Revised plans for $179 million Wellington convention centre given the green light

Thursday, 13 December 2018

Construction of a revised $179 million convention centre for Wellington has been given the go-ahead.

Wellington City councillors voted unanimously to progress convention centre plans for the capital at a meeting on Thursday, ending a five-year planning process beset by problems.

A joint venture between Sir Peter Jackson and Wellington City Council failed earlier this year. The parties fell out over long-simmering plans to combine a movie museum with a convention centre.

The renewed plans will see an 18,000-square-metre complex – suited for hosting exhibitions and multi-day conventions for up to 1500 people – built between Cable St and Wakefield St, across the road from Te Papa.

A convention centre will take up the top two floors, with the exhibition hall and public walkways on the ground floor.

* Revised convention centre possible

* Curtain falls on movie museum

* How movie museum deal collapsed

* Convention centre cost blows out**

The facility will feature 10,000sqm of dedicated convention space spread across its top two floors, with a 1650sqm ground-floor exhibition gallery to accommodate touring exhibitions

Councillors also passed an amendment to ensure the convention centre was rated a five-star NZ Greenstar building.

A detailed design will now be produced by the end of March 2019, with a opening date pegged for 2022.

It is hoped to cost ratepayers $154m, with the council banking on an additional $25m in Government funding. Ongoing operating costs were expected to be $45.6m over 10 years.

The $179 million facility could open as early as 2022.

Wellington Mayor Justin Lester said the unanimous vote was 'remarkable' and came after strong support from Wellingtonians and local business.

'We're going to get on and build in the middle of next year, and I'm really excited to be moving along with this project.'

The Government had previously indicated a willingness to provide the $25m, he said.

Wellington Regional Economic Development Agency general manager David Perks said the agency had already fielded booking requests.

'We've started taking sort of pencil-ish bookings, but from today we'll be a lot more certain about that.'

At the meeting, many councillors gave fulsome speeches detailing how the project would bolster the city, akin to Westpac Stadium and Te Papa.

Concerns about the viability of economic projections and of convention attendees generating carbon emissions were washed away by aspirations driving the proposal.

Councillor Andy Foster said the council had neglected to evaluate the required size of the convention centre after the joint venture failed.

'It's almost double the size of the previous convention centre … I'm not convinced by the size.'

Yet the city had to be in the convention business, he said.

'We're going into it with our eyes open, this is a risky business.'

Councillor Diane Calvert said her concerns about the centre's size had been assuaged.

'Whilst some of the projections might be challenging, we shouldn't necessarily shy away from it.'

Councillor Sarah Free said it was important to put 'faith' in the proposal.

'The numbers on their own can't say it all. This isn't so much about economics, this is about an aspirational building for the city.'

Councillor Chris Calvi-Freeman mused at length about conferences he had attended across Europe, saying hotels were frequently 'dire' but the quality of the urban environment was memorable.

'Wellington is well set-up for conferences, we have a compact city centre … people who come to a conference in Wellington will be assured of a great time.'

Calvi-Freeman's riff risked heading into innuendo when he said conferences were places where 'sparks ignited'.

He clarified by saying bright ideas were often shared at such events.

THE HEAD OF THE FISH

Principal architect Daryl Calder said the design drew its inspiration from many sources, including Wellington's harbour, its famed wild weather, hilly landscape and Maori mythology, particularly Te Ūpoko-o-te-Ika-a-Māui (Maui's head of the fish).

'The building's glass cladding emphasises the shimmering, sinewy skin, which changes in transparency throughout the day as it reflects Wellington's variable weather,' he said.

'What also makes it a distinctly Wellington building is the use of raw and natural earthy tones, materials and colours throughout. It's a building designed for Wellington that celebrates its location and context.'

BY THE NUMBERS

272,000 visitors expected annually

18,000 square-metres of building

10,000 square-metres of convention space

1650 square-metres of exhibition space

554 jobs created

179 million construction cost

111 new events expected to be held in Wellington

44.8 million boost for Wellington's GDP

3.8 million in revenue generated