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Council opts for $51.6m build
By Sue Newman
sue.n@theguardian.co.nz
A landmark decision was made by just 12 people yesterday, but it was a decision that will give the Ashburton District a community facility that will endure decades into the future. Ashburton District councillors signed off on a deal that will see up to $51.6 million spent on a new civic centre and library, one they decided should include cutting-edge energy saving features and one that will be large and flexible enough to accommodate the needs of the district for more than half a century. The price might be at the upper end of the build options, but
council chief executive Hamish Riach said from the expert advice given he had a high degree of certainty that the complex would be built for $51.6 million. “Councillors should be satisfied with the layers of expert advice put around this project to date. There should be a degree of comfort around the numbers,” he said. The $51.6 million includes the demolition of the county building, the Methodist Church hall and the May building at the east of the site and it includes fit-out, moving and all associated costs. Also included is a dedicated budget of $3 million for environmentally sustainable design features and
10 per cent contingency and 5 per cent escalation allowances. It includes a 2450 square metre library space, cafe, performance space, meeting and breakout rooms and a kitchen on the ground floor and the council’s offices on level one. Laminated timber as construction material is included, but this is subject to a cost benefit analysis. The community was given four options for the build, ranging from $49 million to $53 million and after reading 169 submissions and listening to 14 submitters, councillors agreed they needed to build the best possible complex and asked staff to compile a report with a recommended option.
Strategy and policy manager Toni Durham said they took on board comments asking the council to build a facility that would last, not to cut corners or cost. “They clearly wanted us to do this once and to do it right,” she said. Rather than opting for a ‘pick and mix’ option, Durham said staff looked at the space and facilities the community wanted. “We felt that to exclude space in the library at this stage wouldn’t create the social hub the council is seeking.” Not all councillors were happy with the big ticket build, with Peter Reveley, Lynette Lovett,
Stuart Wilson and Mark Malcolm all making a pitch for the library space to be reduced. They wanted to carve 250 square metres off this area. “I don’t think we need to go to this extreme. We’re a community of 34,000 and it’s all and good to say we’ll build for the future, but we have to be reasonable. We threw $53 million in the mix to show we’re being prudent councillors, we thought $45 million was adequate for this district,” Wilson said.
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