Big Auckland sports park finds a new owner

Fears over the loss of a big Auckland sports park have been allayed with the transfer of the St Johns property from Auckland University to Auckland Council.

Vice-Chancellor, Professor Stuart McCutcheon has just announced that an agreement has been reached over Colin Maiden Park and associated facilities beside the university's Tamaki campus.

"Auckland Council intends to retain the 20ha park for recreational purposes while the university will use funds generated from the transfer to support the creation of a new University Campus at Newmarket. In the agreement with Auckland Council, the Auckland University Rugby Football Club and the Auckland University Cricket Club will continue to be housed on the site, as will other existing tenancies," said a statement from the university.

The transfer is part of the university's long-term strategy to consolidate its activities at the city, Grafton and Newmarket campuses and significantly reduce its landholdings.

"Over time, we will divest our sites at Tamaki and Epsom and this rationalisation will ultimately result in a net 39 hectare reduction in our total landholdings; this is the first step towards that goal," McCutcheon said.

"We are investing $1 billion in high-quality campus development over the current decade and the capital receipts of the transfer will go towards providing modern research, teaching and study environments."