My Account
Point Wells residents and ratepayers turned out in force on Tuesday, June 5 for the official handover of the keys – and management – of their local hall from Auckland Council to the community.
The new arrangement means that the Point Wells Hall committee can set its own hire fees and is responsible for its day-to-day running, while Council retains ownership of the building.
Hall committee chairman Laurence Eyres said the successful transition process was a result of a an efficient and amicable partnership between Point Wells and Council’s rural hall advisor for Rodney, Jo Heaven.
The Point Wells Hall was built in 1956 by local volunteers. By 2008, it had become too costly to run and maintain by the community and was handed over to Rodney District Council.
When Rodney came under Auckland Council control in 2010, an attempt was made to standardise hall management and hire fees throughout the Supercity region, which caused problems in many smaller communities. Since then, Rodney Local Board has had the discretion to discount hall hire in some instances, but the Board has to make up the difference from its own budget.
Board chair Beth Houlbrooke said the appointment of Jo Heaven as rural hall advisor two years ago and efforts to pass more control back to communities was a positive move.
“Where a community has got the capacity and the interest and the will, we much prefer them to take charge of it,” she said. “The community can upgrade the equipment and set their own charges. It puts the control back in their hands.”
There are 23 Council-owned halls in Rodney, nine of which are still fully Council-managed, and the remaining 14 community-managed in varying degrees.
Point Wells Hall information can be found at pointwellsvillage.co.nz/hall-bookings.
