History & Stadium Facts

• Turf area 15,050m2
• Grass species: Two varieties of perennial Ryegrass (Lolium Perenne)
• USGA spec. sand profile (300mm depth)
• The gradient of the turf is 300mm elevation from the centre to the outside edge
• Target grass heights:
  • Rugby/Rugby League/Aussie Rules is 25-30mm
  • Football 18-22mm
  • Cricket is 10-12mm
• Primary drainage system
• There are 64 sprinkler heads
• Eight quick coupler valves
• The pitch is mowed daily
• The field is watered every second day when required

PORTABLE WICKETS

• Three clay wickets and one sand tray
• In 2005 two wickets and the sand tray were built
• One wicket was built in 2014
• Soil is Patamahoe clay and grass is Perennial Ryegrass (Lolium Perenne)
• Match day target soil moisture range 24-28%
• Match day target soil bulk densities 1.30-1.50gms/cm3
• Wicket and sand tray depth 200mm
• Each wicket measures 25m x 3m
• Cricket boundary sizes:
  • North 80m
  • East 58m
  • South 80m
  • West 62m
• Wicket move duration is four hours

INITIAL CONSTRUCTION OF THE TURF IN 1999

• 7,930 tonnes of sand went into making the pitch.
• 2,800 tonnes of drainage gravel was used.
• 900 kilograms of grass seed was used with three different type of grass seed - two perennial ryegrass and one creeping fescue.
• 1200kg of fertiliser was used.
• A centre wicket square was constructed consisting of five wickets. This was removed in 2005/6 in favour of portable wickets.

ARTIFICIAL ROAD

• Total area 1343m2
• Construction time was 16 days
• 3m wide
• Approximately 450m long
• FIFA II compliant

Total number of seats: 34,500

Number of public seats (non-members, non-boxes): 31,000

Number of covered seats: 24,000

Number of corporate boxes: 62

Bowl site size: 48,000 sqm

Number of piles: 410

Roof size: 12,000 sqm

Height from arena to roof: 26 metres

Height of light tower: 55 metres

Length from end to end: 235 metres

Width west to east: 185 metres

Width of pitch (widest point): 135 metres

Length of pitch (widest point): 162 metres

Number of turnstiles: 43

Number of escalators: 3

Number of goods lifts: 2

Number of toilet pans: 383

Number of urinals: 275

Number of television sets: 270

Food and beverage outlets: 15

Mobile beverage outlets: 9

Northern replay screen: 84 sqm

Southern replay screen: 52 sqm

Length of the concourse: 650 metres

Width of the concourse: 14 metres

Length of walkway to rail station: 680 metres

Emergency Evacuation time: 8 minutes

Carparks on site: 850

Staff numbers on event days: 400-1000

Staff numbers on non-event days: 25-50

Height of the goal posts: 15 metres

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The four lighting towers use the Signify (Philips) ArenaVision LED floodlighting fittings. These are designed exclusively for sports and multi-purpose venues, and were commissioned in June 2023 ahead of the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023.

There are 53 LED fittings per tower (212 total), plus the rim lights which are set up in four zones with 48 per quarter (192 in total) giving a grand total of 404 LED floodlight fittings all up.

These replaced the 392, 2000 watt globes in the light towers from the original build.

Design Managers and Main Contractors: Fletcher Construction Ltd
Architects: Architecture Warren & Mahoney Ltd, Bligh Lobb Sports Architecture
Project Managers: Beca Carter Hollings & Ferner Ltd

The Wellington Regional Stadium Trust would like to acknowledge and thank the following for their vital funding support which helped make the Stadium a reality:

• Greater Wellington and Wellington regional ratepayers
• Wellington City Council and Wellington city ratepayers
• New Zealand Lottery Grants Board
• The Community Trust of Wellington
• Deloitte Club Members
• Stadium Corporate Box Holders

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Te Uruhau, the main entrance design, was created by Te Oranga Whareaitu on behalf of the Wellington Tenths Trust. The Wellington Tenths Trust represents the descendants of Taranaki whānui who were owners of Wellington and the Hutt Valley in 1840.  

1. Rua Taranaki (The Mountain)

• The centrepiece represents Rua Taranaki (the mountain) as viewed from the north side. It symbolises the hurdles overcome by people as they strive to achieve their goals.

2. Te Raukura (The Feathers)

• Overlaid on the mountain are three white feathers representing the Raukura, an important symbol to the iwi who affiliate to the Taranaki rohe:
  • He whaikororia ki te Atua i runga rawa - Glory to God on high
  • He maungārongo ki runga i te whenua - Peace on earth
  • He whakaaro pai ki ngā tāngata katoa - Goodwill to all mankind
• As people enter and leave the Stadium, they pass under the Raukura, as a symbol of peace and a reminder to maintain a spirit of friendship and unity in the face of competition.

3. Manaia (Stylised Carved Figures)

• The Manaia figures on either side of the mountain – on the left is a Wāhine Toa (female warrior) and on the right, is a Tama Toa (male warrior) - are the Kaitiaki or guardians of the Stadium.

4. Ka Awatea (The Spirits)

• These spiral sculptures signify the dawn of a new day and new beginnings, and the new challenges that this brings.

5. Kowhaiwhai (Façade)

• This pattern depicts Tangaroa, guardian of all sea and waterways and Nga Mangōpare, the hammerhead sharks.
• “Kia mate mangōpare kei mate wheke” – “It is better to die like a hammerhead shark than an octopus.” This proverb reminds us to never give up and fight until the end, symbolic of two teams meeting in competition on the field.

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• The Stadium is one of the biggest pre-cast concrete construction jobs undertaken in New Zealand using 4,000 lightweight concrete units cast in Otaki and New Plymouth and trucked to Wellington.
• It is the most 'craned' construction job ever undertaken by Fletchers - more even than the big hydro construction projects in the South Island.
• The lightweight concrete used is 20% to 30% lighter than ordinary concrete. The largest units still weighed up to 35 tonnes.
• The project employed 250 construction staff on site and a further 230 off site.
• About 18,000 cubic metres (5000 truck loads) of concrete were used in total.
• Also used were 1590 tonnes of structural steel, 2700 tonnes of reinforcing steel and 250,000 concrete blocks.
• Construction crews installed 3.5 kilometres of fencing, barriers and handrails.
• Electricians installed 4.9 kilometres of electrical cabling.
• The Stadium has no posts or poles to obstruct the view and every seat is angled to look toward the middle.
• The roof has an aerofoil vane on the leading edge to help hold the roof in place and calm and filter the wind on the arena surface.
• The number of toilets far exceeds the building code.
• The building "footprint" covers almost 1.8 hectares.
• The grassed oval itself covers 16,162 square metres.
• The Stadium cost $130 million to build. The finance came from:
  • Greater Wellington: 25$M
  • Wellington City Council: 15$M
  • Grants and Donations: 7$M
  • Fundraising: 50$M
  • ANZ Bank Loan: 33$M

1991

Wellington Rugby prepares plans to redevelop Athletic Park

1993

WCC and sports codes begin planning multi‐purpose stadium on Basin Reserve.

Porirua supporters promote Aotea as stadium site.

1994

February 1994. Government agrees to make railyard site available and planning focus moves there. Petition to support the railyards is circulated.

June 1994. Feasibility study says 41,000 seat stadium will cost $70m.

August 1994. Sir Wilson Whineray assesses regional options and opts for railyard as best site ahead of Porirua (Aotea) and Lower Hutt (Fraser Park).

1995

July 1995. Wellington City Council agrees to $15m loan as base funding.

August 1995. Wellington Regional Council poll shows 75% support across region for ratepayer funding. Council gives conditional approval for $25m loan.

December 1995. Naming rights sold to Westpac, corporate box sales commence. New Zealand Lottery Grants Board awards $4 million grant

1996

February 1996. Community Trust of Wellington awards $3 million grant

July 1996. First resource consent application fails in face of residents’ opposition. Planning begins on more expensive model to accommodate design change requirements.

November 1996. New plans unveiled.

1997

March 1997. New proposal gets resource consent.

August 1997. Fletcher Construction wins contract.

October 1997. Membership sales commence (2500 to sell to raise $30m capital).

1998

12 March 1998. Tapu lifted on ground – construction commences.

June 1998. The first long raker beam to support seating units was lifted into place. The following month the first concrete seating unit was placed.

November 1998. Fletchers lifted the first roof section into place, and wall cladding started in December.

October 1998. First roof segment in place.

1999

April 1999. Cricket block was laid. Circle of concrete seating sections was closed.

May 1999. Cricket pitch mowed for first time.

June 1999. Roof completed.

Staff recruited – trained at Te Ati Kimihia.

Work started on laying outfield.

November 1999. Stadium Trust offices opened and occupied.

17 December 1999. Stadium given Code of Compliance certificate by Wellington City Council.

Project completed and handed over to Stadium Trust after 21 months of construction, two weeks ahead of schedule. Project is within budget.

2000

3 January 2000. Official opening by Governor General.

2013

April 2013. Official re‐opening of the Members Clubroom by Jonah Lomu.

2014

April 2014. The East Mezzanine Bar was officially opened by the Rt. Hon. John Key, Prime Minister of New Zealand. This new addition boasts spectacular views over the Wellington Harbour.

2016

December 2016. The Turf Renovation Project began 5 December taking 16 days to complete and covering 15050 square metres (m2). Each turf roll measured 1m x 13m in length and 1204 rolls were used. The artificial ring road totaled 1343m2.