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Petition for Chateau By Paul Charman
Ruapehu Mayor Weston Kirton intends to petition Parliament this week in an effort to fast-track the reopening of the Chateau Tongariro. The 95-year-old luxury hotel closed in February last year when owners Kah New Zealand walked away from its lease blaming
Weston Kirton
seismic issues. The Department of Conservation, which owns the building and the land it stands upon, has had little to say on any prospects of re-opening, telling the King Country News “as the end of lease negotiations are still ongoing, we cannot comment on details related to those negotiations”. The Chateau does require earthquake strengthening – the cost has not been determined. Mayor Kirton said it was unacceptable that Doc could not provide more details on the future of a building which previously supplied 30 per cent of Ruapehu’s bed nights. “Not only are we losing money from the Chateau being shut up like this, there’s the major risk of deterioration, he said, noting that just over $2
The Chateau – closed for over a year.
million per year had been given as the estimated cost of to maintain the building over 12 months. “I expect people from all round the country will get behind our petition to fast track the reopening of the Chateau,” Kirton said. “This is an iconic building where generations of
New Zealanders spent ski holidays and honeymoons and family occasions. It’s not only people in our district, I suspect many thousands of Kiwis just hate seeing this iconic hotel shut up and deteriorating.” His petition will go to Conservation Minister, Tama Potaka
and emphasise the need to streamline complex concessions needed by any new operator who sought to lease the building from DOC. “My understanding is that it is the primarily the lack of certainty generated from the complex regulations associated with
operating in the National Park which is discouraging investors. “Obviously if they’re putting up, say $50 to $100 million, they will need certainty as to how long they can operate there to make their investment worthwhile.” • Further stories, p9.
Workshops to open at Waitomo
Waitomo district councillors have decided to open their workshops to the public – but they will have to be there in person to hear what’s discussed. Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier called for councils to open up their workshops in a report he released last October. His report followed concerns that councils were making decisions in workshops - rather than at open public meeting as they are required to do. The King Country News’ sister papers in Waipā have complained to the Ombudsman
about how Waipā district councillors come to their decisions, arguing that the way they vote has been determined ahead of public meetings. Waitomo will hold workshops in public – but they will not be livestreamed or recorded. Opening up workshops is a move Cr Janette Osborne banks. “And I think it’s a great step towards standardising processes between us and Ōtorohanga, who already have their workshops open to the public,” she said. Councillors voted to adopt a principle of
openness by default for all workshops and briefings, forums, including a commitment to record reasons on a case by case basis should a workshop be closed to the public. A schedule of workshops (similar to the Council Meetings Schedule) will be included on the council’s website. One of the suggestions in the ombudsman’s report was for councils have annual surveys of constituents on the services provided, Mayor John Robertson said. “We have never surveyed our constituents to establish the type of information we should
give,” he said. “I think that we have just got to be careful on some of the recommendations not to impose additional costs, additional administration here, when it won’t serve any great purpose.” In his report Boshier said he did not uncover evidence that “actual and effective decisions’ were made in workshops. “But I saw some workshop practices that are counter to the principles of openness and could contribute to a public perception that workshops are not being used in the right way.”
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