Councillors back extra $16m for CBD project
The Invercargill City Council looks set to boost its city block investment to $46 million to get the project completed.
Councillors yesterday passed a motion unanimously that revealed the preference to commit an extra $16m into stages 1, 2, and 3 of the development.
The decision will officially be made next Tuesday around adding $16m to the $30m it had already committed.
Cr Nigel Skelt made a passionate plea to boost city block funding, although he seemed to be preaching to the converted.
He pointed to a submission from the Youth Council which he said hammered home why the council needed to ensure the project went ahead as planned.
Members of the Youth Council told councillors that when they went to Dunedin, Christchurch, Wellington, or Auckland to speak with their peers, they were ashamed to say they were from Invercargill.
‘‘I was at another meeting with our community funders, who go out to the schools and offer scholarships. The feedback from those young people was that they are ashamed to also say [they are from Invercargill],’’ Skelt said.
‘‘Each and every one of us have a reasonability to turn that around for our youth. They are our lifeblood, they are our future. We have this opportunity in front of us,’’ Skelt said.
Cr Alex Crackett supported Skelt’s comments saying she also wanted the project to go ahead for the youth of the city.
Cr Lesley Soper spoke about the need to grab the opportunity.
‘‘If we say no to this chance it may not come along again in our lifetimes. I would bitterly regret if we did not make the brave move,’’ Soper said.
Cr Darren Ludlow moved the motion which included the wish to contribute the extra $16m.
‘‘The model of the council having to put in additional funding is not ideal, but we have strong community support for the council to continue to play its role in enabling this project,’’ Ludlow said.
Cr Ian Pottinger felt the project would be a win for Invercargill both in the short term and the long-term.
‘‘The project now offers two major benefits. What it does now is it seriously provides a large building project that will crank up Invercargill’s economy. As a result of that, we are going to end up with a stunning new CBD community complex.’’
Crs Toni Biddle and Lindsay Abbott both spoke in favour of the council contributing a further $16m, but raised questions around what the additional investment would mean for the council in terms as a shareholder.
Council chief executive Clare Hadley said that detail would be in the report when they made the final decision next week.
Cr Biddle felt there had not been a lot of investment in the city for decades and said the $46m was a good investment to help make up for that.
Abbott had confidence in the other major equity investor – Scott O’Donnell – and felt the council needed to be ‘‘courageous’’ with its decision.