Lancaster Park community spaces

Since April 2021 we have been working to turn Lancaster Park into a green recreational space and sports fields. Before developing a concept design for the rest of the park we want to understand the other elements needed for the local community.

Consultation has now closed

Consultation on the Lancaster Park community spaces has now closed. People were able to provide feedback from 14 January to 9 March 2022.

During this time we heard from 151 individuals and groups. You will be able to read their feedback when it is ready to be presented as part of a staff report to the Linwood-Central-Heathcote Community Board, which is likely to be in April 2022.

Redeveloping Lancaster Park

While the primary purpose of Lancaster Park will be for sports such as rugby and football in the winter and cricket in the summer, we know that this is also an important space for the local community to gather for informal leisure and recreational activities.

In September 2019, following the demolition of Lancaster Park stadium, we approved a Spatial Plan to redevelop the park. This plan has guided our work to get the site open to the public by April 2022. This includes:

• grassing the whole site
• installing the sports fields 
• building a path around the park perimeter

Creating space for the community

Now we would like to hear from the community about what else is needed to help us develop a  concept design for this exciting new community greenspace. 

We have a fixed project budget and all community spaces need to work around those already set aside for formal sports and the existing heritage gates on Stevens Street. This means larger features, such as buildings, could only be in the remaining open areas. However, there are many spaces for smaller elements throughout the park.

We will work with community groups to decide which elements are included in the project, based on:

• feasibility (can it be done)
• community need (what else is available close by)
• activation (how likely is it to bring people to the park)

The first stage of the Lancaster Park redevelopment which will open to the public in April 2022.

You can read more about the Lancaster Park project  or attend one of our public sessions before providing feedback below.

Next steps

This consultation closes on March 9. The community elements in the new park will require Waikura Linwood-Central-Heathcote Community Board approval, so a staff report detailing what submitters have said will be presented to the board to help them make a decision about what is included in the Lancaster Park concept design.

There will be more community consultation on the concept design, probably in May 2022.

We plan to reopen Lancaster Park for public use by Anzac Day 2022 - the perfect milestone for having the historic memorial gates restored and open. (external link)(external link)

The community elements will take several years to install. Sign up for our newsletter to keep up-to-date.