Move in with the mayor - Council offices could be community space

Wednesday, 25 October 2023

Suffering city finances could see community groups get a ticket to the council building’s top floor and panoramic views usually enjoyed by the mayor.

As the depth of the city’s financial crisis becomes clear amidst an “urgent demand for community space”, councillor Ewan Wilson is proposing a solution that could kill two birds with one stone.

The longstanding councillor suggests that several storeys of a council-owned building in Garden Place could be given over to community groups, and he even has tacit support from the city’s mayor.

“Until we can resolve what we do with the Municipal Building, maybe we should fill a few floors with community groups,” Wilson says.

Wilson explains the current financial condition of the council would make the argument for a brand new community space difficult to vouch for.

“From my viewpoint, I couldn’t support any new community facility in the next three to five years. So that made me think: how could we better utilise our existing inventory and building?”

He believes the building that currently houses council offices could be pressed into service.

“It’s very clear the Municipal Building needs to be considered for potential repurposing or sale which could take a number of years to work through. Meanwhile, we’ve got an urgent demand for community space, and that, is in my opinion, those who have been dislodged from the Celebrating Age Centre and are costing ratepayers in excess of $50,000 a year to rehouse them in commercial space.”

The council confirmed it was covering the balance of a lease to allow Age Concern to keep operating while the organisation was “displaced” from the Celebrating Age Centre.

This was a temporary agreement and the net cost to council was $70,110 - which included $18,000 in operating expenses.

With the demolition of Founders Theatre only a fortnight away, and the shuttered Celebrating Age Centre requiring extensive repair work, Wilson suggests a compromise.

“That would alleviate the expensive relocation we currently manage, but try to address some of the other issues rather than assume the only solution is a purpose built community building.”

The city’s Mayor, Paula Southgate whose office is on the ninth floor, isn’t opposed to the idea.

“I think that yes, we could lease out parts of the floor by being more strategic and, with the financial pressures we’ve got, we should look at everything we have.”

According to Southgate, senior unelected staff have also been tasked to review the building’s use as part of preparations for the city’s next Long-Term Plan (LTP).

“It’s been known for some time and I’ve been having conversations with the chief executive about this, how we might get best value from the building.”

When Wilson was asked if the building - where his office is too - had low enough occupancy to warrant the suggestion, he thought so.

“The ninth floor is basically broken up into the mayoral wing. Then, there are other offices, and those are for elected members. With the exception of one or two, elected members… work from home and so the utilisation I would imagine, if you exclude the mayoral portion, would be less than 10%.”

I think there’s a great opportunity to say ‘let’s repurpose that [9th] floor’.”

Not only is the suggestion financially prudent, says Wilson, but the move could lead to some novel and atypical interactions between staff and residents.

During debate about the demolition of Founders Theatre, Wilson laid down a gauntlet for his colleagues that may force them to back his plan too.

“Every one of you will have to make sure you are funding some sort of fit for purpose community facility, because you’ve all said you’ve thought we need it. So, I look forward to you committing to that when it comes to the LTP, because if you don’t, I begin to question what word I can actually trust.”

The council’s strategic property manager Nicolas Wells is yet to rule out the idea either.

“Council regularly reviews the utilisation and occupancy of all its buildings and is continuing to do so as part of Long-Term Plan discussions,” he said.

The council has surveyed 107 community groups about the spaces they use and is working out what the needs are, says a statement from Parks and Recreation unit director Maria Barrie.

While some groups that hire venues as needed stated they have trouble, in some cases it’s because of “specific requirements for their activities”, she said.

Any proposals or community views on money for improving the council’s community facilities would be considered during the upcoming Long-Term Plan.