End in sight

A total of $72.1 million of government-funded construction projects in Gisborne should all be completed by the end of the year.
Crown Infrastructure Partners (CIP), a Crown-owned company, has funded four projects either fully or partially to the tune of $66.2m.
The four projects were originally put forward for post-Covid recovery funding as “shovel-ready” projects in 2020.
The $46m project to construct the new Kiwa Pools facility is due for completion in the second quarter of this year.
The $8m build of a new grandstand for the Poverty Bay Rugby Football Union and the $10m Waipaoa stopbank improvement project are expected to be finished in the third quarter of the year.
The $8.1m rebuild of Midway Surf Life Saving Club is expected to finish in the fourth quarter of the year.
“There were some delays in some of these projects, as you would imagine, due to the cyclones,” a CIP spokeswoman said.
In her latest report to Gisborne District Council, chief executive Nedine Thatcher Swann described some of the impacts on the Kiwa Pools build to which the council has committed $5.65m.
“Following the cyclone we saw sand deposits and water in the 50-metre pool, which took about three days to clear,” the report said. “The biggest impact on the construction programme and timeline is the challenges in getting key Hawke’s Bay-based sub-contractors who were affected by the cyclone back on site.
“The carpentry crew remain committed to the project and are travelling via road through Opotiki, requiring 12½ hours of travel and an overnight stay in transit.
“An alternative concreting contractor has been secured and the Asona installers started work on March 6. All are travelling by road via Opotiki.
“The delivery of some material supplies are currently  ‘lost’ in transit and Apollo Projects (design and build partner) are working on resolving all supply issues.”