Mon 1 April 19.
Council Cosmopolitan Club tender successful
Mayor Don Cameron said the decision of the Taumarunui Cosmopolitan Club committee to sell the downstairs area to Council for use as a community space was great news for the club and the community.
Council put in two tenders with the successful tender being for Council to purchase the downstairs area for $250,000 allowing the Cosmopolitan Club to continue to operate for the benefit of their membership upstairs, said Mayor Cameron.
If at any time in the future the Cosmopolitan Club ceases to trade Council has first right of refusal on purchasing the upstairs area for an additional $150,000.
This outcome provides a low cost solution to providing a safe community space in Taumarunui.
It also provides a lifeline to the Cosmopolitan Club who can now repay their debts and refocus on building a viable club for their membership.
If at any time Council does end up buying the upstairs area ratepayers would have got a property that to rebuild is estimated would cost in excess of $3m for $400,000 which we can then sell off the top half or whatever the Council at the time feels is the right thing to do.
Council's second unsuccessful tender was for Council to purchase the downstairs area and for Forgotten World Adventures to purchase the upstairs area that they would have redeveloped in support of their successful tourism ventures.
Mayor Cameron said that Council wanted to thank Forgotten World Adventures owner Ian Balme for working with us on this joint tender bid which we would have been equally happy if this had of been successful.
At the end of the day however the final outcome as to what tender was successful was the decision of the Taumarunui Cosmopolitan Club membership, he said.
Mayor Cameron added that Council would now revisit the future of the Memorial Hall.
At this stage Council has resolved to demolish the Memorial Hall if an alternative community meeting space was found.
If we do demolish the Hall it is likely we will consult with the community and iwi on what could be done with the site.
Suggestions so far include such things as a creating a new green space with a memorial park and may be even relocating the cenotaph so that it could be used for ANZAC and other outdoor services.
Whatever happens with the Memorial Hall now does not preclude the development of a multi-function community centre as proposed in the Long Term Plan (LTP) in the future if Taumarunui's growth supports it.
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