MEDIA RELEASE 9.03.09

‘Buy’ A Tile And Build A First Class Aquatic Centre

Kapiti Aquatic Centre Fundraiser

Members of the public will get their first chance to contribute to the Kapiti Aquatic Centre, and do their bit for water safety, sport and recreation, by visiting Coastlands on Wednesday and donating a coloured tile with their name on it.

The tiles will form a mosaic artwork to be installed inside the proposed Centre.

A team of volunteers from the Kapiti Aquatic Trust will be taking the donations and labelling the tiles near the central information booth in Coastlands Mall from Wednesday for at least a month, from 10am to 4pm. The tiles will also be available from the Kapiti District Library.

Supporters can choose a gold tile for a donation of $500, a silver tile for $250, a bronze tile for $100 and a blue tile for $50. All the donations are tax deductible.

The initiative kicks off a major fund-raising drive to raise over $20 million for the new district-wide complex which has the potential to put up to $35 million into the local economy over the next two years.

The complex which will include an Olympic pool, a learners’ pool, a rehabilitation pool, a toddler’s pool, two waterslides, a therapeutic pool, and a café is designed to accommodate the needs of all Kapiti Coasters.

Kapiti District Councillor and Aquatic Centre Trustee, Diane Ammundsen says that, with much of the background work for the project completed, Trustees are turning their attention to fund raising and corporate sponsorship programmes.

“The tile mosaics the first of many fundraising project. We hope all our citizens will work with us to support this very positive pro-Kapiti initiative,” she says.

Trust Chairman Neil Mackay says the complex will be an asset to present and future generations.

“It’s the ideal project to stimulate economic activity in the current “credit crunch” environment.”

“When complete it will open up many new possibilities for the district. For the first time local competitive swimmers will be able to train, individually or in teams, without leaving the District. There will be opportunities to host inter-school swimming competitions, regional and national swimming events, and other competitions and provide a venue for training overseas water-based sports teams. All these new visitors will support our local businesses and help keep our economy going. “

Work on the Kapiti Aquatic Centre is due to start towards the end of 2010.

“We are working on a broad front to raise money from a wide range of regional and national organizations. We’ll apply for a significant Government grant in March, and a number of other grants over the next few months,” Mr Mackay says.

The Trust is talking with a wide range of interests groups and community leaders and will soon be undertaking a round of public presentations. It is also engaging in detailed consultations to let community groups see the proposed plans and make sure ‘the core concept is absolutely right.’

“I’d like to see this project line up alongside the library and the new fire station as a sustainable, quality building that will meet the needs of Kapiti people of all ages.” Mr Mackay says.

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