Geopark ‘shop front’ brings concerns
THE Waitaki Whitestone Geopark Trust will open a popup shop in Thames St, Oamaru, by the new year.
But Waitaki deputy mayor Melanie Tavendale raised concerns with Waitaki District Council chief executive Fergus Power including the news in his report to the council as a ‘‘focus project’’ amid public confusion concerning who is making the bid to establish New Zealand’s first Unesco global geopark.
Mr Power noted ‘‘a number of geopark projects’’ had started or been ‘‘reactivated’’ after the council granted up to $190,000 to the trust in September to continue working towards Unesco global geopark accreditation, including plans to lease ‘‘an empty shop in Thames St to have a geopark ‘shop window’, which will be manned for an estimated four hours per weekday’’.
When Cr Jim Hopkins asked for further information on the plan to use a shop front to market the geopark, Mr Power declined to elaborate on his report and said questions would be better directed to the trust.
Cr Tavendale said she was ‘‘uncomfortable’’ with the way
Mr Power presented the information.
The trust’s executive manager, Gerard Quinn, who is also the council’s economic development manager, would not disclose the preferred location until a lease was signed but said the trust planned to have ‘‘a hub from where we can educate and inform locals and visitors alike about the Whitestone Geopark’’.
‘‘It will be a place where they can pop in and find out more about the geological treasures of Waitaki and what the geopark might mean for the district, and also learn more about geoparks around the world and how they operate.
‘‘They can pick up material to help them discover the park themselves, learn more about the cultural significance of some geosites and find out about the geogastronomy project too,’’ Mr Quinn said.
‘‘There had been a call for more public engagement within the community and this is a great way to do it. People can pop in at their convenience and find out more, meet the people behind the Unesco bid.’’
Education programmes and public talks would also be held in the shop, he said.