Eden Park counts down

Photo: JASON OXENHAM Photo: JASON OXENHAM Photo: JASON OXENHAM

DON'T LOOK DOWN: Construction continues on top of the south stand.

SKY HIGH: Workmen at Eden Park put the finishing touches on stairs leading up to level six in the new south stand.

RISING UP: A view of Eden Park’s partially completed east and south stands.

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EASY ACCESS: The partially completed western concourse, behind the west stand, links the ASB and south stands.

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Eden Park’s $240 million makeover remains on target for an October completion date.

More than 560 workers are on site six days a week in order to ensure the park is fully operational before the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

That number is expected to rise by at least 40 to more than 600 workers in the coming weeks.

They’re installing wiring, plumbing, stoves, toilet cubicles and many other essentials in the new south stand and adding a second tier to the east stand, which replaces the terraces.

Construction has also begun on the western concourse, connecting the ASB and south stands.

It means patrons will be able to access Eden Park from a variety of entrances.

Some of the finer details around the complex are starting to take shape, such as building planter boxes for trees that line a new road into the stadium that can carry buses under the south stand and on to the field itself.

Eden Park Trust Board chairman John Waller says he’s pleased with how the redevelopment is progressing.

"Every week that goes past, it gets closer to the date we start testing for the world cup."

Mr Waller was reluctant to discuss how the board plans to raise a $12m shortfall in funding for the redevelopment, other than to say the board is looking at a variety of sponsorship and grant opportunities.

After a break of several months, sport returns to Eden Park next month with two Black Caps one-day cricket matches and a Blues Super 14 rugby game.

- © Fairfax NZ News