Dedicated Curling Facility Opens in Auckland, New Zealand

After 30 years of play on hockey rinks, curling now has its own permanent home in Auckland, New Zealand.

The Auckland Curling Centre opened last week with a special preview event for club members. The public grand opening will be Apr. 18, and the facility will be immediately open for play.

The four-sheet facility is the fourth curling-specific club in New Zealand (Naseby, Dunedin and Alexandria being the others) and the first facility in the North Island of the country.

Auckland is the largest city in New Zealand, with a metro population of 1.5 million people. The ability of the Auckland Curling Club to meet the growing demand of people keen to play the sport has always been limited by the availability of ice time to rent at a commercial ice facility.

In spite of that limitation, the Auckland club has managed to build a solid and committed core membership, and a vibrant youth curling development program in partnership with local high schools.  From its founding in 1996, club members have always dreamed about having their own facility – for better playing conditions, better playing availability, and room to grow the sport for the community.

Now that dream has been realised. The Auckland Curling Centre has four sheets of top-class curling ice, brand new stones, and excellent ice maintenance equipment. The facility also has spacious viewing and seating areas, changing rooms, and a bar and food service area.

In a full-circle moment, Eleanor Heald was announced to the membership as the first ever venue manager for the Auckland Curling Centre. In 2009, Eleanor was introduced to curling as a high schooler in the Auckland schools league. She fell in love with the sport, went on to represent New Zealand in international competitions, and has stayed involved in youth curling development. She will now lead the growth of curling in Auckland, welcoming new curlers of all ages to our sport.

Like all other dedicated curling facilities in New Zealand, the creation of the ACC was an incredible volunteer-led effort, supported by expertise and support worldwide. Countless hours of volunteer labour were supplied by club members to construct and fit out the interior of the facility, transforming it from a single-span open spacing into a fully functional curling facility.

Club president Rhys Greensill told me at the opening that this aspect of the project was the thing he was proudest of – in true Kiwi community spirit, people have given so much of their own time and skills to build something for the community that will ultimately benefit others.

Greensill spoke eloquently of this in his speech to members before the ribbon-cutting. He acknowledged the heroic efforts of club members to create the facility, whether that was in nailing drywall, raising funds, or promoting the effort to the community. He said “We’ve done the work to plant the seeds of a tree that we know that others in the future will enjoy the shade of”.

Fundraising for the project has been a herculean task. Like the building effort itself, it has been supported by benefactors large and small, from around the world. One aspect of fundraising that was apparent to me on opening day was curling stone sponsorship.

Curlers and supporters from around the world have bought curling stones – seeing familiar names on the stones across the four sheets brought a big smile to my face. A lot of people from around the curling world have been hoping to see a dedicated curling facility in Auckland – and now it is here.

Lorne DePape and Liz Matthews had the honour of cutting the ribbon and leading the club members onto the ice to say hello to their new home.

Instead of a single opening stone to open the facility, in a really nice touch, the club threw four opening stones... one on each of the four sheets.

The first stone was delivered by club members who were there on day one in 1996 when the club was founded. DePape, Matthews and I were day one members, and along with club life member Ian Ford, delivered the first stone.

The next stone was delivered on behalf of the committee that delivered the project.

The third stone was delivered on behalf of the current membership of the club.

The fourth stone was delivered by junior curlers, representing the future of curling in Auckland.

Lorne and I co-founded the Auckland Curling Club in 1996. Nearly 30 years on, the emotion was palpable for both of us to see this huge next chapter arrive.

In 1996, there were no dedicated curling facilities anywhere in New Zealand. Now there are four – and each facility has been a local catalyst for whole new generations of skilled and passionate Kiwi curlers to enjoy our amazing sport.

Having this facility in New Zealand’s largest city can only mean great things for the future of the sport.