View from the Terris
August 2002

Service Clubs, Community Groups, Marae Deserve a Medal

My work puts me into contact with a wonderful group of people - the volunteers without whom we wouldn’t have a community worthy of the name. I recently attended a couple of functions which were notable for the very high level of volunteer input.

One was the 40th Anniversary of Petone Lions. The club is of modest size (under twenty in number) but they managed to produce cheques for $5,000 to both the Life Flight Trust and the Wellington Free Ambulance on the night. Not a bad effort, I am sure you will agree!

A couple of days later, I was at a certificate presentation to people who had completed a paralegal course, run with the assistance of the Maori Community Law Centre and the Legal Advice Bureau. These dozen women will work alongside young people facing court proceedings, assisting them through the process to ensure they understand their rights. Once again, a tremendous group of people working largely out of one the city’s seven marae, which are developing a very comprehensive range of social, educational and cultural activities, most staffed by people who give their time for free.

There are three things, which I think, distinguish volunteers in our community - one is that they are “other-centred” rather than “self-centred” (as most of us tend to be, and I include myself in the latter category!) Secondly, they are community and family oriented, rather than individually focussed. And the third thing I find they have in common, as I go from group-to-group, is that I see the same faces! In other words, people committed to volunteer service in the community are frequently spreading their time across a whole range of organisations.

I truly don’t know where we would be without them.

Goodbye (we hope!) to the Central City Plaza

The sad story of the Central City Plaza, which cost $30m of ratepayers’ money to build and is currently valued at $6m, is perhaps the biggest monument in New Zealand to poor decision-making.

It is, therefore, with great relief that we record the fact that the building has been sold to a developer. He plans to increase the office space in the complex to provide a Call Centre for 350 people.

If this plan comes off, then, added to the 200-300 people expected to be housed in the State Insurance Building Language Academy, you have a significant influx of people to the downtown area, which shopkeepers in the CBD must be delighted about. The Council has played a small role in both these developments but is not to undertake the investment itself, the reason why the Central City Plaza was such a big mistake.

We will continue to work hard in the inner city to facilitate and co-ordinate business activity in a way which benefits all, but which involves only limited costs to ratepayers.

Other Developments

Those of you who take note of these things, will have noticed that it has been a long time now since there was any sign of activity at the old Central Police Station, opposite the Court building.

My understanding from talking to the developers (Joyce Group) is that they are currently pricing the work involved in completing the building for accommodation purposes and hope to commence work somewhere around the middle of August. That will be good news for those of us who believe the central city lacks enough good quality hotel accommodation.

God Bless,
John Terris
Mayor