Fiery council debate over projects

A newly-elected Timaru District councillor wants the council to reassess its upcoming projects in a fiery debate.

Cr Stu Piddington said at Tuesday’s meeting he was concerned the council tended to ‘‘silo’’ projects, in particular the Heritage Hub and Theatre Royal upgrades.

‘‘We’re proposing a museum and heritage centre, we’ve got a library that’s not fit for purpose.

‘‘We’re putting things in silos and heading off. We’re appointing a project manager for the heritage centre . . . what happens if we find we need to spend millions of dollars on the Aigantighe Art Gallery ... I’m concerned that the process does not make sense,’’

Piddington said.

The Aigantighe Art Gallery’s Historic House Gallery – a category two heritage building – has been out of use since March 2017, as it is severely earthquake prone.

Piddington said although he acknowledged there had been a Long Term Plan (LTP) process which identified the Heritage precinct as one of the key projects, ‘‘the goalposts have shifted’’ in the wake of further information about the public library’s state.

‘‘The library is knackered, it’s not fit for purpose,’’ he said.

Piddington said he was happy with the idea of upgrading the Theatre Royal, as long as it came within its original budget of $12 million.

If it were going to cost more than that, then the council should consider ‘‘synergies’’ such as making it a multi-purpose facility, he said.

Fellow newly-elected councillor Allan Booth said the library upgrade should be the council’s number one priority project

‘‘We really should be considering what we’re doing with the library right now,’’ Booth said.

The previous council decided to repair the roof in an effort to give it at least another eight years’ lifespan. The first stage of work began this month.

Although the roof repair project had been flagged in last year’s LTP, Cr Sally Parker pointed out it was only during further investigations this year that the council discovered the true state of the library.

Crs Barbara Gilchrist and Paddy O’Reilly insisted the temporary work on the library must go ahead immediately.

Cr Peter Burt asked whether Booth and Piddington had any ‘‘agendas’’ to ‘‘stop us pushing on with projects’’.

Piddington replied he had ‘‘no agenda’’ other than he was a newly elected councillor who was concerned about the way the council was spending its money.

Cr Richard Lyon said it had been a ‘‘long journey’’ to get the projects to their current stage.

‘‘I’m not in the game of making promises to the community and then letting them down.

‘‘It’s been a long, long process to get the Theatre Royal where it is. We’ve got to hold the line and be realistic. If we start turning around every time there’s change in council, nothing going to get done.’’

Lyon suggested there be a motion at the next council meeting confirming the rebuild of the Theatre Royal, where councillors could take a vote.

‘‘If you choose to stop it, be it on your heads,’’ Lyon said.

Deputy mayor Steve Wills said the Theatre Royal had been a great community asset and had to be considered a priority as it was not fit for purpose.

‘‘I don’t want to see the council put a handbrake on it. If we delay this process you are going to see even more costs,’’ Will said.

At the end of the debate, mayor Nigel Bowen thanked councillors for their ‘‘robust’’ discussion. a is