All-weather sports turf Debate

Economic Benefits - Costs

Option 2

Residents supporting Option 2 believe that despite the initial high costs, the long-term benefits and savings from reduced maintenance and increased capacity justify the investment in an all-weather sports turf. They argue that the turf will enhance Nelson's attractiveness for hosting sports tournaments and events, potentially bringing economic benefits to the community. Additionally, some suggest exploring funding avenues such as grants or contributions from private interest groups to mitigate the financial burden on the council.

Table of comments:

Point No	Comment
168.5	Option One is ongoing heomeraging of Council funds at the behest of the weather whenever. “Option Two” sees a do-it-once-do-it-right regime in place. Yes. Itll be expensive at the start, but, like Nelsons Water Treatment Station, will pay growing dividends through savings year after year.
181.3	This is positive for the community and sporting development for our young people. There are lots of grants available that could help to fund this.
274.6	in my opinion having the all weather turf at Saxton would be the most cost efficient given that there are already flood lights installed which will cut down on cost. Also with with existing public toilets and the hockey turf makes for a great economical boost for Nelson, by allowing us and giving our young community great opportunities to host sport tournament all year round.
472.6	I believe Option 2 is the way to go from an overall cost of ownership point of view. However its not high on my list of things to do.
682.6	Saxton is such an amazing complex.  Investing in an all weather turf would be fantastic for our community. I think this is only the start though and it shouldn't be at the detriment to the other pitches.  Tamariki need good pitches to train on.  I'd rather see cuts in other areas to support this proposal as it is used my a high number of our community.
749.6	have private interest groups raise money
963.6	Some reservations here that the Council will become the default funder. The sports codes involved need to be contractually locked into their long term obligations
977.6	Sports clubs/community should raise 50% of the cost
1162.1	An artificial turf in central Nelson (Guppy Park) close to the CBD is absolutely needed. It would give sport codes a reliable training and game surfaces regardless of the season and the weather. Grass fields in the area have been deteriorating due to poor maintenance, strain due to the weather (too wet or too dry) and due to overuse. A turf would help give these pitches a rest and reduce cost of maintenance.Young kids from all different walks of life would benefit from a turf and access to it. Talking of a safe space to do sports / be active. Not to forget about the opportunities a good turf would provide to aspirational kids / teenagers pursuing a career in sports. They need modern facilities to develop their skills at a good level. It’s a big investment but its well worth it. It would also see sport codes work together. It’s a bo brainer.
1287.1	Current grounds are not fit for purpose. Artificial pitch should be located at Guppy/Neale park given they are the worst in the region and would need the most ongoing maintenance.
1365.6	Nelson has a poor history in investing in future..
1414.3	The need for the development of a turf facility in Nelson City is very real.The current pitch conditions are not ideal.  Neale and Guppy Parks are built on reclaimed land that was previously a landfill.   This means the pitches are susceptible to subsidence, leaving the pitches with peaks and troughs in, which change and worsen over time.  The pitches have no watering system, so over dry periods, they dry out causing the grass to die and the pitches to become rock hard and dry & dusty.  Mowing and linemarking of the pitches rely on the appropriate weather to do so, which leaves the pitches in much less than ideal condition often depending on rain levels.Over the winter season, many games and a lot ot trainings and skills sessions have to be cancelled due to the condition of the pitches due to bad weather.  This affects the number of sessions players get and also means the fees the players pay provde them with less game time.  This is a major factor of dissatisfaction amongst players.a turf facility would not only provide a quality, consistent pitch for football and rugby, but would allow numerous games/trainings per day to be held on the same pitch without affecting the quality of the training or the condition of the pitch.  Current grass pitches can only handle 2, maybe 3 games per day, with some only being able to handle 1 due to the conditions of the pitches.  You could play 6 games per day on the turf pitch without it affecting the pitch condition.This would have a significant positive effect on the codes and their players.  It would also mean players could be at the same grounds to aupport other teams whilst waiting for their game, rarher than having to be spread around the city.turf pitches require much less maintenance - therefore the labour hours and cost would be reduced compared to grass pitches - eg, turf pitches do not require the same mowing, linemarking, maintenance, seeding, rolling etc as grass ones.A turf facility in the city centre area would allow the codes to develop tournaments and events that will draw people from within the area, the region and the country to the central city - to stay, spend, shop and visit the hospitality venues in the city centre, bringing much needed people and income into the city.The football and rugby codes and local iwi have developed a fantastic relationship, working collaboratively with each other, and would welcome the opportunity to do this with a turf facility in the city centre.The devlopment of a turf pitch is vital, and with this devlopment i believe strong consideration needs to take place in developing two pitches at the facility - the costs involved in developing two at the same time instead of one, and maybe another one at a later time would be much less and the benefits of having two pitches would be immense - it would allow much more use, more maintenance cost savings and would be a lot more beneficial for holding events and tournaments.  Nelson is currently falling behind every other city in New Zealand in terms of turf development.  A number of much smaller towns have these facilities. With advancements in the technology used in artificial turfs, the environmental impacts ate being mitigated, and in fact, the reduction of machinery use in maintaining the turf pitches is environmentally beneficial.  The council have already dedicated funds into the development of a turf facility, with the feasability study completed in 2020 which stated that the ideal placement of artificial turfs in the region is in the city centre.If a turf facility is approved, the maintenance of other pitches still needs to be adequate to maintain quality pitches that meet the health and safety requirements and the requirements of the sports code bodies.  Maintenance savings will be made already with the reduction of maintenance needed for turf instead of grass.A turf facility in Nelson City centre is a MUST
1433.6	All-weather Sports TurfTBCA supports Option 2 – construct an all-weather turf and reduce the current upgrade programme An all-weather sports turf would make Nelson an attractive destination for sports tournaments and national events as well as providing an alternative playing and training venue for sports codes in wet conditions. Siting it somewhere centrally (Saxton Field?) would allow it to benefit from existing infrastructure, which could help reduce costs.
1439.6	Do this once, do it well, saves on the longer term.
1489.6	again this is a great idea however the budget blow out on something like this will be ridiculous- the management and the running of soemthing like this is again unfortunately what happens - its someones mate that will end up with the project that provides a nice little back hander to one of the councillors - the reality is Nelson building and planning team couldn’t organise there way out of a wet paper bag