Key events chase funding as Lion warns of pokie cash shortfall

Pokie machines. Photo / Supplied

Two major community events in Hamilton are having another attempt at securing crucial funding as the Lion Foundation warns a reduction in poker machines in the city will put increasing pressure on the money available.

Hamilton Gardens Arts Festival and the Hamilton Christmas Parade had their initial applications for the next event rejected but have been invited by the Lion Foundation to reapply.

The Lion Foundation and the Perry Foundation have been a significant backer of the gardens festival for more than a decade and for the past two years Lion Foundation has given Hamilton Garden $40,000 annually. Before the merger of the two foundations Lion gave $20,000 and Perry Foundation gave $50,000 a year.

A reduction could result in the events having to find new backers or be scaled back.

Hamilton Gardens Summer Festival spokespeople Sarah Nathan and Chris Williams declined to comment on the funding. Mr Williams said he did not want to make any comments that could jeopardise other decisions made by the organisation's funders.

"As it stands - where we are at the moment - we are all quite happy with it all."

But Lion Foundation chief executive Phil Holden warns a sinking-lid policy on the number of poker machines in the city introduced last August will put further pressure on funding available to the city's community groups.

Mr Holden was unaware of any formal conversations between the foundation and the city council but said the sinking-lid policy meant fewer machines and therefore less money being put back into the city.

He said the impact would have been less if the city council had placed a cap on the number of machines.

The foundation was already under pressure as the number of applications to the Lion Foundation doubled in the past six months to between 700 and 800 a month because of the Government tightening its belt and corporate sponsorship diminishing.

Of about 7000 applications received in its last financial year only 4000 were successful, Mr Holden said.

While the group regularly turned applications down it had criteria and a local board to help it make well-informed decisions, he said. Education was one of the sectors under noticeable financial pressure.

Hamilton Mayor Julie Hardaker confirmed she met organisers of the Hamilton Summer Gardens Arts Festival about an issue with its funding application last week and had written to the Lion Foundation for clarification of any funding changes.

There were 565 poker machines in Hamilton when the policy was adopted last year by the previous council.

In the year ended March 2011, the Lion Foundation granted $2.17 million to groups within Hamilton City Council and nationally $53.25 million was given directly back to the community.

Lion grants

in Hamilton for the year ended March 2011
* Community$751,160
* Education $354,466
* Health$168,250
* Sport$897,942
* Total $2,171,818.