TE AWAMUTU NEWS | 1
THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 18, 2025
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SEPTEMBER 18, 2025
Garage project stalls
Te Awamutu’s Holmes Garage community space project is in doubt. It was the subject of one of the questions at last Thursday’s meet the mayoral candidates session hosted by the Te Awamutu Business Chamber. The Mahoe St building, which dates back to 1938, was bought by Waipā District Council as part of the original plan to develop the Te Ara Wai Museum space next to the Te Awamutu Library. Waipā mayor Susan O’Regan said the building was on the Hazardous Activities and Industries List, and the site was contaminated from its previous use. “There are obvious big question marks hanging over that site now in the landscape of a really constrained financial environment.” Three years ago, a Te Awamutu and Kihikihi Community BoardTe Awamutu Business Chamber initiative, the Who Are We Te Awamutu survey, revealed a desire for more community spaces. A proposal to consider the council-owned Mahoe St premises for indoor markets and covered community events was presented to the community board at its May 2023 meeting. The idea was to create a link between the CBD and Selwyn Park, doubling as a multipurpose community asset and an entrance to the park that acknowledged the cultural and historic significance of the site. In August 2023, the council’s finance and corporate committee considered a recommendation from the community board about
creating the community space. It was suggested that community board chair Ange Holt and chamber chief executive Shane Walsh look at the possibility of private funding for
the project as it was not in the Long Term Plan for council funding, so it was not worth looking at in the short term. Walsh said that in a report to
the district authority, council staff recommended the building be demolished and the area paved. In December 2023, the work was postponed.
O’Regan said the opportunity could arise for the council to sell the Bunnings site and revert to the former Holmes Garage for Te Ara
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Culture with class
Eli Harrod Te Kura Tuatahi o Te Awamutu at the Kapa Haka festival
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