New Events Centre and refurbished Town Hall

The new Lower Hutt Events Centre and refurbished Town Hall, opening mid-2018 is a key milestone project in the rejuvenation of our city.

The Civic Precinct and wider CBD (Central Business District) are recognised as the heart of our city and we aim to create an area that’s economically vibrant, artistically rich and people friendly.

Illustration the completed Events Centre facade

The new Events Centre will boost the local economy and add to a suite of facilities across the city that cater for a range of community needs. It will be a modern, flexible space to host conferences, exhibitions and other events. In retaining the heritage of the Town Hall we will have the best of both worlds. Find out more about the Lower Hutt Events Centre.

What to expect

We want the Civic Precinct and wider CBD to be a lively, artistic, people-friendly space for residents and visitors to enjoy and be proud of. The Town Hall will seat up to 800 people for shows and performances. The Events Centre will cater for up to 900 people (550 seated for dinners) and provide a modern, flexible space for events, multi-day exhibitions and conferences.

A range of meeting rooms and smaller function spaces will be available, as well as a large commercial kitchen and onsite café, which will contribute to an emerging dining and entertainment hub in the Civic Precinct. Visitors will be able to access Riddiford Garden directly from the Events Centre.

As one of the key projects in Council’s Economic Development Strategy, it is estimated that over the next 20 years, the hotel and new Civic Centre will have a total impact on Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $104 million and create up to 90 associated jobs per year.

Video walk-through of the designs

Same but different

Lower Hutt’s Town Hall is considered to be an excellent example of Post-Modernist architecture. When it was discovered that the Town Hall and Horticultural Hall were earthquake-prone, Council decided to restore and strengthen the Town Hall and replace the Horticulture Hall with a modern, multi-functional space to host conferences, exhibitions and other events.

The new Events Centre will add to a suite of facilities and venues provided by Council to meet a range of community needs. New community hubs and new and upgraded sport and recreation facilities are reasonably priced and sometimes free. Find out which Hutt City venue is best suited to your event.