Rugby World Cup 2011

Wellington City Council (WCC) is gearing up for New Zealand’s biggest sporting event with a huge range of projects as part of the city’s involvement in RWC 2011.  

Projects that have been completed with RWC 2011 in mind are the construction of a new 12-court indoor community sports centre and the Te Whaea artificial training surface, both of which will be important training zones for the visiting rugby teams.

In addition, Wellington opened the Wharewaka o Poneke on Waitangi Day.  The wharewaka is an important new addition to Wellington's waterfront and reflects the city's commitment to mana whenua.  The wharewaka will be the centrepiece of Wellington’s RWC 2011 'fan zone.' It will include a programme of activities to provide a unique cultural experience for visitors and locals during RWC 2011.

This tour takes in the indoor community sports centre and Te Whaea and concludes at the wharewaka.  Participants will hear about Wellington City Council’s planning for RWC 2011, and how these venues will be used to ensure the success of this major sporting event.

WCC is one of New Zealand’s largest social housing providers.  In July 2007, in partnership with the Crown, it began a comprehensive $400 million programme to upgrade 2,300 homes to be safe, secure and of a good standard for modern living.

The programme involves physical upgrade works, the re-housing of families, tenant engagement and community development.  This is a twenty-year programme, with the first ten years focussing on the upgrade of the larger multi-storey blocks.

Running alongside the physical upgrade of the Council's housing portfolio is Community Action, a strength-based community development programme ensuring that city housing delivers on its vision of 'Building Homes - Changing Lives.'

The tour involves site visits to a range of housing complexes around the city, including the award-winning Te Ara Hou redevelopment, Newtown Park, Regent Park, Hanson Court and Central Park.

Charging around Wellington

As part of WCC’s Climate Change Action Plan 2010, the city has been trialling production electric vehicles together with key business organisations. 

This tour will take participants around the city by electric vehicle, to learn about some of the key elements of the city’s climate change response.  The tour will include visits to:

• the city’s first electric vehicle charging post  
• the wind farm at Meridian’s West Wind project
• Greenstar buildings in Wellington.

Tour participants will also see the work that is taking place to improve public transport and walking / cycling networks, and discuss the possible effects of climate change in Wellington.