Hydroslide heaven coming
Look up to the top of the under construction Parakiore Recreation and Sport Centre on St Asaph Street, then imagine yourself hurtling down from that height at 40km/h on a hydroslide.
With five slides, ranging from two to three storeys high, Christchurch is set to become home to the biggest and best collection of indoor hydroslides in the country when construction is completed around the end of 2022.
Parakiore is being delivered by Crown company Ōtākaro Limited and will be operated by Christchurch City Council.
Ōtākaro Project Director, Alistair Young, says the slides will draw people from around New Zealand to central Christchurch.
“Parakiore will be home to the country’s first trapdoor hydroslide, where you wait in a chamber, never quite knowing when the floor is going to drop away on you to start a speedy descent to the pool below.
Having five slides means we can offer a range of thrills, ensuring a wide range of people want to come and try the facility out. The sphere slide is being assembled on site now. It is ridden by two people in an inflatable raft, so mum and dads can join in the action with the kids.
A big day out with the family on the slides and in any of the eleven pools at Parakiore can then be followed up with a walk along the river, to a lunch spot in town or for a bit of shopping. That flow on effect is what the Anchor Projects are all about.”
The colouring of the hydroslides is as unique as the excitement they offer. The traditional blues and reds have been replaced with a combination of black and grey.
“We worked closely with Council and Matapopore on a design that adds extra depth to the facility. So, what we have here resembles silver-bellied eels in an eel pot, allowing us to showcase a Ngāi Tūāhuriri / Ngāi Tahu tradition in a contemporary way,” says Young.
The new name – Parakiore Recreation and Sport Centre – also aligns what was the Metro Sports Facility with an overarching desire to tell a story about the region’s cultural heritage.
Parakiore was the son of a Ngāi Tahu chief of Kaiapoi Pa. He is described as a man of great strength and amazing speed as a runner.
Young says when the doors swing open, he certainly expects to see a few people sprinting for the hydroslides.
