Fine New Headquarters For Merivale Rugby Club

Press, Volume C, Issue 29635, 4 October 1961, Page 11

Fine New Headquarters For Merivale Rugby Club

CANTERBURY will have one of the finest Rugby club headquarters in New Zealand with the forthcoming construction of a big new two-storey concrete structure for the Merivale Football Oub in Balfour terrace. The building, which represents considerable planning by the Merivale club, will be the first of its kind in New Zealand comprising social rooms and a full-size gymnasium for training and indoor sports under one roof. It will also be an attractively appointed centre for social activities.

' The gymnasium will be on the upper floor and will be about 70ft by 48ft. Weil lit with floor to ceiling windows at both ends and with stud height of about 14ft, it wiU be ideal for indoor training and the smooth surfaced pre-stressed concrete frame and block walls wiU give a clean vigorous character to the inside of the building.

The windows at either end will be protected with horizontal wire so that football training can be performed without restriction. The floor of two-inch thick timber decking will make an ideal rurface flor physical training by large squads. On the ground floor, and strikingly set back from the wall tine of the gymnasium above are the club rooms and •howeci and amenities. The club room itself is 27ft by 20ft, well appointed in pleasing colours and textures.

It will also be one of the lowest coat structures of its kind erected in the South Island because of its pre-cast pre-stressed concrete construction and design. “We should have a first class club asset, worth a considerable sum at valuation,” said the club’s secretary (Mr H. F. D. Wright). “We felt that taking Ute step of getting an architect helped us make the progress. In the first place we knew from him that we could get the building down to price and then we began the main drive for funds and the club made a wonderful job by raising about £7500 in about two years." Construction The method of construction, which has been an important factor in the building cost. comprised concrete beams and columns reinforced with high tensile steel wire tensioned in the concrete. These will be pre-cast then tensioned together with steel wire on the site making a light low cost extremely strong frame which will withstand the weight of the concrete masonry of. which the infill walls will be chiefly constructed. The method will about halve the time normally required to erect the frame in conventional concrete. The general contractors for the building are, Messrs Paynter and Hamilton, Ltd. Altogether the building is

ideal for large-scale social functions. There is a powder room for women as well as a servery with an lift long counter, a store room and shower and dressing space 27ft by 15ft An Interesting feature is the outlook of the club room area giving on to a covered court at the back of the building under the floor of the gymnasium above. Facing to the north, this area will make an ideal space for outdoor team talks and a social sitting-out area during fine weather. “One of the advantages of having the rooms is from the fitness angle,” said Mr Wright. “Normally we can’t get the use of training grounds until April 1 but now we will be able to get training going well ahead of the season, possibly in January and February, and, more important, the rooms will help to promote club spirit The rooms are very handy to the parks both for playing and practice and afterwards all team members can intermingle with members of other teams not just with members of their own team,” said Mr Wright. Access to the gymnasium is by stairs from an entrance from Balfour terrace and this also provides the main entrance to the downstairs club rooms and amenities. There is also another entrance to the shower rooms on the north side througn which players can enter with muddy togs in winter and change in the dressing room area before entering the social lounge beyond.

All downstairs amenities are devised on a system of open planning to give interconnecting access throughout. Designed with a stimulating colour scheme and interesting interior textures, the club room is also large enough to hold meetings at nights when training is also in progress upstairs.

The building outside will be finished in colours appropriate to the Merivale Football Club. The tender for the building has recently been let and construction is starting forthwith to complete the building in time for the next Rugby season. The architect for the building is Mr Peter Bea ven and the structural engineer for the prestressed concrete design is Mr W. Lovell-Smith.