By Daryl Holden

It’d be no surprise if Waitemata Table Tennis Association president Andrew Palmer has a permanent smile these days.

That’s because an intensely proud Palmer heads the west Auckland association, which is now home to probably the most modern, purpose-built table tennis venue in the country.

Just before Christmas, a project five years in the making was formally completed when the $2 million rebuild and refurbishment of the Waitemata Table Tennis Stadium was officially opened by dignitaries and long-serving association life members. And for Palmer, it would have been a very big moment.

Back in 2017, he instigated the stadium redevelopment project and chaired the building sub-committee. He wrote the grant applications, communicated with the wider committee, association members and other external stakeholders, including key council representatives, Sport Waitākere and grant funders. Of course, he wasn’t a Lone Ranger in a project of such magnitude, which was really made possible thanks to the generosity of the Auckland Council, which contributed $830,000, and it also wouldn’t have happened without Simon Fenwick. With his industry design management experience and table tennis background, he was invaluable as project manager. He developed the vision, designs and was responsible for the overall construction management. While Craig Dye and George Hogan provided important building sub-committee support.

And, boy, the new building project team has certainly delivered. The dramatically upgraded facility is twice the size of its predecessor and is wheelchair accessible.

“The new building is on the same land as the previous stadium,’’ Palmer said, adding that the original stadium was built by volunteers in the 1970s from second-hand materials.

“All we kept was the floor of the previous playing area, as it’s an awesome tongue and groove floor, and we demolished the rest of the building. We then built a second playing area, so we have twice the tables available. Simon was very careful in designing the new stadium to keep the same look and feel of the old stadium.’’

That retention of the past included the sanding and varnishing of the floor and the new beams, which provided the look of the old stadium.

“We are also in the process of putting the old honours boards back up on the walls as we were very careful to preserve the history and heritage of the association,’’ Palmer said.’

“We still have members playing now who in the late 1960s helped establish Waitemata Table Tennis as an association in its own right. Prior to that, we were a sub-association of Auckland.’’

The refurbished stadium also has new a kitchen and toilets, and international-quality lighting. Being fully wheelchair accessible was an important development, with Palmer calling it a “huge driver for the project’’.

“Our previous stadium wasn’t wheelchair accessible, and we knew there was an un-met need in west Auckland to provide accessible facilities to these players,’’ he said.

“We have already piloted para table tennis coaching, and we are hoping to start weekly para table tennis coaching in 2022. We have already been in discussions with Auckland Council about their bid to host the 2025 Special Olympics and have been chosen as their preferred table tennis facility if they are successful.’’

A new online booking and membership system has also been installed and would allow easier and more frequent access and usage of the stadium.

“That means players can access the stadium seven days a week,’’ Palmer said.

“Previously, players could only use the stadium when we had volunteers available to open it for sessions, which was about 18 hours a week, but the new stadium will now be accessible to players closer to 100 hours a week.’’

The stadium expansion also meant it could cater for various player needs, including group coaching sessions and casual hiring all at the same time.

“Now that we have more space, we are also open to other community groups enquiring about access to the stadium. We would also be suitable for indoor bowls, or any group wanting to use the facilities for meetings.

“We expect to more than double membership because in the past we have simply been full all the time.”

More members, greater table time when you need and more comfortable, modern surrounds ensures Waitemata’s new stadium should indeed have a bright future and one that now included the ability to host major table tennis tournaments.

“The previous stadium, with five tables, was really too small to hold major events, but the new stadium is now a decent enough size to hold regional tournaments,’’ Palmer said.

“We have already offered it to other associations for their tournaments. And we will work with those associations to make sure this is a regional venue and not just a west Auckland venue.’’

Article added: Monday 14 February 2022