The ambitious project to put a roof over the centre court at Auckland’s tennis arena on Stanley St has taken a considerable step forward.
This week Auckland Council agreed an initial injection of $1.5 million towards the overall project, which encompasses the demolition of the Robinson stand, the enlarging of the court and capacity to meet ATP tour standards and – eventually – the erection of a permanent canopy roof over the arena.
The roof has been a talking point for years – but this week’s funding boost is the biggest move yet, giving Tennis Auckland the ability to commence the first chapter of the initiative.
“It’s absolutely massive,” Tennis Auckland chief executive Rohan West told the Herald.
“I can’t underplay the significance of it, as it solidifies our funding for the first part of the project. It means being able to move ahead with some actual works, which will show the city and everyone interested in this project and tennis that we are serious about achieving our goal.
“To do what we need to do it’s basically mandatory to demolish the Robinson stand. It’s the only way that we can possibly meet the [tour] standards that we aren’t meeting. And it means now we have the green light and this is an enabler to achieve everything else.”
As revealed in the Herald in January, Tennis Auckland aims to have the roof – which is modelled on a similar structure at the South Australian Tennis centre – installed in time for the 2027 ASB Classic, with works to begin next year.
But it’s a staged approach, contingent on the removal of the ageing Robinson stand, which will also enable a larger centre court and a greater arena capacity.
According to West, Tennis Auckland has little choice. It needs to safeguard the future of the ASB Classic fortnight, given the constant threat of potential new tournaments in Australia, Asia and the Middle East.
The covered venue will mean an end to rain cancellations and delays and assist in attracting players, along with many other short and long term benefits.
Organisers were also aware the size of centre court doesn’t meet current tour standards. As players get more athletic – and are serving more strongly and hitting harder – the existing dimensions have come under pressure.
In 2023 the ATP tour revised its minimum court length standards to 40.23m, more than three metres longer than Auckland’s 36.95m. The new surface will cover 41 metres – allowing players more room to receive booming serves and groundstrokes.
“We are going to go over the minimum to make sure we’re safe,” said West.
The extended area will bring other side benefits, with space for two full-size basketball, volleyball or netball courts, four 3x3 basketball courts and an international-standard futsal court.
“It will open up the Manuka Doctor Arena centre court for far more community sports events and third-party sports activities,” said West.
Increasing centre court capacity is the other key element and it is expected to rise from 3100 to 3500.
“With the arena minimum capacity we’ve been under [the requirement] for many years,” said West.
“But they’ve always given us an exemption because we are one of the highest-attended 250 [level] tournaments in the world across the entire week.”
Demolition of the Robinson stand began on Wednesday and is expected to take seven weeks. Beyond that will be landscaping, retaining walls, drainage works, power and data ducting, and everything else necessary to get the site ready.
At tournament time, a temporary grandstand will be installed, with a capacity of just over 1000. West points out that the scaffolded grandstand is a model used at other notable tournaments, including Queens in London and Monte Carlo.
“It’ll be a far better experience,” said West. “Better views, higher [seat] backs, more comfortable.”
The new structure will also include a luxury section, with plush seats and food and drink delivered to the stand, named the Pohutukawa Terrace.
The entire redevelopment, encompassing the roof, has been costed at $15m. West says they have made good progress towards that goal, with contributions from some high-net-worth families and individuals, and more to come.
There is also expected to be another portion from the council, while Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has previously committed that the Government will chip in.
Overall, West feels everything is on track towards their vision being realised.
“We are very positive,” said West. “[The roof] is going to happen … by hook or by crook.”
Michael Burgess has been a Sports Journalist for the New Zealand Herald since 2005, covering the Olympics, Fifa World Cups, and America’s Cup campaigns. He is a co-host of the Big League podcast.