Plans for the long-awaited arena have been plagued by setbacks, after the latest cost estimates last week revealed a budget blowout of $150 million.
The projected 30,000 multi-use arena is now expected to cost more than $680 million, project managers highlighting the impact of factors such as rising costs in an overheated construction market and the war in Ukraine.
The Christchurch City Council decided at its meeting yesterday it would seek community views on the project, before it considered the next steps on the project on July 14.
Residents will be consulted on whether the council should increase the budget, reevaluate the project or scrap the plans altogether,
Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel said next month’s decision would be the final piece of the jigsaw.
"We could choose to push ahead and invest the additional money required to get a 30,000-seat covered arena, but that would come at a cost to ratepayers.
"We could choose to re-evaluate the project and consider reducing the scope, design and other aspects of the arena. However, this could significantly push out the completion date for the arena.
"We would also need to renegotiate our cost-sharing agreement with the Crown as its funding commitment has been made based on a number of key design aspects, including a minimum of 22,500 permanent seats. If we significantly reduce the scope, we would need to prepare a new investment case for the Crown to consider. There is no guarantee the Crown would still be willing to invest on that basis.
"We could choose to halt the project, even though we have already invested $40 million in it. If we did that, Canterbury will not have a suitable venue for large sporting or entertainment events in the long term."
Consultation documents will illustrate possible consequences for each option of the project, including the impact on household rates.
The three option residents will be consulted on are:
1. Accepting the cost increases, and investing up to $150 million more to allow the project to continue as planned
2. Stopping the project completely
3. Pausing and re-evaluating the comprehensive arena build - which could include scaling back the capacity
