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Auckland Council has narrowed down plans for a future city stadium to two proposals - the Eden Park 2.1 proposal from the Eden Park Trust and the Te Tōangaroa/Quay Park waterfront stadium concept.

Announced today, the choice of the two preferred proposals comes after the recommendation of the Stadium Venues Working Group was presented to Auckland Council’s Governing Body meeting on Thursday.

The recommendation to move forward with a feasibility study was carried 20 to one by the Governing Body for the two options to be assessed against existing stadium provision in the city.

Both bidders have now been invited to complete feasibility studies - at their own expense - within a six-month timeframe.

Four options were in the running, with the 50,000-seat venue at Quay Park favoured by New Zealand Rugby and Eden Park 2.1 - which would include a retractable roof and increase seating to 60,000 - now moving to the next stage.

Auckland Councillor Shane Henderson, Chair of the working group set up after the Council received unsolicited bids, advised “over the last few months, our working group took on the goal of exploring matters relating to Auckland stadium venues, and specifically to create a structured process for the numerous unsolicited proposals the council was receiving to build a 'national stadium' in Auckland.

"The council was clear that this was not a council-initiated or funded project."

“As part of this process, we initiated an expression of interest callout to the open market. Submitters were asked to present options for a national stadium that could be delivered at little to no cost to ratepayers, while providing a vision for a world-class future-proof multi-purpose main stadium that will deliver economic benefits for Aucklanders.”

Henderson said the working group recommended the two frontrunners, adding “this week, we've passed a milestone and we're now going to move forward to a feasibility study to look more closely at the future of a city stadium for Auckland."

Noting that the Council had sought expertise in stadium operations, Henderson went on to say “the process so far balances the need to move swiftly so we can provide certainty for the participants in the process, while also ensuring any decisions are informed by strong expert input."

Image: The Eden Park Trust's Eden Park 2.1 proposal. Credit: Eden Park Trust.

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