New Zealand’s newest adventure park, offering an exciting array of activities, will be built on the hills and surrounding area of Porirua’s Rangituhi / Colonial Knob.
The Porirua Adventure Park is being proposed by Select Contracts, a Canadian multinational company that specialises in leisure and adventure parks around the world.
It will be based in the grounds of Spicer Botanical Park, a beautiful recreation park surrounded by mature exotic trees at the foot of Rangituhi / Colonial Knob.
A chairlift will carry visitors up Rangituhi where they will take in breath-taking views before mountain biking, walking or running the various trails. All the trails will be free to use with one passing a large reservoir, where bird spotting, picnicking and other passive activities can be enjoyed.
A 200 seat café will be at the bottom of the chairlift with a smaller café at the top to enable visitors, choosing to take the chairlift just for the view, to sit and enjoy a coffee and a bite to eat.
Select Contracts Managing Director Chris Sutton and Porirua Mayor Mike Tana, will sign an agreement to lease the land for the new Adventure Park.
Mr Sutton says Select Contracts is very excited to announce their partnership with Porirua City Council for the development of the Porirua Adventure Park.
“This is going to be a world class destination for local, regional and international guests to enjoy the beautiful surroundings in a safe environment giving them a unique experience each time they visit on a bike, by foot or on a surfboard.
“Our aim is to create an amazing family friendly facility that will become a world class destination to add to New Zealand's international offering and to work very closely with the local community to make sure their needs are met with this facility.
“We are at the beginning of a lengthy and complex resource consent process and there are no pre-determined outcomes yet. A lot of work must be done before the development can break ground but we look forward to working with all parties to make this happen and to a positive response from the community and market".
Select Contracts have 40 years under their belt. They carry out detailed market research, financial planning and design and construction that results in high-quality, successful parks around the world.
Work is expected to start on the park next year, once the necessary consents have been secured, with the opening due in 2019.
Porirua Mayor Mike Tana says Select Contract’s approximate $21 million investment in the city will create jobs for Porirua and be a huge drawcard for visitors.
“This is an amazing opportunity for Porirua funded by Select Contracts. We expect over 100 new jobs will be created to manage the influx of visitors to the city. Estimates show around 80,000 local users will visit per annum and a potential economic impact, over five years, of around $40 million coming into the Wellington economy.
“Most tracks will be ridge-riding/walking experiences and no tracks will be built through Porirua Scenic Reserve.”
Te Rūnanga o Toa Rangatira have been engaged on the adventure park proposal, which spans across DOC and PCC land. Discussion points included Rangituhi as a significant site for Ngāti Toa, other significant sites in the area, allowing free public access, environmental impacts and restoration potential within the plan.
Parks Manager Olivia Dovey says the need to protect the area and make sure the development is sympathetic to the natural environment is top of everyone’s mind.
“We’ll be working actively with the developer to ensure a win-win for Porirua. We all want to get the balance right between providing an excellent recreation opportunity while also protecting our special green spaces. This development can be great news for for both recreationalist and environmentalists.”
Wellington Region Economic Development Agency General Manager Venues, Marketing and Destination Development David Perks says the Porirua Adventure Park will be a welcome addition to the greater Wellington outdoor fitness and entertainment scene.
“We expect it to be hugely popular with the Wellington market as well as attracting overseas adventure addicts to the Wellington region.”
Wellington Trails Trust’s Anthony Edmonds says the trust is keen to support the Porirua City Council on the completion of trails that will add to the overall experience at Porirua Adventure Park.
“When I told my kids about the new park they instantly wanted to move to Porirua. This highlights what an incredible asset the park will be for the Porirua community and Wellington region, which is why the Wellington Trails Trust totally support this initiative.
“I love that the trails are also free to anyone who is keen enough to ride, walk or run up to the top of the park. As a keen walker, runner and mountain biker, the new park will be incredible.”
5 Oct 2017
