01 Necessity of amenities; Connection
The Necessity of Community Centre Amenity Refurbishment
Priority: High – resolved within 12mo
Proposed option: Holistically Functioning Community Centre
Budget range: $253,000 New Toilet and shower facilities
$300,000 Playground refurbishment
Funding source: HDC Rates, Sub-development consent conditions/fees
Independent of other commitments, HDC first and foremost has a duty of care to provide functioning and safe amenities in this area. As it stands this is one of the last locations in wider HB to be upgraded, and funds for this have been long allocated.
Likewise, owing to the addition of a new sub-development in the neighbourhood soon to produce more play-age children, funds derived from the construction of this (indeed one of the consent conditions) have also been deliberately set aside to refurbish and upgrade the existing playground, as was the community’s wishes when consulted on this.
The playground, as it stands, contains a lot of equipment that has either failed the latest inspection or is no longer compliant (as was predicted by council) hence the necessity, and urgency of the upgrade. Without this planned refurbishment in process a lot of pieces would have to be removed, meaning the playground would likely be closed immediately, and remain closed for the foreseeable future.
This would constitute a substantial loss to the community, across multiple dimensions.
For clarity, as Colin Hosford (Parks and Property Services Manager for HDC) had begun to articulate in the meeting - and, had he been allowed to continue, might have concluded - this funding is project specific, tied to consents and deliverables and has been approved by council specifically to provide a valuable amenity for the wider community that use and enjoy Te Awanga beach on a daily basis. Furthermore, thanks to ongoing high-level community involvement in this project, we are ensuring this will be used in the most potent way possible where the greatest value may be extracted.
This a lot more than new public toilets and an upgraded playground; This is a holistic reimagining of a unique and vibrant community centre. A place of joy, learning, growth and vitally important connection.
It beggars belief that the aggregate of this project-specific funding has come to be viewed (by some) as a kind of community slush fund or piggy bank that may be raided at will. This speaks of a concerning lack of sophistication in the thinking being proposed, an a complete failure of vision as to how these projects might all be independently funded and realised.
The outcome of this assertion (that one project must come at the cost of another) is likely to be an intractable stalemate, and the attempt to solve a highly complex problem with such a low-resolution solution is analogous to the idea that 'If the only tool you possess is a hammer then you tend to see every problem as a nail'.
It is of great disappointment that there seemed to be some tacit support for this myopic approach.
While it is possible those with beachfront houses or investment/holiday accommodation properties with functioning bathrooms and no young children could conceivably (from a self-interested perspective) perceive little value in communal amenities, it would be a mistake to assume this is a view in any way shared by the majority of stakeholders.
In this respect it would be helpful for the community to understand in some level of detail precisely what we would stand to lose in this, so that it might be accurately appraised and correctly valued before being so hastily tossed on the sacrificial altar of almighty erosion.
To this end, we would appreciate the opportunity to develop this proposal through to a stage where it might be offered for community consultation. This would be in the form of a public meeting and presentation, which we would be happy to host and facilitate at a later stage for anybody that wishes to attend.
Date TBD pending ongoing developments.
