Who are we?
Hawkes Bay's Regional Indoor Sport & Event Centre
Pettigrew Green Arena is the premier all-weather sports & events centre in sunny Hawke's Bay. The Arena can accommodate regional, national & international sports, conferences, expos, music concerts, dinners & balls. There are several function and meeting rooms, an aerobics or dance studio, consultancy rooms and a theatre available for hire. We also have an impressive fitness centre - Arena Gym - which completes the facility, making it a truly all-purpose venue and the facility of choice for sports in Hawke's Bay.
Pettigrew Green Arena prides itself on great service. Whether you are visiting the Arena to participate in a Les Mills Virtual class, attend an Expo or watch the Hawks play basketball you will find Arena staff friendly and helpful. Pettigrew Green Arena can be relied upon for an enjoyable & satisfying experience.
About Us
Pettigrew Green Arena is the trading name of the Regional Indoor Sports and Events Centre Trust. A registered Charitable Trust with the Charities Commission. The Trust is governed by a Board of Trustees. The Board has put in a tremendous amount of work over the years - not only to get the Arena built but also their commitment in making sure Hawke's Bay has one of the best performing indoor arenas in New Zealand.
The work and vision has led to Pettigrew Green Arena attracting some amazing sporting and entertainment acts to Hawke's Bay. These events offer a huge variety of opportunities to a wide cross section of Hawke’s Bay residents that otherwise might not have been possible.
"Pettigrew Green Arena is a unique and truly significant regional event centre. This world-class facility allows us to develop our region's young talent, and capitalise on opportunities to showcase the best of international talent.
A number of organisations and individuals, from both the public and private sectors, have acknowledged the Arena's potential and invested in its development. We are truly thankful for the regions support which has allowed us to build such an amazing facility and add to the Hawkes Bay's community.
I am confident that the rest of NZ will utilise this amazing asset to the Hawkes Bay, I am proud to be involved in Pettigrew Green Arena.
Thank you for your support."
Lawrence Yule
Founding Chairman of Regional Indoor Sports and Events Centre Trust
History
Over several years Napier City Council, Hastings District Council and the public in general identified the need for a multi-purpose indoor sports and events centre in Hawke's Bay.
It was not until the late 1990’s when Eastern Institute of Technology (EIT) joined the discussions that traction was gained that would eventually see the vision of a regional events centre turn into reality. Through EIT’s desire to have a facility that would complement their academic programme they became the catalyst for a joint project with Napier City Council, Hastings District Council and Hawke’s Bay Regional Council.
In 1999 the Regional Indoor Sports and Events Centre (RISEC) Trust was formed, and a constitution adopted which would eventually see the regional sports and events centre governed as a non-profit trust by a Board that was made up of representatives from EIT (2), Napier City Council (1), Hastings District council (1), Sport Hawke’s Bay (1) and the wider community (2).
Riverside Park, opposite EIT was identified as the preferred site due to its central location between the two major cities and its accessibility to EIT. Approval was sought and given by both central and local government to use a section of this reserve for the project.
Funding ($7.7million) was secured through the strategic partners; EIT; both local councils and the Regional Council.
In addition, financial support of $40,000 was committed by EIT, NCC and HDC to assist in running costs for the first three years of operations. A strategy was adopted to raise the remaining $1.5 million, and a fundraising sub-committee was appointed. Over a two-year period, this sub-committee successfully went about raising these funds. This included securing naming rights for the facility which saw the name “Pettigrew Green Arena Hawke’s Bay” adopted.
Sport Hawke's Bay played a pivotal role on the RISEC Trust Board in linking the Trust with potential users during a consultation process. Through this process a design brief was established that would ensure the new regional facility would cater for local sports and sports administration, as well as international and cultural events. Sport Hawke’s Bay backed this support with capital funding of the fit out of the Sports House.