In 2004, The Trusts Arena in Henderson, Auckland was constructed. It is a multi-purpose stadium and was outfitted with 5000sqm of hardwood sprung floor, one of the largest hardwood floors in the country.

 

As CEO of The Trusts Arena, Mike Ocego said, “The floor at the Arena is at the heart of all we do. Whether playing basketball, attending sport matches, doing skating classes, or attending concerts, people in our community benefit from having this amazing resource on their doorstep.”

 

In 2022, the floor was in need of maintenance. Every 10 years, the floor needs to be re-sanded and given a new polyurethane coating to ensure it is fit for all the activities that take place. This costs The Trusts Arena around $200,000 each time maintenance is required.

 

After a search, Mike and his team found TAB NZ grants, submitted the application, and were successful.

 

The impact of the work on the floor spreads to many, as The Trusts Arena provides a facility for their regular community users such as Basketball, Volleyball, Roller Skating, Futsal, Roller Derby, Fencing, Turbo Touch, and Netball. They also have important National and International events in the pipeline, and need to ensure the facility complies with Netball New Zealand standards for use by the Northern Mystics Netball franchise.

 

“Steps taken to extend the life of the Arena floor impacts our ability to provide a space that benefits the West Auckland community. The commercial viability of our business relies heavily on the facility being fit for purpose of which the floor makes up a huge part of this,” said Mike.

 

“We know that sport allows youth from all socio-economic backgrounds to take part and our venue provides the forum for that to happen. There has not yet been devised a way of measuring social good derived from having a community-based facility such as ours available in West Auckland, but it’s our feeling that the benefits are enormous. With 500,000 visitors annually, there is no doubt that support for the venue is a tangible way of giving back,” Mike reflected.

 

The Trusts Arena noted that applying for a TAB NZ grant was easy, and the portal allowed them to see what kinds of grants had been previously successful to ensure their best chance in their application.

 

To apply for funds for your local sports organisation, please apply through our grant system here.