THE Kāwhia Community Board is having discussions with the local hall committee after complaints were raised in the public forum of the community board’s recent meeting.
Kelly Isherwood from the Māori Women’s Welfare League and Lynn Duggan, organiser of the Move Your Tinana Festival, spoke about the access and affordability of the community hall, and expressed concerns about the booking process.
Concern was also raised about the maintenance and facilities offered at the hall. Councillor Kit Jeffries said similar matters were raised in 2022.
Lynn Duggan wanted to know if the hall caretaker was a contractor or whether the hall was administered by the Ōtorohanga District Council. She enquired about the system to hire the hall and called for a review of the cost.
“I find $80 an hour quite extreme,” she said.
“Especially when we are talking about accessibility, affordability, and availability to our public amenities that belong to the community.”
Lynn said she had previous experience with property administered by Waipa District Council.
There was only a landline contact and no reporting back confirming the booking.
There was nothing concerning hiring the Kāwhia hall on the Ōtorohanga District Council website
“So, I could not find any of that in the last two months when I went onto the website.
“I also checked some of the meetings over the last year from this board and cannot see anything about the hall.
“So, I think that if I was looking at the vison and the values and the outcomes, I can’t see how the community hall fits into that when we are supposed to be looking after the community interests.”
Lynn has also encountered some surprises in the booking system.
After making a booking for a community event, she was told that only part of the hall could be hired out at a time.
“So, I just wondered if you wouldn’t mind looking at that whole structure – reviewing it – and see what we can come up with that works for the whole community,” she said.
Board chair Geoff Good said the board would informally discuss the issues raised following the meeting. Future use of the hall could be considered as part of the Kāwhia and Aotea concept plan being developed in 2023.
King Country News understands the community centre is owned by the Ōtorohanga District Council and run by a small group of volunteers.
Unlike the other rural halls in the district, the Kāwhia Community Centre is not included on the Ōtorohanga District Council website with the rural halls at Arohena, Honikiwi, Kio Kio, Otewa, Ngutunui, Tokanui Crossroads.
