Horowhenua District Council to dispose of Foxton War Memorial Hall

Foxton's War Memorial Hall will be put up for sale by Horowhenua District Council.

“Agonising” is how a Horowhenua District Council press release described the emotions accompanying the decision making by the council last week to flog off Foxton’s Memorial Hall, a decision which has been in the wings since 2015, and which according to the press release had community backing then.

The council’s financial considerations, its current debt levels and lack of confidence in those that want to save the hall for community use in the future and an earlier decision to only hold on to core buildings, in the end, decided the fate of the hall, which needs considerable work done to it so it is up to standard in term of earthquake risk.

The press release said it had taken hours of debate.

The councillors decided to sell the building, ignoring its historical significance to the local community who fundraised for it.

A group of locals put in weeks of their time over the past few years to raise interest in retaining the hall, find experts to help with earthquake issues and prepare a business case that would ensure the building was strengthened and financially viable, with some initial help from the council.

Their plans were deemed insufficient for the continued survival of the building and there was doubt they would be able to find the money to save the building. Current estimates from council officers quoted regarding the earthquake strengthening suggest the work needed would effectively mean a rebuild.

All councillors worried about was where the wartime memorabilia would go and decided that Te Awahou Nieuwe Stroom could take those.

Councillors cited costs of obtaining a seismic assessment and a remediation plan and the fact the business case, with for now only one tenant for two years, was not believed to be viable in the long term and would therefore pose a financial risk to the council.

Financial assumptions made in the 2021-2041 Long-term Plan, the council’s debt levels and ongoing maintenance costs weighed on top of that for councillors.

“As Council that has been working to tighten its belt, the decision to sell felt prudent and aligned with what Council said it would do in the 2018-2038 Long Term Plan, which was to ‘own and maintain only core property by 2028′. This direction was backed by the public in 2015 when the Property Strategy was consulted on and subsequently adopted,” the press release said.

Deputy mayor David Allan is quoted as saying: “While it is with a heavy heart we’ve made the decision to sell this beautiful building, we have had to think about what’s in the best interests of the wider Horowhenua district.”

In the same meeting, councillors allocated $10,000 to be spent on relocation of memorabilia currently housed in the Foxton War Memorial Hall.

Other ideas were spun around in quick succession, most without a chance of passing.

A motion to give the committee trying to save the building for their community more time to develop their financial plan further was lost.

Cr Brannigan’s motion to complete the transfer of the hall to the committee and allow them another 24 months before the building becomes the council’s again was lost 3 (for: Brannigan, Jennings, Young) to 6 (against: Allan, barker, Tukapua Boyle, Tamihana, Wanden), with four others unable or unwilling to vote.

Deputy mayor David Allan launched a motion to instruct the staff to make plans for the disposal of the hall to the general market. It was voted against by Rogan Boyle and Justin Tamihana, and for by David Alan, Mike Barker, Ross Brannigan, Sam Jennings, Piri-Hira Tukapua, Bernie Wanden and Alan Young, who seconded the motion. Cr Grimstone abstained, Crs Nina Hori te Pa and Jonathon Procter were absent from the meeting, and Cr Paul Olsen left the meeting before this item was on the agenda.

A motion to ring-fence the money made from the sale of the building for the Foxton community had four votes for (Alan, Boyle, Brannigan, Jennings and Tamihna) and four against (Barker, Grimstone, Tukapua, Wanden and Young) and was therefore lost.

Nola Fox who headed the rescue plan committee said the decision was sad and disappointing. “Our committee will be meeting shortly to see if we can find a way forward.”

Former Foxton Community Board chairman David Roache, who was one of those leading the charge to save the hall, was too flabbergasting to make comments when the Horowhenua Chronicle rang him.