cost more than $40 million. The future of Memorial Park and whether a new aquatic centre will be built there is currently being considered by Council. The Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre (QEYC) will remain open and operating in the meantime.
Scoop
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Scoop
Slam Dunk! New Indoor Courts A Hit With The Community
Tauranga City's newest indoor courts have been a hive of activity this week, with over 3,000 people testing out the new facility at an Open Day last Saturday before it officially opened for use on Monday. The University of Waikato Haumaru Sport and Recreation Centre has been transformed in the last 18 months from a former The Warehouse building to a fit-for-purpose indoor arena. Tauranga Mayor Mahé Drysdale says it's great to see so many people already enjoying the city's newest community sport facility – the first to open in over a decade. 'The opening of Haumaru really is a win-win for the community. Purchasing and repurposing an existing building was a quick and cost-efficient way to address a community need, while at the same time being prudent with ratepayer money,' says Mahé. 'Both our city's population and participation in indoor sports is on the rise, so Haumaru adds much-needed court space to the recreation network across Tauranga.' With four new indoor courts, Mahé says Haumaru will be a place where hundreds of people of all ages and abilities can come together on a regular basis – to play and watch sport, and take part in the other activities on offer. 'Onsite car parks, along with its central location and ease of access, are features that help make Haumaru a great facility. It also contributes to the wider transformation of Tauranga city centre, as we work to make it an even better place for people to live, learn, work and play.' Max Pringle, a keen basketball player and student at Ōtūmoetai Intermediate, has given Haumaru the tick of approval after attending the Open Day and playing on the courts there this week. 'It's awesome to have more courts to play at. Our basketball team had our first game there on Monday and the courts, rims and backboard were perfect,' says Max. 'Mum said it was easy to find a park and that me and my mates could even catch the bus there sometimes.' Bay Venues Chief Executive Chad Hooker says along with regular community sports events and activities, Haumaru will help host large sports tournaments that come to the city. 'Haumaru is already proving its worth to the community, as the venue is fully booked for the foreseeable future.' Chad emphasised the importance of partnership and collaboration in delivering high-quality public amenities. 'The creation of Haumaru has been a combined effort. We've worked closely throughout with Tauranga City Council, mana whenua, community sports organisations, The University of Waikato as naming right partner, Apollo Projects as the main contractor, and many other key stakeholders in the city,' he says. The total cost of the venue is approximately $28 million. That includes the price of the land, the building, seismic strengthening, all the improvements and construction work, and the equipment. It's important to note that building a brand-new indoor court facility of this scale at Memorial Park was estimated to cost more than $40 million. The future of Memorial Park and whether a new aquatic centre will be built there is currently being considered by Council. The Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre (QEYC) will remain open and operating in the meantime.
NZ Herald
21-04-2025
- Sport
- NZ Herald
On The Up: Bay of Plenty home to Australasia's biggest intermediate school sporting tournament
The games had more athletes participating last year than the 10,500 at the Paris 2024 Olympics. How the games started In the early 2000s, a couple of local Tauranga principals took a car trip to a conference and discussed how there were no inter-school sports competitions for Year 7 and 8 students. Henk Popping, Ōtūmoetai Intermediate principal and chairman of the Aims Games Trust, and Brian Diver, a former Tauranga Intermediate principal, were the ones in the car that started what is now Australasia's largest intermediate school sporting festival. Popping said the pair thought it would be great to put their schools up against the 'best of the best' in New Zealand rather than just playing against local Tauranga intermediates. 'From that conversation, it led to 'let's start a sporting tournament that will be based in Tauranga and be a national tournament',' he said. 'We started with intermediate schools, but over time that extended to all schools that had Year 7 and 8 students.' He said the tournament had a 'very small beginning' but had continued to grow in size and scope, starting with 17 schools competing to now having over 300 schools. 'It certainly has surpassed our expectations from the beginning, and now you can see how much bigger it is and how far the reach of the sports is. 'I think it gives students an opportunity to learn how to win and lose with grace, how to make friends, and interact with a range of people they wouldn't normally interact with.' Continued growth and its influence on Tauranga's economy Kelly Schischka, tournament director, said managing and adapting to growth over the years came back to event management and looking at operations and logistics. 'Over the last year, we've had record numbers, 395 schools from all across New Zealand, from as far down as Southland, as far north as Northland, every place in between, and eight international schools.' She said Tauranga was proud to host the games and could not do it if it did not have the community buy-in. 'It's been a lot of hard work to continue to keep ahead of the trends of sports, to introduce new divisions, new ideas, looking at participation levels, and also opportunities for kids from different educational contexts.' From September 7 to 13 last year, 12,660 intermediate-aged athletes and supporters took part from throughout New Zealand and the South Pacific. As well, 26,825 attendees came to last year's event, which generated 79,201 visitor nights and a net benefit of $4.33 million, according to economic impact research conducted last year. This jumped from the net benefit of $3.15m, which was recorded by the Aims Games Trust in 2019. The research showed that overall, the annual tournament injected $8.78m into Tauranga's economy. Schischka said the trust was 'so lucky' the local community opened their doors to the games and were incredible hosts. 'We get a lot of feedback about how welcome schools feel when they come here, even when going into shops and business owners talk to them about the games and the sports they're doing, they feel incredibly welcomed when in the city.' Aims Games rewarded by community This year's Tauranga Business Awards recognised the trust as it won two major awards. The trust won the Newstalk ZB People's Choice Award – the only award to be voted by the public - and won the award for excellence in marketing impact. Schischka said for her, it was an 'incredible privilege' to work on the event, and everyone involved with the trust were passionate about the kids and the experience they had. 'The recognition is always really special, particularly when it comes from our local community.' Tauranga Business Chamber chief executive Matt Cowley said the trust was an outstanding organisation delivering a significant positive community impact. 'Their impressive multi-platform marketing approach has driven more engagement and enrichment,' Cowley said. 'They have a clear understanding of the importance of storytelling.' He said the games was a fantastic way of bringing participants together to serve as a central hub for achievements. 'Overall, their impact on enriching participants' enjoyment of the city and engaging locals is incredible, especially for such a small team.' Registrations for 2025 opened in March with more than 140 schools already registered for the games taking place from August 30 to September 5.
