Members of the Cromwell & District Promotions Group (CDPG), which received a funding grant this week, say they are proud of what they achieve with limited resources. 

The group had applied to the Cromwell Community Board for operational funding through its contestable promotional grants facility.

Following feedback from Central Otago District Council’s general manager for Tourism Central Otago (TCO) Dylan Rushbrook, the board approved some funds but also ruled that staff would “discuss outcomes expected” from the group prior to the following year’s work being funded.

Dylan told the board at a meeting on Tuesday (June 21) that there needed to be future “accountability of deliverables” from the group.

He was critical of the group’s Cromwell website receiving 5,500 views during a set period where the TCO website for Central Otago had received around 50,000 views, stating that the two sites competed and that this was a duplication that was being funded by the board.

The CDPG had stated it did not wish to forego its website as it was well utilised particularly for promoting events and Cromwell as a destination.

CDPG chair Carolyn Murray, who was not present at the meeting, afterwards defended the group’s work.

“We aim to work alongside Tourism Central Otago, but our focus is different in that it remains on Cromwell and the surrounding districts, to promote and celebrate our town for both visitors and the local community.”

Among other activities, CDPG runs Light Up Winter, a Christmas party, fireworks and street party, cherry festival and multiple sporting events, while employing two part-time staff.

Dylan said on Tuesday he supported their funding application but had some reservations particularly about the group’s future requests for funding. The current request was for approximately $107,000 to cover one year’s operational costs, from the board’s now-contestable promotional grants funding pool.

“The Cromwell and Districts Promotion Group do an amazing job at delivering events but there’s a feeling around duplication with work that Central Otago TCO also undertakes and also whether some of the work that is undertaken is actually delivering real value.”

He listed numerous media articles TCO had helped generate in the last two months to promote Central Otago as examples of how this was “being delivered really well” by Tourism Central Otago.

The CDPG had been given significant levels of funding, Dylan told the board, and if it was to continue “some kind of accountability of deliverables” would be required and some “formality around what expectations were”.

Carolyn Murray said the CDPG already produced detailed reports and accountabilities as were required through the board’s grants policy.

“The Promotions Group is extremely grateful for the continued support from the community board. We are a group of volunteers, with two part-time contractors, and I am very proud of the scale of the events and other promotional activities that we are able to produce with such limited resources,” she said. 

Not granting all the board’s available promotional monies to the group did also allow other groups to apply for the remaining funds, the meeting heard. The board granted $90,000 to the promotion group for advertising and operation expenses for the coming financial year.