Questions are being asked about Kāwhia Hall.
Placing the administration of the Kāwhia Community Centre with the Ōtorohanga District Council doesn’t please everyone, the Kāwhia Community Board heard.
The council took over administration of the hall after complaints were taken to the community board in March last year.
Last week resident Steve Morris told the community board he was unhappy with the condition of the hall and a stench that greeted them when it was inspected before use.
“It was quite obvious it hadn’t been looked at for some time,” he said in the meeting public forum.
“We had to rinse buckets outside and fill the buckets from the hot water tap in the kitchen, which to me is a health and safety issue.”
The complaint has been put in writing to the Ōtorohanga District Council chief, where Morris also asked who was monitoring the hall and ensuring it was being taken care of.
“One further issue that’s come up for me is you used to be able to pick up a key from (the previous hall minders), come down unlock and use it, pay the money and so forth,” Morris said.
“Why has it gone away from Kāwhia and over to Ōtorohanga? And shouldn’t there be someone in the community – a go to person here when you want to use the hall?”
The hall was like a fridge when they opened it up and they couldn’t find how to turn the heaters on, and there was no one local to turn to, he said.
“Thankfully we had a response from the chief executive that the recommendations are going to be looked at, but I would like to submit there should be someone local rather than someone you can’t make contact with.”
The complaint about the hall’s previous administration was made by Kelly Isherwood from the Māori Women’s Welfare League and Lynn Duggan, organiser of the Move Your Tinana Festival.
They spoke about the access and affordability of the community hall and expressed concerns about the booking process.
Duggan wanted to know if the hall caretaker was a contractor or whether the hall was administered by the Ōtorohanga District Council. She inquired 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.”
Duggan said there was only a land line contact and no reporting back confirming the booking. There was nothing concerning hiring the Kāwhia hall on the Ōtorohanga District Council website
Duggan also encountered surprises in the booking system, learning after making a booking that it was for half the hall. Only part of the hall could be hired out at a time.
At the time the Ōtorohanga District Council owned community centre was run by a small group of volunteers.
Unlike the other rural halls in the district, the Kāwhia Community Centre was not included on the Ōtorohanga District Council website with the rural halls at Arohena, Honikiwi, Kio Kio, Otewa, Ngutunui, Tokanui Crossroads.
