Bill Dalton: NCC committed to honouring those who gave their lives

Bill Dalton, Mayor of Napier.

Everyone knows that when you enter public life you are going to attract criticism - it comes with the territory.

Some quickly realise the way to avoid much of that criticism is to do nothing. If you do nothing, the only thing you can be criticised for is just that - doing nothing. The moment you undertake the tasks you were elected to perform the criticism will start pouring in.

I was elected initially to lead the fight against amalgamation. We won that fight handsomely and despite claims during the campaign that Hawke's Bay would always be an economic basket case without amalgamation, our economy is booming.

I was re-elected unopposed because in general people were happy with the progress Napier was making. Progress inevitably means change and understandably change unsettles people.

Take the Napier Conference Centre for example.

Napier City Council (NCC) had renovations for this facility scheduled in their long term plan. It was starting to look tired and its layout was no longer ideal.

After talking with the conference industry it became clear that greater exhibition space and seating capacity was going to be required if we were going to attract larger conferences. When we became aware the building required seismic strengthening we brought the whole project forward.

These days, conferences are very often subsidised by merchants paying to exhibit and demonstrate their wares to conference attendees. To enable us to attract these sort of gatherings we needed to add an exhibition hall. This also doubles as a separately usable space that allows more than one event or function to be held at the same time.

Initially, because we are very conscious that the people whose names are on the plaques made the ultimate sacrifice so that we could have better and more prosperous lives, we looked at a concept that kept the eternal flame and the war memorial plaques in the building. Eventually it was decided, following consultation with the RSAs, to remove the memorial, put it in safe keeping and subsequently reinstall it in a more appropriate place.

I am sure those fallen heroes would applaud this positive decision. It is a decision that will see increased prosperity in the city as the strengthened, enlarged and revamped facility allows larger conferences and events to be accommodated.

The name Napier Conference Centre has been criticised as being too bland. One of the problems with having "War Memorial" in the name is that in this day and age it caused confusion. Potential conference bookings, particularly international bookings, were being lost because people thought they were looking at an RSA or RSL.

We are also looking at developing a new library. An option we are exploring is to build a library close to the cenotaph at the western end of Emerson Street. That could provide an ideal home for the War Memorial. We will be working closely with the RSAs as this concept develops.

Shifting the library would add much-needed vitality to that end of town. It would also be a very fitting home for the war memorial. Importantly it would also free up space in the existing library building to allow NCC to consolidate from two buildings into one, increasing efficiency.

The site the current Napier City Council building occupies has potential to add amenity value to the city. One possibility is for the council to facilitate a hotel development on the site. I am sure there are other options and we will explore these to determine the best use of the site.

Napier is in real need of more accommodation for events, conferences and celebrations. Recently when there were a number of events on across Hawke's Bay, people were commuting from Taupo.

The closest available accommodation was in Palmerston North. A four star plus hotel with 100 plus rooms, in the centre of the city, would go a long way towards solving that problem. This is the sort of development that Napier and the entire region is crying out for.

NCC is committed to honouring those who have gone before, especially those who gave their lives in war to ensure we could enjoy better and more prosperous lives.

Bill Dalton is the mayor of Napier.