KEY POINTS:
When rumours started going around Dannevirke that its distinguished old Public Trust Building was to become a brothel, most locals laughed it off as a joke.
But now that it's almost a foregone conclusion, they are in a state of shock.
A resource consent hearing for the Promiscuous Girlz business is likely to be ticked off at a Tararua District Council meeting next week and the council appears to have little power to stop the brothel opening.
Wairoa woman Teresa McGregor said she bought the historic building to start a cafe-type business but then figured there were already enough of those.
She says it will now be a classy escort service with high standards and exclusive membership.
But a brothel in one of Dannevirke's most distinguished buildings, near churches, dance studios and education centres, is a galling prospect for some locals.
"We've got a petition starting and we want to show the council there are a lot of people against it because they have done nothing to notify the public ... It went through very quietly," resident Gill Allardice said.
She said the council had a moral duty, at the least, to let the community know what was happening and she would do all she could to disrupt business once it started.
"I will be sitting outside every day - a few of us will - and hopefully we will shame any clients coming."
As a business proposition, Mrs Allardice doubted that it would be a money spinner.
"I cannot see our young men paying $100 a bonk."
She said despite Ms McGregor having claimed a positive response from locals, one had told her: "If my son goes there you'd better give him a condom; if my husband goes there I'll smash your face in."
Another local, Marama Kingi, said she was horrified to learn what the new use for the building would be.
She said it was an issue most councillors had been weak on and one that would haunt them come election time.
Mrs Kingi said it was a "hugely offensive" business to have in the middle of the town and the council had an obligation to take ethics into account when dealing with such issues.
Another resident, Garth Taylor, said there had never been an expectation that anyone would want to set up a brothel in Dannevirke and as a result, the town had no bylaws in place making it difficult for someone to do so.
While that was unfortunate, he said there were other bylaws relating to nuisance and offence which those opposing the brothel thought could be applied.
Tararua District Council chief executive Roger Twentyman agreed the lack of bylaws relating to brothels was relevant.
"Neither the community nor the council anticipated this activity coming to town and therefore didn't collectively think to put in some constraints in terms of location."
He said that short-sightedness was something both the council and the community could take responsibility for.
Mr Twentyman said the brothel was a legal business and the only thing the council could do was to impose environmental conditions on it.
Mr Taylor said that along with a petition, a submission was being prepared to give to the council ahead of Wednesday's meeting.
The group had other information it wanted to make the council aware of but he declined to make it public knowledge immediately.
Mr Twentyman said the submission would be welcome.
Brothels have been set up in the Far North and Carterton in recent years but neither lasted long and the Carterton establishment closed after sustained local opposition.
Carterton Mayor Gary McPhee said he didn't have a personal issue with brothels but the majority of his community did and as a result he stood by the residents.
- NZPA
