Wham! One last Christmas without Kmart

Thursday, 15 February 2018

A huge crane at the Kmart site on the outskirts of Blenheim has been getting fans of the store excited.

Christmas can be an emotional time, especially if you can't spend it with your loved ones.

So imagine the holiday heartache in store for Blenheim Kmart fans as the opening of their beloved store is pushed out until next year.

Excavation work has started at the Westwood development site, however developers are still waiting for their building consent to be approved.

Kmart enthusiasts have been calling for the chain store to open in Blenheim for years, and their prayers were seemingly answered in August last year.

But after early promises of Christmas shopping at Kmart this year, it seems Blenheim will have one last Christmas without the one-stop shop.

The Kmart store in Richmond, the only reason some Marlburians head over the hill to Nelson.

* Kmart to create 60 jobs in Marlborough, but concerns remain over CBD impact

* Kmart on the hunt for new store locations around New Zealand, including Blenheim**

Kmart lovers will have to continue their two-hour drive to the closest outlet in Richmond for their Christmas shopping.

Blenheim Kmart fan Tegan Boxsell was gutted Blenheim's first Kmart, at the Westwood development on Middle Renwick Rd, would not be open in time for Christmas.

'I'm disappointed. I was excited about doing my Christmas shopping there because it's so cheap,' she said.

Boxsell said going to Kmart was the main reason she drove to Nelson.

'I do it all the time. That's why I go to Nelson,' Boxsell said.

Another Blenheim Kmart fan, Fynn Tipene, said he was disappointed the store would not be open in time for the festive season.

'I reckon Kmart is mean because everything is cheap,' he said.

Tipene said he usually made a point to visit Kmart when he was over in Nelson.

He said he too would go there to do his Christmas shopping.

Work on the site in Blenheim began last week, with construction workers preparing the ground to build on.

Outer Limits director Phil Robinson, whose company was building the store, said he was still waiting for the building consent to be processed by the Marlborough District Council.

'There's not much to tell at the moment, we've just started the excavation for the project.'

He confirmed the store would open in the New Year despite plans to have it completed by the end of 2018.

Robinson said he missed the window to have it completed by the end of the year as they 'just weren't ready' to start sooner.

'It will be early in the New Year I think, that's what we expect,' he said.

Robinson said while he hadn't heard people commenting about the project getting underway, there were a lot of positive comments when the news was announced last year.

A post on the 'Bring Kmart to Blenheim' Facebook page, which had more than 600 followers, summed up the reaction: 'WE DID IT!!!!!! KMART IS COMING TO BLENHEIM!!!!!!!!!!!'

Page administrator Linda van Kuyk said in April said she struggled to explain why people loved Kmart so much, but said she personally loved the range of goods and the affordable prices.

'I can't explain it, you just get sucked into the Kmart vortex,' she said.

Council building control manager Bill East said he could not say when the building consent would go through as the clock restarted each time more paperwork was requested.

'Once full compliance is shown with that documentation, we will be issuing that building consent,' he said.

Council received the building consent application from Robinson in December, 2017.

Marlborough Youth Trust manager Jo Lane said when Kmart opened it would be a great opportunity for young people looking for jobs.

'At the moment we are very fortunate in Marlborough that there are great opportunities for young people for jobs, so hopefully it will just help after next year,' she said.

Kmart was approached for comment.