Kerikeri Squash Club to rise from the ashes with new building

Kerikeri Squash Club is set to reopen after a blaze destroyed its clubrooms in June 2016

A devastating fire of the sports pavilion at Kerikeri Domain in June 2016 destroyed the town’s squash club and left its players wondering where to from there.

But the Kerikeri Squash Club, which co-owned the pavilion before signing it over to the council in 2009, and has been homeless since the fire, will have a new clubhouse rise from the ashes and open next month.

The new clubrooms are in the Kerikeri Sports Complex in Waipapa Rd, and are set to open on November 28, subject to final construction completion and compliance approval.

The new building will have four squash courts and the ability to move walls to create two doubles courts, which will be the only doubles courts in Northland.

The club is also offering discounted early bird memberships so people can join the club now — all are welcome, seniors, juniors and families.

The construction can be followed at www.facebook.com/kerikerisquashclub and its membership online portal is kerikerisquash.helloclub.com/.

Earlier this year the Foundation North board gave Kerikeri Squash Club $449,912 to help construct the four-court squash facility at the Kerikeri Sports Complex.

In 2016, the Kerikeri squash courts were damaged by fire, after two 14-year-olds allegedly lit a fire in an attached pavilion that they said accidentally spread into the clubhouse. It left the community with no access to squash facilities. The courts will be multi-purpose to serve a range of recreational activities and programmes.