Big ticket topics were up for discussion when the Cromwell Community Board met yesterday, including demolition of the Cromwell Memorial Hall and ongoing works at the Wooing Tree subdivision. Reporter Jill Herron catches us up on developments.

Approval of a proposed closing date and demolition timetable for the Cromwell Memorial Hall has been put on hold until May.

The move is aimed at allowing the Cromwell Community Board (CCB) to hear more information about what is going to be built in its place and what that may cost.

The 62-year-old hall on Melmore Terrace was set to be removed in July to make way for a new facility and May 2 had been proposed by the Central Otago District Council as its closing date.

Funding of $2.2M has been approved for the design project for its replacement, with the total cost for the facility set at $16M, plus $6M for a new museum at the lakeside site.

Yesterday the Cromwell Community Board decided to wait until concept plans and financial estimates were available for the new hall, before confirming a closing date.

Board member Cheryl Laws said the CCB had been “somewhat excluded” in the planning process and had not heard enough detail from its advisory group before being asked to approve the closure and demolition of the hall.

“It would be good to actually see the concept plan before making this decision,” she said.

Deputy chairman Neil Gillespie agreed and while he said there was no criticism of staff processes, which were being expediated to fit deadlines, he had concerns the community would be left with no hall, for longer than was necessary.

“We’re being asked today to agree to closing the hall and the timeline for its demolition before we know what the new hall’s going to look like and I just don’t get that there’s any rush to do that, no matter what.”

Central Otago District Council property and facilities manager Garreth Robinson told the board that what lay beneath the old hall could not be fully known until it came down and “potential issues” if there were any, could have a bearing on the new design.

He also said staff were trying to get work done within funding timelines that had been set out in the council’s Long-Term Plan.

Board member Nigel McKinlay, who is on the advisory group for the new hall, said a timetable proposing the sequence of the design process was “quite wrong”.

He felt that until costings and designs for the new facility were clearer the old hall should not close.

Planning for the new museum - which was not specifically mentioned in council’s report to the board yesterday - needed to be discussed alongside the hall plans, he said.

The report showed a preliminary concept plan from design company Jasmax was expected in May for the board to approve, with the detailed plan available in November.

No tenders have yet been issued by council for the demolition of the existing Memorial Hall.

A workshop would be scheduled for next month to help members understand more detail around the plans.

The May 2 closing had been proposed to allow the Anzac ceremony to take place at the hall, allow engagement with current users and give groups time to make alternative arrangements for their activities.

It would have also given three months to carry out asbestos removal before the demolition phase, which was planned to occur in July or August.

The board will now revisit the closing and demolition schedule after considering concept plans and financial forecasts for the new hall at its next meeting on May 9.

Wooing Tree footpath plan questioned

Two slices of land needed for one of Cromwell’s two new roundabouts were approved for sale by the Central Otago District Council, to Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) yesterday, for $184,000.

The land is associated with NZTA’s plan to allow enough space for the single lane roundabout accessing the Wooing Tree subdivision to be later expanded.

“Acquiring the extra land will future proof the roundabout by allowing Waka Kotahi to construct an extra lane at a later date,” a council report stated.

A site plan showing the two land parcels (marked as A and B) that will allow future expansion of the Wooing Tree roundabout. PHOTO: Supplied.

The proceeds from the approximately two-thirds of an acre would be used for “the betterment of land within the Cromwell ward”, the Cromwell Community Board were told.

Major roadworks around two new single-lane roundabouts and an underpass all being built at the same time have temporarily transformed the entrance to Cromwell. PHOTO: Jill Herron.

NZTA informed the council they would be building footpaths through the grassed area between the Big Fruit carpark and Barry Avenue, to link with an underpass also currently under construction.

They requested permission to fence off this area while construction was underway.

Board members were reluctant to approve the pathway fencing until the design of the pathways had been examined.

Board member Bob Scott had concerns that proposed paths did not “line up” and others had questions around drainage, the clarity of the location of the underpass and desired travel routes of future Wooing Tree residents, including school children.

Chairperson Anna Harrison said a plan was desired to allow members to be confident of all safety and design aspects.