Once it was designed, Siegfried Bachler, the owner of Bachler Steel in Lower Hutt, was involved in the process of cutting the piece out of the steel, and said it took a mere 30 minutes.
Adele Souster next to her artwork. Photo / David Haxton
“After that, it sat in my backyard for weeks to get to the colour it is now,” he said.
Club president Tim Sutton said the artwork and new entrance were part of the first stage of a redevelopment of the club’s facilities which is expected to take place over a two-year period.
“Later this year, three of the four courts will be resurfaced, and plans are in place to replace and extend the lighting to cover all four courts.”
Funds for the upgrading of the club have partly come from a grant from the Waikanae Community Board. Board chairman Richard Mansell said: “Supporting the arts and getting involved in sport is so important to who we are as a community.”
Sutton said Waikanae Tennis Club is one of the largest tennis clubs in the Wellington region, with about 250 members, and has more than doubled its member numbers since last year.
The club, which is 75 years old, consists of seven senior interclub teams, nine junior interclub teams and a number of family memberships, who all have access to a qualified coach.
That’s why he thought it was so important to upgrade the club.
“Our growing membership means that we need to rapidly develop the club’s facilities.”
Waikanae ward councillor Jocelyn Prvanov also attended the event and said that as a member of the tennis club herself, the improvements were particularly important to her.
