A refurbished and moderised Y Southland’s Stadium was officially reopened in central Invercargill last month (21 Jun).

Over the past six months the space – which encompasses a full basketball/netball court, complete with a brand new, state-of-the-art floor – has been completely transformed and is now a modern, fit for purpose, safe space, ripe with opportunities for the community. 

The Y Southland Chief Executive Pete Thompson said they were excited to re-open, and the carnival themed re-opening had attracted hundreds of people. 

“We want this space to be for the community – that’s who the redevelopment is for, community organisations or groups, sporting organisations, social groups, or even just groups of friends who want to shoot hoops,” he said. 

“It’s a fantastic area, right in the middle of town, and now that it has been modernised it brings a whole new raft of potential opportunities for use.” 

Along with the new floor, the upgrade has also included new windows, new fire doors, a complete internal paint job, repairs to the roof and other key pieces of work that have transformed the space.  

Thompson said the Y Stadium upgrade was part of the Y’s wider vision of ultimately upgrading the 77 Tay Street building; a facility the Y has owned for many years. 

Funding for the upgrade had come from Community Trust South, ILT Foundation, the NZ Lottery Grants Board, the Murihiku Rūnaka and the Rio Tinto/NZAS Community Development Fund.