Club Metro asking for member's help to tackle $600,000 debt

Club Metro Board chairman Rod Hart with new manager Stacey Cromarty. Photo / Bevan Conley

Club Metro gone to its members for help to tackle its massive debt.

For the past 15 years the club has been paying around $1000 a week in interest on a $680,000 loan the Cosmopolitan Club took out to carry out alterations.

There is still more than $600,000 left to pay off.

The Wanganui Cosmopolitan Club and the Wanganui RSA amalgamated to form Club Metro in late 2018, and it was hoped the sale of the RSA building on St Hill St would take care of the loan.

Club Metro Board Chairman Rod Hart said that "didn't pan out like that at all".

"What I can get from the history of it is that by the time the combined debts of the clubs were brought together there was significantly less than $600,000 left.

"I've even had a few bills pop out at me two or three years later," Hart said.

"There was a $53,000 GST bill for instance. That surprised the heck out of me."

Hart said he took over as manager in January last year, when the club was losing $20,000 a month.

He employed an accountant to take care of the books and a staff restructure followed, which saved $200,000 a year.

Stacey Cromarty has now filled the manager position after returning from maternity leave.

"The bills have been sorted and we've got the club running well," Hart said.

"We are making a little bit out of the kitchen, the bar, and the gaming at the moment, but try as we might, we can't get into that $600,000."

That's where the club board's latest plan comes into play - and borrowing more money isn't a part of it.

"If we keep doing what we've always done we are going to keep getting what we've always got," Hart said.

"We've decided to try something different, and that's to raise money specifically for investment into our gaming area, and the pokies in particular.

"A fair bit of money comes into the place through gaming but the games themselves are quite old."

Club Metro is currently paying around $1000 a week in interest on the Cosmopolitan Club's 15-year-old loan. Photo / Bevan Conley

The proposal involves members paying $100 for a six-year membership (pay for five, get the sixth free), making a $100 donation, or both.

Through this Club Metro hopes to raise between $80,000 and $100,000 from its 1008 members.

"There's been a good uptake so far," Hart said.

"If we can get that money up front and turn it into gaming machines, we can turn that into income," Hart said.

"We see this as the route to take to put ourselves in a position to start taking chunks out of that loan."

Hart said the issue of funding and promoting gambling had been addressed before the proposal was put forward, and Club Metro already had procedures in place to deter problem gambling.

"What people fail to recognise is most of the small sports teams, Scouts, all sorts of things, are actually funded out of that money.

"It's a huge debate, and to be honest, at board level we were a little bit torn because we are essentially asking people to invest in gambling.

"At the end of the day it's a part of what the club does. It's the reason a lot of people come in, and they get enjoyment from it."

Hart said he was confident the proposal would be embraced by the club's members.

"How do you eat an elephant? You start with the first bite.

"Basically, if the club members want to get behind it then the club will do well.

"It's as simple as that."