Gloriavale applies for business funding
Religious sect Gloriavale’s application to a $3 billion regional development fund for a new health food enterprise was done with the West Coast in mind, a spokesman says.
A company owned by Gloriavale members, Alpine Health Manufacturing, lodged an expression of interest on July
23 for funding through the Provincial
Growth Fund.
Critics have questioned the appropriateness of giving taxpayer money to the group given its cloistered reputation and extensive holdings, however West Coast leaders are urging the Government to consider the proposal.
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones told reporters on Wednesday that, while there was no guarantee it would see the ‘‘fiscal light of day’’, the application would be considered like any other.
‘‘I did not conceive at the time when we drove through the Cabinet paper that communes would be applying but I have to accept that they’ve made an application and it will go through the process,’’ he said.
Alpine Health is in the process of working through its full application with the local development agency, Development West Coast. Supporters are optimistic it will have a positive impact on an area going through a ‘‘painful transition’’.
A company spokesman said it was seeking ‘‘hundreds of thousands’’ for a factory, plus additional funding for research to investigate the effectiveness of its health food products.
The proposal would create jobs outside the community, and ‘‘act as a catalyst to lift the productivity potential of the West Coast region’’.
‘‘We live on the Coast, and we can see how the downturn in mining, forestry and other industries has affected conditions here.’’
He said the aim of the fund was to support growth in depressed regions of the country. ‘‘Our hope is that it will go to the businesses who can best do that: whether it is us or someone else.’’
The Gloriavale community operates a charitable trust, the Christian Church Community Trust. It has tax-exempt status and controlled nearly $40 million in assets in the year to July 31, 2017.
Alpine Health was privately owned and could not draw on the trust’s assets as it was a separate entity, the spokesman said.
It would also pay income tax on any earnings, he said.
Gloriavale has attracted controversy over allegations of sexual abuse in the community, about 60 kilometres from Greymouth, and former members’ descriptions of an overly controlling environment. Founder Neville Cooper, or Hopeful Christian, served time in prison on sex abuse charges. He died earlier this year.
The Alpine Health spokesman said the company knew the application would be controversial, however ‘‘the perception that we are secretive and secluded might sound good in a media article but it is simply not true’’.
Grey District Mayor Tony Kokshoorn said his community was going through a ‘‘painful transition’’ to diversify its economy beyond extractive industries, and any new industries or investment was welcomed.
It was ‘‘fashionable’’ and ‘‘easy’’ to ‘‘beat up on’’ Gloriavale, but the community had donated to numerous West Coast organisations and members were always willing to help in times of emergency, he said.
The Alpine Health spokesman said Gloriavale spent ‘‘millions every year’’ with local businesses.
Kokshoorn said benefits from the health food application could ‘‘wash around’’ in the community, and the application should be considered ‘‘like any other group’s’’.
‘‘If they meet that criteria and if they end up creating wealth for the country, it should be looked at in a favourable manner.’’
Development West Coast chief executive Chris Mackenzie said the proposal documents provided for a ‘‘number of jobs’’ for businesses outside Gloriavale.
‘‘Gloriavale doesn’t do things by half,’’ Mackenzie said.