Agenda of Culture & Sport Committee - Wednesday, 8 November 2023

Culture & Sport Committee MEETING

8 November 2023

Order of Business

1. Karakia Timatanga

Pursuant to Sections 46A(7) and 46A(7A) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, to receive the Chairperson’s explanation that specified item(s), which do not appear on the Agenda of this meeting and/or the meeting to be held with the public excluded, will be discussed.

Any additions in accordance with Section 46A(7) must be approved by resolution with an explanation as to why they cannot be delayed until a future meeting.

Any additions in accordance with Section 46A(7A) may be received or referred to a subsequent meeting for further discussion. No resolution, decision or recommendation can be made in respect of a minor item.

4. Declarations of Interest (if any)

Members are reminded of their duty to give a general notice of any interest of items to be considered on this agenda and the need to declare these interests.

5. Public Comment

To receive comments from members of the public on matters specified on this Agenda or, if time permits, on other Committee matters.

(NOTE: If the Committee wishes to consider or discuss any issue raised that is not specified on the Agenda, other than to receive the comment made or refer it to the Chief Executive, then a resolution will need to be made.)

6. Presentation - Manawatū GymSports Page 7

7. Presentation - Palmerston North Performing Arts Trust Page 15

8. Confirmation of Minutes Page 17

“That the minutes of the Culture & Sport Committee meeting of 13 September 2023 Part I Public be confirmed as a true and correct record.”

9. The Regent Theatre Trust - Annual Report 2022-23 Page 25

Memorandum, presented by Sarah Claridge, Democracy & Governance Advisor.

10. The Globe Theatre Trust - Annual Report 2022-23 Page 97

Memorandum, presented by Sarah Claridge, Democracy & Governance Advisor.

11. Sport Manawatū - Annual Report 2022-23 Page 139

Memorandum, presented by Ann-Marie Mori, Policy Analyst.

12. Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023 Page 185

Memorandum, presented by Dave Charnley, Senior Urban Designer; Ann-Marie Mori, Policy Analyst and John Lynch, Venues Manager.

13. Response to the 'Aquatic Facilities and Water-based Recreation Needs Assessment' Page 193

Report, presented by Ann-Marie Mori, Policy Analyst and Kathy Dever-Tod, Group Manager - Parks and Logistics.

14. Reserve Management and Development Planning Update Page 207

Memorandum, presented by Jason Pilkington, Parks Planner and Kathy Dever-Tod, Group Manager - Parks and Logistics.

15. Committee Work Schedule Page 217

16. Karakia Whakamutunga

17. Exclusion of Public

To be moved:

“That the public be excluded from the following parts of the proceedings of this meeting listed in the table below.

The general subject of each matter to be considered while the public is excluded, the reason for passing this resolution in relation to each matter, and the specific grounds under Section 48(1) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 for the passing of this resolution are as follows:

General subject of each matter to be considered	Reason for passing this resolution in relation to each matter	Ground(s) under Section 48(1) for passing this resolution

This resolution is made in reliance on Section 48(1)(a) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 and the particular interest or interests protected by Section 6 or Section 7 of that Act which would be prejudiced by the holding of the whole or the relevant part of the proceedings of the meeting in public as stated in the above table.

Also that the persons listed below be permitted to remain after the public has been excluded for the reasons stated.

[Add Third Parties], because of their knowledge and ability to assist the meeting in speaking to their report/s [or other matters as specified] and answering questions, noting that such person/s will be present at the meeting only for the items that relate to their respective report/s [or matters as specified].

Palmerston North City Council

Minutes of the Culture & Sport Committee Meeting Part I Public, held in the Council Chamber, First Floor, Civic Administration Building, 32 The Square, Palmerston North on 13 September 2023, commencing at 9.00am

Members

Present:

Councillors Rachel Bowen (in the Chair), Billy Meehan, Mark Arnott, Vaughan Dennison, Lew Findlay, Roly Fitzgerald, Patrick Handcock, Leonie Hapeta, Debi Marshall-Lobb, William Wood and Kaydee Zabelin.

Non Members:

Councillors Brent Barrett, Lorna Johnson and Orphée Mickalad.

Apologies:

The Mayor (Grant Smith) (for late arrival and early departure).

The Mayor (Grant Smith) entered the meeting at 9.18am during consideration of clause 30. He was not present when the meeting resumed at 11.12am. He entered the meeting again at 12.23pm during consideration of clause 38. He was not present for clauses 28, 29 and 35-37 inclusive.

Councillor Lew Findlay left the meeting at 12.03pm during consideration of clause 37. He was not present for clauses 37 to 39 inclusive.

	Karakia Timatanga
	Councillor Rachel Bowen opened the meeting with karakia.

	Acknowledgement of Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori
	In acknowledgement of Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, Councillor Debi Marshall-Lobb spoke about the ways Te Reo is upheld by Palmerston North City Council.

28-23

Apologies

Moved Rachel Bowen, seconded Billy Meehan.

The COMMITTEE RESOLVED

1. That the Committee receive the apologies.

Clause 28-23 above was carried 14 votes to 0, the voting being as follows:

For:

Councillors Rachel Bowen, Billy Meehan, Mark Arnott, Vaughan Dennison, Lew Findlay, Roly Fitzgerald, Patrick Handcock, Leonie Hapeta, Debi Marshall-Lobb, William Wood, Kaydee Zabelin, Brent Barrett, Lorna Johnson and Orphée Mickalad.

29-23

Public Comment

Warren Warbrick made public comment in relation to Item 10: Options to change the Palmerston North City Coat of Arms (clause 34).

Warren is also representing his cousin Wiremu Kingi Te Awe Awe, as head of the Te Awe Awe family, and the traditional leaders of Ngāti Hineaute hapū and Rangitepaia hapū of Rangitāne.

In clause 2.9 of the report John Bevan Ford is referenced as being Senior Lecturer at Massey; at the time he was also designated as the Tohunga whakairo for Rangitāne, and Warren was assigned to be his apprentice. As such he was privy to a lot of the discussions that John had with his people at the time, especially relating to the symbolism of this piece of work.

The Māori chief in the crest was originally modelled on Te Peeti Te Awe Awe and then later his people wished it to be a more generic form of rangatira. In his hand he has a mere pounamu, which was very significant to them because it is a symbol of one of three mere pounamu that recognised the peace making that happened at a place called Tūwhakatupua, and the mere that they held was called Tane-nui-a-Rangi. The one in the crest represents Tane-nui-a-Rangi.

Rangitāne o Manawatū see the crest as being a strong symbol of their relationships with Council and their bicultural way of being. After discussions with his cousin Wiremu Te Awe Awe they would like to see the crest stay as it is and no change to happen.

Moved Lorna Johnson, seconded Billy Meehan.

The COMMITTEE RESOLVED

1. That the Culture & Sport Committee receive the public comment for information.

Clause 29-23 above was carried 14 votes to 0, the voting being as follows:

For:

30-23

Presentation - Special Olympics Team

Presentation, by Olwyn Humphreys and Carla L’huillier, Special Olympics Team Coaches, along with athletes.

The Mayor (Grant Smith) entered the meeting at 9.18am.

Olwyn and Carla spoke about the Special Olympics Team’s trip to Berlin in July to participate in the Special Olympics World Summer Games 2023 - the biggest sporting event of 2023 with more than 170 countries competing: 7,000 athletes, 3,000 coaches and 20,000 volunteers. The New Zealand team consisted of 39 athletes and 22 coaches and support staff.

Highlights included the following:

· The athletes received a range of medals for athletics, ten pin, swimming and 3x3 unified basketball – the largest medal haul to date (5 gold, 17 silver and 12 bronze) – and smashed many personal bests.

· The host town programme in Munich was hosted by three municipalities. Events included being hosted at civic receptions, visits to schools, a beer garden, palace, and planetarium, and joint training sessions with locals. The team had the opportunity to perform their new haka and waiata several times at functions.

· Opening ceremony held at the Olympiastadion, Berlin which has not hosted an Olympic event since 1936.

· Each evening the team met to discuss the highs and lows of the day and to prepare for the next day, and a taonga made in the image of the manaia on their uniforms was presented to someone each day who had done something special.

· All the athletes embodied the Special Olympics oath, which is ‘let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt’. As a country we can be proud of them!

· Community support and fundraising supported the $18,000 per athlete required and raised awareness of the games.

Moved Rachel Bowen, seconded Billy Meehan.

The COMMITTEE RESOLVED

1. That the Culture & Sport Committee receive the presentation for information.

Clause 30-23 above was carried 15 votes to 0, the voting being as follows:

For:

The Mayor (Grant Smith) and Councillors Rachel Bowen, Billy Meehan, Mark Arnott, Vaughan Dennison, Lew Findlay, Roly Fitzgerald, Patrick Handcock, Leonie Hapeta, Debi Marshall-Lobb, William Wood, Kaydee Zabelin, Brent Barrett, Lorna Johnson and Orphée Mickalad.

31-23

Presentation - Palmerston North Heritage Trust

Presentation, by Margaret Tennant, Chair, Palmerston North Heritage Trust Committee.

Margaret presented an update on the activities of the Trust and current heritage issues, as attached to these minutes. In addition, she made the following comments:

· Relationship between Council and the Heritage Trust is going well – individual Councillors are always open to conversation and the library staff have been wonderful.

· Challenges around archive space – Palmerston North is wise not to go along with the Archive Central model.

· Signage boards across the city relating to heritage is important.

· While noting that smaller towns utilise trained volunteers, which may be helpful depending on the task, there are good models of systems to manage archives in other cities/councils. Staff having a working knowledge of archives would be helpful.

The Chief Executive advised the Trust had written to him, along with the NZ Society of Genealogy, and that work is underway regarding recruitment of a City Archivist. The Chief Executive encouraged both groups to make submissions to the Long Term Plan.

Regarding the Heritage Planner role, Officers advised there is not a specialist heritage planner in Council and has not been for at least 20 years, however heritage is involved in a wide variety of planning projects, the expectation being that all planners have a good understanding of heritage and that this is incorporated into their everyday work.

Moved Rachel Bowen, seconded Billy Meehan.

The COMMITTEE RESOLVED

1. That the Culture & Sport Committee receive the presentation for information.

Clause 31-23 above was carried 15 votes to 0, the voting being as follows:

For:

32-23

Presentation - Volleyball Manawatū

Presentation, by Kelsey Higgins, Community Engagement Officer, Volleyball Manawatū.

Kelsey outlined Volleyball Manawatū’s annual plan and highlighted major projects, as attached to these minutes. In addition she made the following comments:

· 2024 is the final year of the contract for the New Zealand Secondary Schools Volleyball Championships, the largest indoor sporting event in New Zealand. The three year contract negotiations will begin next month. Volleyball NZ is looking for the association to be able to lead the operations of that tournament; in which case they will need to increase the Manawatū staff to accommodate this and heighten the professionalism and ensure sufficient funding in Year 3 to cover costs.

· It is important to Volleyball Manawatū that the space at Takaro Sports Club remains a community space, maintained by the Club. They are looking to expand community provision and tie in to the competitive and elite sport pathway in beach volleyball for New Zealand. Previously the only beach volleyball court was at Massey University and the only other city court is a grass court at one of our community parks.

· The Mana Beach 2023/24 season will be the first season the association has run leagues as well as a tournament series.

· An economic impact study on the previous year’s tournament identified a 2,000% return on investment of $180,000.

· Kelsey stated she understood Council worked with Sport Manawatū and not the sports directly but wanted to represent the potential impact of the sport partnership fund for our community, and in particular the national championship.

Moved Lorna Johnson, seconded Billy Meehan.

The COMMITTEE RESOLVED

1. That the Culture & Sport Committee receive the presentation for information.

Clause 32-23 above was carried 15 votes to 0, the voting being as follows:

For:

33-23

Confirmation of Minutes

Moved Rachel Bowen, seconded Billy Meehan.

The COMMITTEE RESOLVED

1. That the minutes of the Culture & Sport Committee meeting of 28 June 2023 Part I Public be confirmed as a true and correct record.

Clause 33-23 above was carried 13 votes to 0, with 2 abstentions, the voting being as follows:

For:

The Mayor (Grant Smith) and Councillors Rachel Bowen, Billy Meehan, Mark Arnott, Vaughan Dennison, Lew Findlay, Roly Fitzgerald, Patrick Handcock, Debi Marshall-Lobb, William Wood, Kaydee Zabelin, Brent Barrett and Orphée Mickalad.

Abstained:

Councillors Leonie Hapeta and Lorna Johnson.

34-23

Options to change the Palmerston North City Coat of Arms

Memorandum, presented by Desiree Harvey, Legal Counsel and Donna Baker, Acting Chief Executive Unit Manager.

Moved Grant Smith, seconded Debi Marshall-Lobb.

The COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS

1. That Council retain the current Coat of Arms.

Clause 34-23 above was carried 15 votes to 0, the voting being as follows:

For:

The meeting adjourned at 10.52am.
The meeting resumed at 11.12am.

The Mayor (Grant Smith) was not present when the meeting resumed.

35-23

Te Manawa Museums Trust - Statement of Intent 2023-26: revised finances

Memorandum, presented by Sarah Claridge, Democracy & Governance Advisor.

Moved Rachel Bowen, seconded Billy Meehan.

The COMMITTEE RESOLVED

1. That the Committee agree the revised Statement of Intent 2023-26 from Te Manawa Museums Trust.

Clause 35-23 above was carried 14 votes to 0, the voting being as follows:

For:

36-23

Te Manawa Museums Trust - Annual Report 2022-23

Memorandum, presented by Susana Shadbolt, Te Manawa Chief Executive Officer, Catherine Parsons, Te Manawa Finance & Commercial Manager and Caroline Tate, Te Manawa Museums Trust Board Chair.

Te Manawa representatives noted the following corrections to their report:

· Page 77 of Agenda, all the notes in the ‘Comments’ column should read 21/22, not 22/23.

· The Property, Plant and Equipment note on pages 105 and 106 of the Agenda is a duplication.

Moved Rachel Bowen, seconded Billy Meehan.

The COMMITTEE RESOLVED

1. That the Committee receive Te Manawa Museums Trust Board’s Annual Report 2022-23 (Attachment 1).

Clause 36-23 above was carried 14 votes to 0, the voting being as follows:

For:

37-23

Play Policy - Annual Implementation and Monitoring Report 2023

Memorandum, presented by Manumea Durie, Play Advisor and Anton Carter, Group Manager – Community Services.

Councillor Lew Findlay left the meeting at 12.03pm.

Moved Rachel Bowen, seconded Billy Meehan.

The COMMITTEE RESOLVED

1. That the Committee receive the memorandum titled ‘Play Policy - Annual Implementation and Monitoring Report 2023’ presented to the Culture & Sport Committee on 13 September 2023.

Clause 37-23 above was carried 13 votes to 0, the voting being as follows:

For:

Councillors Rachel Bowen, Billy Meehan, Mark Arnott, Vaughan Dennison, Roly Fitzgerald, Patrick Handcock, Leonie Hapeta, Debi Marshall-Lobb, William Wood, Kaydee Zabelin, Brent Barrett, Lorna Johnson and Orphée Mickalad.

38-23

2023/24 Maintenance and Renewal Plans and Budgets for Cultural Facilities

Memorandum, presented by Bryce Hosking, Group Manager - Property and Resource Recovery.

The Mayor (Grant Smith) entered the meeting again at 12.23pm.

Moved Rachel Bowen, seconded Billy Meehan.

The COMMITTEE RESOLVED

1. That the Committee receive the memorandum titled ‘2023/24 Maintenance and Renewal Plans and Budgets for Cultural Facilities’, presented to the Culture & Sport Committee on 13 September 2023.

Clause 38-23 above was carried 14 votes to 0, the voting being as follows:

For:

The Mayor (Grant Smith) and Councillors Rachel Bowen, Billy Meehan, Mark Arnott, Vaughan Dennison, Roly Fitzgerald, Patrick Handcock, Leonie Hapeta, Debi Marshall-Lobb, William Wood, Kaydee Zabelin, Brent Barrett, Lorna Johnson and Orphée Mickalad.

Note:

Moved Billy Meehan, seconded William Wood.

The motion: ‘That the Chief Executive be instructed to present an annual maintenance and renewal plans and budgets report for Council owned sports facilities, excluding the arena, to the Culture & Sport Committee’, was withdrawn.

39-23

Committee Work Schedule

Moved Rachel Bowen, seconded Billy Meehan.

The COMMITTEE RESOLVED

1. That the Culture & Sport Committee receive its Work Schedule dated September 2023.

Clause 39-23 above was carried 14 votes to 0, the voting being as follows:

For:

	Karakia Whakamutunga
	Councillor Rachel Bowen closed the meeting with karakia.

The meeting finished at 12.43pm.

Confirmed 8 November 2023

Chair

Memorandum

TO: Culture & Sport Committee

MEETING DATE: 8 November 2023

TITLE: The Regent Theatre Trust - Annual Report 2022-23

Presented By: Sarah Claridge, Democracy & Governance Advisor

APPROVED BY: Donna Baker, Acting Chief Executive Unit Manager

RECOMMENDATION TO CULTURE & SPORT COMMITTEE

1. That the Committee receive the Regent Theatre Trust Board’s Annual Report 2022-23 (Attachment 2).

1. ISSUE

1.1 The Regent Theatre Trust Board (the Regent) has submitted its Annual Report 2022-23 (Attachment 2). This memorandum provides an opportunity for Elected Members to review the progress the Regent Theatre has made against its Statement of Intent during the period 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023.

1.2 Representatives of the Regent are in attendance to present.

2. BACKGROUND

2.1 The Regent is a Council Controlled Organisation (CCO) which was set up to independently manage and promote the Regent Theatre as the preferred local venue of choice for international, national and local performing arts experiences.

2.2 A CCO is an organisation in which Council has the right to appoint at least fifty percent of the members on the Board and must work towards Council’s objectives on its behalf.

2.3 For the 2022-23 year, Council expected the Regent to focus on the delivery of four core functions:

· Be Palmerston North’s premier theatre attracting regional and national audiences to visit Palmerston North.

· Host a good quality range of events attracting diverse audiences.

· Deliver an increase in audience size and performance nights.

· Protect and futureproof this heritage building.

2.4 In 2022/23, the Council granted the Regent Theatre Trust Board $252,363^{^[1]} to deliver the core functions listed in 2.3 above. This included an additional $5,425 for the inspection report for the fly tower (used for the movement of scenery and lighting).

2.5 The Council owns the building and maintains it and the Trust uses it rent free.

2.6 The Local Government Act (LGA) requires CCOs to produce an annual report which compares its actual and intended performance (as set out in the Statement of Intent) and audited financial statements.

2.7 Audit New Zealand has not yet audited the Regent’s Annual Report. Therefore, the attached annual report is still in draft form. An updated report will be presented to the Committee in the event there are any material changes following audit.

3. PERFORMANCE FOR THE Year July 2022 - June 2023

3.1 Highlights from the Regent’s Annual Report include the following:

· Secured highest patronage figures in the last 18 years - 113,561 people attended shows at the Regent during this reporting period.

· Hosted several sell-out international and national touring events including Jimmy Carr, The Wiggles, Kevin Bloody Wilson, Tina Simply the Best, Leaving Jackson World of Musicals, 10 Tenors, Royal Czech Ballet, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and the Royal New Zealand Ballet.

· Hosted nine ethnically diverse concerts including Pasifika Fusion, Pae Tamariki, World on Stage, Atamira Dance Co. and the Regional Cultural Festival.

· Locally produced Legend of Okatia was the key event for the Regent’s 25-year celebrations.

· The Manawatū Youth Theatre performed Moana Jr, attracting 4,007 people to the theatre and a chance for young people to perform on a big stage.

3.2 Attachment 1 shows the Regent’s performance against the agreed Statement of Intent targets. All but two of the Regent’s performance measures were achieved.

3.3 The number of ‘school prizegivings’ was not achieved because the Regent was unable to accommodate the requests, due to other bookings.

3.4 The total attendance split between community and commercial events also missed its target. The ratio of attendance of community vs commercial events measures the ratio of events (community/ commercial) held within the auditorium. Increasing the ratio of commercial events to 30% will increase the financial security of the theatre and reduce the Regent’s reliance on Council grant support. As the Board encourages greater commercial use of the theatre, Council will need to closely observe how the Board manages this objective against continuing to offer community use of the theatre.

3.5 The Regent’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions report (Attachment 3) provides a baseline of the Regent’s carbon emissions for the 2021-22 year. It offers recommendations and future actions for how the Regent could reduce its carbon emissions in the future, and could be used to set future performance targets.

3.6 The Regent has not recorded its result for the measure ‘Commitment to bi-culturalism and cultural diversity’ in the second part of the year, stating that work being done to encourage bicultural shows to perform is ongoing. Officers note the annual target was met in the first half of the year.

3.7 Officers see no merit in comparing 2022 with the COVID years of 2020 and 2021; instead Table 1 compares 2022 results with pre-COVID years 2018 and 2019.

Table 1: The Regent – Annual Performance Results for the financial years 2018, 2019 and 2022 (Covid-free years)

Measure		2017-18 30 June 2018	2018-19 30 June 2019	2022-23 30 June 2023	3 Year Trend
Live nights – performances in the auditorium at night commercial + community	Actual	139 (36 commercial)	153 (37 commercial)	88 (48 commercial)	↓
Auditorium days usage	Actual	158	181	185	↑
Summary of events – Total number of events held at the Regent	Actual	365	385	437	↑
Patronage – Total attendance for all events	Actual	91,065	98,781	113,561	↑
Average size of audience per event	Actual	249	257	260	↑

4. fINANCIAL pERFORMANCE

4.1 Financially the Regent has done well compared to last year. It has achieved an operating net surplus of $94,000, which is $86k better off than forecasted. This is due to the theatre’s operations being much stronger than expected.

4.2 The Trust's current assets are more than twice its liabilities indicating that the Trust can satisfy its obligations.

Table 2: Financial Information for Annual Report 2022-23

	2023			2022
Summary Financials ($000)	Actual	Budget	Var.	Actual	Var.*
Financial Performance
PNCC Grant	252,363	243,079	9,284	370,669^{^[2]}	(118,306)
Total Revenue	1,018,646	871,129	147,517	728,747	289,899
Total Expenses	924,643	863,404	(61,239)	697,795	226,848
Net Surplus (Deficit)	94,003	7,725	86,278	30,952	63,051
Financial Position
Current Assets	610,391	573,770	36.621	551,614	58,777
Total Assets	1,225,551	573,770	41,866	1,163,047	58,777
Current Liabilities	242,934	284,046	41,112	274,434	(31,500)
Total Liabilities	242,934	284,046	41,112	274,434	(31,500)
Equity	982,617	899,639	82,978	888,613	94,004
Cash Flows
Total Net Cash Flows	(43,827)	22,115	(21,712)	156,105	(199,932)
Opening Cash	341,456	341,456	0	185,351	156,105
Closing Cash	297,629	363,611	(65,982)	341,456	(43,827)

*when compared to the same period 12 months ago

5. NEXT STEPS

At the end of February 2024, the Regent Theatre Trust Board will submit:

• draft Statements of Intent for 2024–27; and

• six-month reports on the current Statement of Intent 2023–26.

These will be presented to the next available Culture & Sport Committee meeting.

6. Compliance and administration

Does the Committee have delegated authority to decide?		Yes
Are the decisions significant?		No
If they are significant do they affect land or a body of water?		No
Can this decision only be made through a 10 Year Plan?		No
Does this decision require consultation through the Special Consultative procedure?		No
Is there funding in the current Annual Plan for these actions?		Yes
Are the recommendations inconsistent with any of Council’s policies or plans?		No
The recommendations contribute to Goal 2: A Creative and Exciting City
The recommendations contribute to the achievement of action/actions in the Arts and Heritage Plan. The action is: to support CCOs to achieve the objectives of the Arts and Heritage plan.
Contribution to strategic direction and to social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being	Receiving the Annual Report is a mechanism for Council to provide guidance and direction to the cultural CCOs and meets Council’s responsibility to monitor the CCOs under the LGA.

Attachments

1.	The Regent Theatre Trust_Performance Measures 2022-2023 ⇩
2.	The Regent Theatre Trust_Annual Report 2022-2023 ⇩
3.	Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory Report 2021-22 ⇩

Memorandum

TO: Culture & Sport Committee

MEETING DATE: 8 November 2023

TITLE: The Globe Theatre Trust - Annual Report 2022-23

Presented By: Sarah Claridge, Democracy & Governance Advisor

APPROVED BY: Donna Baker, Acting Chief Executive Unit Manager

RECOMMENDATION TO culture & sport COMMITTEE

1. That the Committee receive the Globe Theatre Trust Board’s draft Annual Report 2022/23 (Attachment 2).

1. ISSUE

1.1 The Globe Theatre Trust Board (the Globe) has submitted its draft Annual Report 2022-23 (Attachment 2). This memorandum provides an opportunity for Elected Members to review the progress the Globe Theatre has made against its Statement of Intent during the period 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023.

1.2 Representatives of the Globe are in attendance to present.

2. BACKGROUND

2.1 The Globe is a Council Controlled Organisation (CCO), which was set up to independently manage and promote the Globe Theatre as a venue for hire. A CCO is an organisation in which Council has the right to appoint at least fifty percent of the trustees and must work towards Council’s objectives on its behalf.

2.2 For the 2022/23 year, Council expected the Globe to focus on the delivery of three core functions:

· Remain an affordable venue for hire

· Support theatre talent development – onstage and off

· Encourage diversity and the celebration of diverse communities.

2.3 In 2022/23, the Council granted the Globe Trust Board $121,125^{^[3]} to deliver the core functions listed in 2.3 above. Council expected the Board to supplement this grant by seeking external revenue.

2.4 The Local Government Act (LGA) requires CCOs to produce an annual report which compares its actual and intended performance (as set out in the Statement of Intent) and audited financial statements.

2.5 The attached Annual Report has not yet been audited by Audit NZ. An updated report will be brought to Committee in the event there are any material changes following audit.

3. PERFORMANCE FOR THE Year July 2022 - June 2023

3.1 Highlights from the Globe’s Annual Report include the following:

· Hosted a wide range of shows and events – such as: Manawatū Youth Theatre, French film festivals, Powerlifting National Championships, comedy nights, Manawatū Jazz Festivals and the Aotearoa Country Music Awards.

· Continued to build strong working relationships with a variety of community groups including 12 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) groups. MOU groups used the theatre 49% of the time in 2022/23.

· Continued to attract touring acts for many musical/ theatre performances. By offering acts different options for paying the hireage fee, 31 groups took up the offer of the 70/30 hire option – which increases the variety of acts performed in the city.

· Attracted 35 national/ international touring groups to Palmerston North, which increases the variety of acts performed in the city.

· Received a Highly Commended award in the Manawatū Business Awards 2022 ‘Not for Profit’ category.

3.2 The Globe has achieved most of its targets, except for three: number of usages; number of audience members and the percentage of total theatre usages by a community group. Attachment 1 shows the Globe’s performance against the agreed Statement of Intent targets and includes Officer comments.

3.3 Objective 1: Increasing usage and audience attendance

The Globe managed to increase usage compared to 2022, however, admits its target was too ambitious.

The measure ‘Number of audience members’ did not meet the target. The Globe was very successful at encouraging new acts to tour Palmerston North, however despite there being more performances at the Globe than expected, fewer people attended the shows. Part of this could be due to the cost of living crisis, and people having less disposable income to attend ‘new’ or unfamiliar shows. Generally, returning or familiar shows were well attended, but some of the first-time performances (to Palmerston North) struggled.

3.4 Objective 2: Supporting and encouraging local community use

The percentage of theatre usage attributed to community groups (excluding MOUs) did not meet its target of 45%. This measures the community groups which use the theatre for one-off performances or irregularly rather than the MOUs who use the theatre on a regular basis. Despite this measure not meeting its target, Officers are not concerned, as when combined with the MOU result, community use of the theatre reached 87% against a combined target of 80%.

3.5 Work to provide ‘Support for Rangitānenuiarawa, whanau hapū and iwi to create and deliver art experiences’, has started progressing towards the target, which was to develop a vision and actions for implementation. The Trust Board has initiated a relationship with Rangitāne and has commissioned Rangitāne artists to design and create artwork for the new Theatre Foyer. The Board also recently appointed Marama Lobb onto the Board. The development of a vision and additional actions are the next steps.

3.6 Officers see no merit in comparing 2022 with the COVID years of 2020 and 2021; instead Table 1 compares 2022 results with pre-COVID years 2018 and 2019.

3.7 Despite the Globe Trust not meeting its 22/23 target for Patronage (audience attendance), it still achieved greater audience numbers than in the pre-COVID years.

Table 1: The Globe – Annual Performance Results for the financial years 2018, 2019 and 2023 (Covid-free years)

Measure		2017-18 30 June 2018	2018-19 30 June 2019	2022-23 30 June 2023	3 Year Trend
Number of Usages	Actual	514	680	581	↓
Number of Performances	Actual	175	253	296	↑
Patronage – Total attendance for all events	Actual	Not recorded	21,409	23,190	↑
% Community Usage % of total usage attributed to community groups (including MOUs)	Actual	83%	83%	87%	↑
Average size of audience per event	Actual	Not available	85	78	↓

4. Financial Performance for the year July 2022- June 2023

4.1 The Trust had an operating net surplus $64K, which was less than the budgeted net surplus of $117K in the Statement of Intent. The Globe sets out in their report that this was due to an ambitious revenue target for sales of goods and services.

4.1 The Trust's current assets are more than 2.7 times its liabilities indicating that the Trust can satisfy its obligations.

Table 2: Financial Information for the draft Annual Report 2022-23

	2023			2022
Summary Financials ($000)	Actual	Budget	Var.	Actual	Var.*
Financial Performance
PNCC Grant	121,125	119,257	1,868	118,075	3,050
Total Revenue	430,782	452,599	(21,817)	266,815	163,967
Total Expenses	366,437	334,877	31,560	285,653	(80,784)
Net Surplus (Deficit)	64,345	117,722	(53,377)	(18,838)	83,183
Financial Position
Current Assets	248,162	338,232	(90,070)	209,547	38,615
Total Assets	562,774	578,470	(15,696)	479,785	82,989
Current Liabilities	91,287	56,914	(34,373)	71,092	20,195
Total Liabilities	94,647	60,277	(34,370)	76,003	18,644
Equity	468,127	518,193	(50,066)	403,783	64,344
Cash Flows
Total Net Cash Flows	35,939	127,688	(91,749)	20,502	15,437
Opening Cash	206,545	206,544	1	186,043	20,502
Closing Cash	242,484	334,232	(91,748)	206,545	35,939

*when compared to the same period 12 months ago

5. NEXT STEPS

5.1 Council Officers will communicate any Council comments on the draft Annual Report to the Globe Theatre.

5.2 At the end of February 2024, the Globe Theatre Trust Board will submit:

· their draft Statements of Intent for 2024–27; and

· six-month report on the current Statement of Intent 2023–26.

These will be presented to Committee in April 2024.

6. Compliance and administration

Does the Committee have delegated authority to decide? If Yes quote relevant clause(s) from Delegations Manual		Yes
Are the decisions significant?		No
If they are significant do they affect land or a body of water?		No
Can this decision only be made through a 10 Year Plan?		No
Does this decision require consultation through the Special Consultative procedure?		No
Is there funding in the current Annual Plan for these actions?		Yes
Are the recommendations inconsistent with any of Council’s policies or plans?		No
The recommendations contribute to Goal 2: A Creative and Exciting City
The recommendations contribute to the achievement of action/actions in Arts and Heritage Plan. The action is: to support CCOs to achieve the objectives of the Arts and Heritage plan.
Contribution to strategic direction and to social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being	Receiving the Annual Report is a mechanism for Council to provide guidance and direction to the cultural CCOs and meets Council’s responsibility to monitor the CCOs under the Local Government Act.

Attachments

1.	The Globe Theatre Trust Board_Non-financial Performance Results ⇩
2.	The Globe Theatre Trust_Draft Annual Report 2022-23 ⇩

Memorandum

TO: Culture & Sport Committee

MEETING DATE: 8 November 2023

TITLE: Sport Manawatū - Annual Report 2022-23

Presented By: Ann-Marie Mori, Policy Analyst

APPROVED BY: David Murphy, Chief Planning Officer

RECOMMENDATION TO CULTURE & SPORT COMMITTEE

1. That the Committee receive Sport Manawatū’s 2022-23 Annual Report (Attachment 1) presented on 8 November 2023.

1. ISSUE

1.1 In July 2022 Sport Manawatū and the Council entered a three-year funding agreement and strategic partnership plan. Under the 2022-25 agreement there is a requirement to submit an Annual Report.

1.2 A six-month progress update was presented to the Culture & Sport Committee in March 2023.

1.3 Staff have evaluated Sport Manawatū’s performance against the agreement’s accountability requirements and performance measures to assess progress towards three outcome areas.

1.4 Attachment 1 is Sport Manawatū’s Annual Report to the Council for the period from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023. Representatives of Sport Manawatū are in attendance to present the report.

1.5 Sport Manawatū’s audited accounts for 2022-23 will be presented once they are available.

2. BACKGROUND

2.1 Sport Manawatū is an independent charitable trust and receives multiple and diverse sources of funding, including from Ihi Aotearoa - Sport New Zealand, the Palmerston North City Council, other councils in the region, the Te Whatu Ora Health NZ – MidCentral, and community trusts. Sport Manawatū works towards meeting several different investment outcomes through its activities and, therefore, its report includes some activities that are not solely funded through Council’s funding agreement.

2.2 Council has funded Sport Manawatū since the early 1990s. Over time the grant amount has varied as services were added, including strategic plan implementation, event support, and active transport promotion. These changes have reflected organisational changes by Council (such as fluctuations of in-house versus outsourced delivery models) as well as Council policy changes (including changes to community outcomes and the Support and Funding Policy).

2.3 The 2022-25 funding agreement outcomes, based on Council’s 2021 strategic direction, are:

1. Palmerston North is one of the most active communities in NZ.

2. Sports events create both social opportunities and economic benefits.

3. People have the skills to safely and confidently cycle, and walk, on our transport network.

These outcomes guide Sport Manawatū’s reporting.

3. SPORT MANAWATŪ IS MAKING GOOD PROGRESS TOWARDS THE AGREEd OUTCOMES

3.1 An evaluation of Sport Manawatū’s accountability reporting requirements and performance measures is summarised in Attachment 2. This assessment is part of ongoing discussions with Sport Manawatū staff.

3.2 In summary, Sport Manawatū has demonstrated good progress towards meeting the performance measures in the first year of the 2022-25 funding agreement. The performance measures guide monitoring for the key outcome areas. In many cases, Sport Manawatū has provided useful narrative alongside quantitative data to help measure progress towards the agreed outcomes. Areas to improve relate to its role in the outcomes relating to sports events (outcome 2) and active transport (outcome 3).

3.3 In terms of a wider assessment of the combined contribution of both the Council and Sport Manawatū towards the outcomes, the relevant high-level measures in Council’s strategies and plans are still being collated for reporting. Staff will report on an analysis of these measures once all this data has been received.

4. tHE NEXT STEP IN REPORTING SPORT MANAWATŪ’S PROGRESS WILL BE A SIX-MONTH UPDATE

4.1 Council and Sport Manawatū staff will continue to work closely together on the wide-ranging activities and initiatives covered by the funding agreement for the 2022-23 year.

4.2 Under the new agreement, Sport Manawatū will provide a six-month update to the Council for the period ending December 2023, in early 2024. Staff may be able to report on the high-level measures at this point.

5. Compliance and administration

Does the Committee have delegated authority to decide?		Yes
Are the decisions significant?		No
If they are significant do they affect land or a body of water?		No
Can this decision only be made through a 10 Year Plan?		No
Does this decision require consultation through the Special Consultative procedure?		No
Is there funding in the current Annual Plan for these actions?		Yes
Are the recommendations inconsistent with any of Council’s policies or plans?		No
The recommendations contribute to Goal 2: A Creative and Exciting City
The recommendations contribute to the achievement of action/actions in Active Communities The action is: Carry out regular monitoring and reporting with Sport Manawatū.
Contribution to strategic direction and to social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being	The 2022-25 funding agreement and strategic partnership plan guides the delivery of services and activities to the community that contribute to social well-being. As a regional sports trust, Sport Manawatū are well-positioned to deliver these activities and services to the community with support and funding from Council.

Attachments

1.	Sport Manawatū - Annual Report 2022-23 to Palmerston North City Council ⇩
2.	Annual Report 2022-23 - Year One Assessment of Progress Towards Outcomes ⇩

Memorandum

TO: Culture & Sport Committee

MEETING DATE: 8 November 2023

TITLE: Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023

Presented By: Dave Charnley, Senior Urban Designer; Ann-Marie Mori, Policy Analyst and John Lynch, Venues Manager

APPROVED BY: David Murphy, Chief Planning Officer

RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL

1. That Council adopt the Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023 to inform future decision making, including the 2024-2034 Long Term Plan process.

2. That Council receive the Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023: Delivery Scenarios (Attachment 2) to inform prioritisation of the 2024-2034 Long Term Plan.

1. ISSUE

1.1 On 4 May 2022 Council resolved that direction on the Arena Masterplan review be provided by Council via the Planning & Strategy Committee, that a workshop with Elected Members be planned to assist the preparation of the work and that final approval of the Arena Masterplan Review be a Council decision.

1.2 The Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan Study 2017 has been reviewed and updated. This memorandum requests Council’s approval of the Masterplan review.

1.3 A copy of the Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023 is included as Attachment 1.

1.4 It is recommended that the Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023 be adopted to inform future decision making, including the 2024-2034 Long Term Plan process. Adoption of the Masterplan does not commit the Council to funding and delivering the individual components of the Masterplan. Funding and delivery of any Council projects is directed by the content of the Long Term Plan, not the content of the Masterplan.

1.5 Projects identified within the Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023 are anticipated to be delivered over a long time period through a variety of funding mechanisms and will need to be carefully weighed up against competing priorities.

1.6 The updated Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023 builds on previous master planning vision and now reflects all recently completed projects while further embedding strategic fit, contextual and site analysis, utilisation and location. It also included key moves to continue to guide the co-ordinated long-term development and function of the site and its facilities.

1.7 The Plan will now guide all future decision making for the long-term development of the site, including prioritisation, funding and delivery through the Long Term Plan process. All potential projects identified on page 33 of the updated Masterplan have preliminary costs based on their gross floor area and identified dependencies.

1.8 A peer review of preliminary Masterplan costs has been undertaken and there is variability. These costings are currently being further assessed against project scope along with investigation of supporting infrastructure to further determine and confirm master plan project costs. These preliminary costings will be completed and provided to Council ready for prioritisation of the 2023-2024 Long Term Plan.

1.9 That said, delivery scenarios and preliminary cost envelopes have been prepared for consideration. These are provided as a separate document alongside the updated Masterplan to inform project prioritisation and funding into the 2024-2034 Long Term Plan.

1.10 The Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023: Delivery Scenarios and preliminary cost envelopes are included as Attachment 2.

1.11 Final preliminary Masterplan costings when received will be in line with the delivery scenarios as laid out in Attachment 2. Further detailed costings of all key projects will be better understood through developed design and feasibility processes as determined through Long Term Plan prioritisation.

2. BACKGROUND

2.1 In 2014, Council undertook a high-level study of Arena Manawatū, now Central Energy Trust Arena to produce a spatial framework for the site and immediate surrounding streets. Significant improvement of the facility’s relationship and connection to adjoining streets was identified as a key issue. A range of projects aimed to deliver a high-quality site and sports destination with improved street presence, legibility and sporting visibility. This included a new open plaza entrance to Cuba Street and a potential Sports House.

2.2 In 2015, Updates to Section 15 Recreation of the Operative District Plan were made resulting in a specific Arena Zone (Section 15.2.5) and embedding the Arena spatial framework as a Planning Map (Map 15.2). Funding of priority streams of work was allocated into the 2015 - 2025 Long Term Plan including Council agreeing to provide a $1.5M funding grant for a Sports House on the site.

2.3 In 2017, a more detailed Masterplan study was then prepared to further test and develop previous work undertaken. Key outcomes underpinning the Masterplan to create a higher quality sporting destination with improved street presence, legibility and sporting visibility remained. Further contextual analysis of the planning framework, site conditions, built form, open space patterns and general assessment of facilities were undertaken. Specific briefs for Arenas 1-6 were prepared and a range of concept options including a new Sports House tested to best address site-wide requirements. Options were costed and assessed, and a preferred Masterplan option emerged (Option 3). Funding for Option 3 priority projects were then allocated into the 2018-2028 Long Term Plan.

2.4 Land was acquired at the corner of Cuba and Waldegrave Street and the site made good in preparation for construction works for a new entrance plaza. From 2018, with oversight from the Arena Steering Group, detailed design of priority projects commenced with the first artificial turf at Arena 6 completed late 2019.

2.5 During this time the proposal for a Sports House to be located at Central Energy Trust Arena was withdrawn by Sport Manawatū. Attention then shifted to construction delivery with the Cuba Street entrance plaza and overbridge, reconfigured speedway pits and south stand base plinth and ablutions completed in August 2021.

2.6 This significant change has resulted in a more welcoming public entrance from Cuba Street, an enhanced visitor and fan experience for users of Arena 1 and improved operations management for larger events such as speedway, rugby, concerts and community events. These changes have drawn positive national design attention with Central Energy Trust Arena receiving a handful of prestigious Toitanga and public space design awards.

2.7 With this tranche of work now complete, updating the Masterplan to reflect progress made, understand any new or emerging needs and confirm all future projects are the next logical steps in continuing to provide long term vision and guidance for co-ordinated and integrated development of Central Energy Trust Arena.

2.8 Sport and recreation facility planning processes are occurring in parallel. Needs assessments guided by the Regional Sports Facilities Plan 2018 and the Palmerston North ‘City Specific’ sections updated in 2022 have informed the Masterplan review. Central Energy Trust Arena is recognised as having a unique role in the region for meeting demand for further sports facilities. Needs have been canvassed for additional indoor court and sports field facilities identified for the site. A regional GymSports feasibility study is underway and Central Energy Trust Arena is a potential location being considered.

2.9 The Arena site does not sit in isolation to its immediate surrounds. Other projects – the Cuba Street link and Featherston Street cycleway directly relate to the immediate street network that surrounds the Arena site and these have been highlighted within the updated Masterplan. It is essential to ensure these projects are considered in relationship to the ongoing development of the Arena and that wider City Centre transformation and active transport outcomes to better connect and access the site are achieved.

3. REVIEW METHODOLOGY

3.1 The Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023 has been prepared by an experienced multi-disciplinary team comprising Council Officers and consultants. The methodology follows best practice for the development of a masterplan and includes increased information and analysis on understanding the place before developing a spatial response.

3.2 The review process consisted of the following:

· Engagement utilising a range of techniques including surveys, focus groups, workshops, drop-in sessions and meetings to understand all existing or emerging issues, opportunities and priorities.

· Assessment of Vision and Goals and project strategic role and fit.

· Contextual analysis including surrounding urban structure and form, relation to city centre, river and key transport networks, district plan and regional sports facility planning, cultural and historical. Includes identifying key projects that physically relate or connect to the site, e.g. Cuba Street link.

· Site visits to understand function and use, recent changes and operational issues. Includes inspection and assessment of facility condition. Includes access to all seismic assessments undertaken.

· Access to latest as-built drawings to compile and update existing site plan and seismic assessments.

· Preparation of a preliminary spatial response to test thinking around key moves and future development.

· Assess and understand dependencies to determine and coordinate most logical way forward for future development.

· Seeking feedback from all engaged parties.

· Preparation of high-level preliminary costings based on understood spatial need, functional purpose and gross floor area. Includes undertaking a peer review and reconciling of any cost differences in regard to scope and investigation of supporting infrastructure.

· Prepare a finalised updated Masterplan and supplementary guidance to inform approach to prioritisation and delivery.

3.3 As directed by Council’s Active Communities Plan, the Regional Sports Facility Plan has informed the Masterplan review. Formal needs assessments and feasibility studies establish the boundaries by which to test spatial capacity and flexibility in the Arena site to accommodate any potential or established community sports. Spatial testing has been carried out to confirm and demonstrate within the updated Masterplan that all current needs identified on the site could be accommodated (see Attachment 3 for more detail).

4. REVIEW ENGAGEMENT

4.1 Direct engagement has occurred with Elected Members via a Council workshop and drop-in sessions, through hui with Rangitāne o Manawatū; and surveys, focused interviews and workshop with key stakeholders, user groups and Council Officers. Engagement has canvassed a wide Arena user group audience to gain perspective from a local, regional and national level (refer to engagement diagram on page 7 of The Masterplan for further detail).

4.2 Engagement has informed understanding of all current site and facility issues and confirmed a proposed programme of future projects for development.

4.3 As Council embarks on each of the projects identified, there will be several opportunities for public consultation and engagement with key stakeholders.

5. REVIEW key highlights AND RESPONSE

5.1 The revised Plan retains many existing projects and proposes new projects that will meet current identified needs while ensuring spatial flexibility for other future needs.

5.2 It also signals an interest from city partners and key stakeholders to further enhance identity and heritage, as well as explore future potential of a facility to establish a public facing ‘hub of sport’ adjacent to the new entrance plaza at the corner of Cuba Street and Waldegrave Street.

5.3 The review pointed to key challenges, which are responded to in the revised Masterplan:

· Sufficient community indoor court space – there is a tension between the Arena being a financially sustainable venue and destination attractor while also providing for community needs. We also know that indoor court space is limited in the region; the Masterplan thus investigates an additional indoor court facility on the Arena site.

· All-weather sports fields – increased capacity for winter training. The Masterplan proposes an additional artificial turf on the site and reconfiguration of current surfaces.

· Gymsports needs – Elected Members are also aware of the work Gymsports is doing with Sport Manawatū to look to future-proof their facilities. Should the Arena be the best location for Gymsports, the Masterplan seeks to provide sufficient space for that option.

· Site identity – stakeholders have varying perspectives. The Masterplan responds by further balancing heritage and considers the role of naming spaces and facilities. Expanding ‘He Aho tangata’ and improving wayfinding across the site and facilities will assist and support this.

· Improved movement and safety – providing clear and intuitive pathways for all users, particularly east-west and north-south movements, will ‘stitch’ facilities together. Addressing safety concerns throughout particularly at carparks and entries including after dark. Provide well lit, welcoming and overlooked pathways.

· City centre connection – attraction of events and audiences and improving the public frontage and access between the city and the site. The Masterplan highlights the relationship between the surrounding and wider urban structure and highlights key projects immediately related to the Arena including connection to wider transport network.

· Earthquake prone building at Arena 5 – a seismic rating of 30% NBS. Whilst in a ‘good’ working condition, Arena 5 is acknowledged as having passed its ‘use-by-date’ and is no longer fit for purpose. This presents a spatial opportunity for a future multi-purpose or indoor court facility though it is dependent on further land acquisitions to be complete and current users being decamped to alternative facilities before decommissioning and redeveloping.

· Land acquisition is required – the vast majority of the land affected by the Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023 is Council owned. There are still small remaining parcels of private land adjacent to the Entrance Plaza to acquire. Acquisition for these sites has been considered in the overall costings.

6. DELIVERY SCENARIOS & PRELIMINARY COSTINGS

6.1 Officers have prepared delivery scenarios to inform prioritisation in the 2024-2034 Long Term Plan process. These consider dependencies to offer ways forward in implementing further physical change at the Arena, particularly in delivering immediate and short-term priorities.

6.2 A peer review of preliminary Masterplan costs has been undertaken and there is variability, particularly with larger new facilities proposed. These costings are now being further assessed against project scope including proposed bulk and location gross floor area and supporting infrastructure investigations to determine and confirm final Masterplan preliminary costings. These final costings will still remain high-level in nature and be provided to Council ready for prioritisation of the 2023-2024 Long Term Plan.

6.3 It should be noted that projects identified within the Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023 are anticipated to be delivered over a long time period through a variety of funding mechanisms and will need to be carefully weighed up against competing priorities.

6.4 Detailed costs for each project identified are expected to be better understood through feasibility as each project moves through indicative business case processes to better determine a preferred developed design option for delivery.

6.5 Delivery scenarios including the preliminary cost envelopes for each scenario are included as Attachment 2.

7. NEXT STEPS

7.1 Officers will provide final Masterplan costings prior to commencing 2024-2034 Long Term Prioritisation process.

7.2 Council will consider development priorities and funding for Central Energy Trust Arena through the 2024 -2034 Long Term Plan.

7.3 Officers will prepare an Implementation Plan to determine strategy, process and action in regard to the next tranche of development priorities including:

· aligning strategic objectives,

· determining roles and responsibilities for operational delivery (including Arena Steering Group),

· stakeholder, team and process management,

· tasks and deliverables,

· risk assessment.

7.4 As projects are prioritised, feasibility studies/businesses cases will be prepared to:

· confirm strategic fit and the case for change

· appraise and determine best option to maximise public value

· be commercially viable and attractive to supply

· confirm affordability and funding over time

· be successful in delivery by Council and its partners.

8. Compliance and administration

Does the Committee have delegated authority to decide?		No
Are the decisions significant?		No
If they are significant do they affect land or a body of water?		No
Can this decision only be made through a 10 Year Plan?		No
Does this decision require consultation through the Special Consultative procedure?		No
Is there funding in the current Annual Plan for these actions?		No
Are the recommendations inconsistent with any of Council’s policies or plans?		No
The recommendations contribute to all Goals, in particular Goal 2: A Creative and Exciting City
The recommendations contribute to the achievement of action/actions in the Active Communities Plan, Arts & Heritage Plan, City Shaping Plan, City Growth Plan, Transport Plan, Economic Development Plan, Connected Communities Plan, Climate Change Plan and Environmental Sustainability Plan. The actions are: · Deliver the Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan · Provide sport and recreation opportunities in all of the City’s parks and reserves, that are responsive to the needs and views of communities of interest · Implement a wayfinding strategy to increase legibility in public spaces in the city centre · Support projects that promote the visibility of, and participation in, Māori creative practices · Include Rangitāne o Manawatū art and design in the city centre · Acknowledge and express Te Ao Māori in citywide urban design principles and practice · Apply urban design best practice to greenfield structure planning and public space master planning · Prioritise active transport programmes that deliver on Council goals, the purpose of this plan, and the Government Policy Statement on Transport · Attract, fund and manage events which bring significant economic benefit to the city (through the Major Events Fund, Art Event Fund and Sports Event Partnership Fund) · Provide gender-neutral and accessible public toilets throughout the city · Implement sustainable practices throughout the Council
Contribution to strategic direction and to social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being	The revised Arena Masterplan is best practice master planning and therefore is expected to deliver across all four wellbeings.

Attachments

1.	Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023 (attached separately)
2.	Central Energy Trust Arena Masterplan 2023: Delivery Scenarios & Cost Envelopes (attached separately)
3.	Establishing needs for CET Arena Masterplan Projects 2023 (attached separately)

REPORT

TO: Culture & Sport Committee

MEETING DATE: 8 November 2023

TITLE: Response to the 'Aquatic Facilities and Water-based Recreation Needs Assessment'

PRESENTED BY: Ann-Marie Mori, Policy Analyst and Kathy Dever-Tod, Group Manager - Parks and Logistics

APPROVED BY: David Murphy, Chief Planning Officer

RECOMMENDATION TO COMMITTEE

1. That the Culture & Sport Committee receive the ‘Aquatic Facilities and Water-based Recreation Needs Assessment’ (the Needs Assessment) prepared by RSL Consultants and smartz (Attachment 1).

RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL

2. That Council endorse Option 2 in the report titled ‘Response to the ‘Aquatic Facilities and Water-based Recreation Needs Assessment’’.

3. That Council note the outcomes of the investigation into the low investment opportunities described in this report will be reported back to Council to inform future decision-making.

SUMMARY OF OPTIONS ANALYSIS FOR THE AQUATIC FACILITIES AND WATER-BASED RECREATION NEEDS ASSESSMENT (LTP PROGRAMME 1899)

Problem or Opportunity	To consider how the recommended opportunities presented in the ‘Aquatic facilities and water-based recreation needs assessment’ (the Needs Assessment) should be included in Council’s planning. These opportunities range from making immediate operating changes to pool scheduling, considering low investment opportunities (e.g. school partnerships), to making significant investment in redeveloped or new facilities.
OPTION 1:	Continue current levels of service for the swimming pool activity, outdoor paddling pools and splash pads, and the canoe polo facilities at Hokowhitu Lagoon. Initiate work, as appropriate, on recommended immediate opportunities in the Needs Assessment.
Community Views	The Needs Assessment included views from a wide range of stakeholders and sector groups. This option will involve more liaison with stakeholders.
Benefits	Operational improvements will benefit some users immediately. Low cost option compared to implementing the low or high investment opportunities.
Risks	May not be a popular option or be easily implemented. There may be frustration from some sectors of the community (formal sports pool users) that all opportunities aren’t being explored.
Financial	May have minor revenue implications.
OPTION 2: (recommended)	Option 1 (as above) AND explore the low investment opportunities (see Attachment 2) through LTP programme 1899 this year (2023-24) to inform future decisions.
Community Views	The Needs Assessment included views from a wide range of stakeholders and sector groups. This option will involve more liaison with stakeholders, particularly the education sector, to respond to the issues.
Benefits	Exploration into this opportunity aims to create long-term pool network resilience across the City (and therefore less reliance on Council’s provision alone). Places the Council in a better position to inform future LTP cycles given the low investment opportunities may have an ongoing operational impact. Provides an opportunity for organisational relationships to be formed and for the aquatics sector to have a more ‘joined-up’ / network approach to resolving issues.
Risks	Uncertain internal and external funding environments for our potential partners. May raise expectations from the community that the Council is in a position to make funding provision to pursue the low investment opportunities.
Financial	Operational changes to pool scheduling may have minor revenue implications. No immediate impacts as this work can be funded through LTP programme 1899.
OPTION 3:	Options 1 AND 2 AND make funding provision within the draft 2024-34 LTP process to plan for capital and operational implications of the recommended high investment opportunities (see Attachment 2).
Community Views	The Needs Assessment included views from a wide range of stakeholders and sector groups. This option will involve more liaison with stakeholders, particularly the education sector, to respond to the issues.
Benefits	Would signal the level of commitment from the Council to the community to investing in solutions to meet the wide-ranging needs served by aquatic facilities/swimming pools. Would allow for costs associated with these opportunities to be refined through feasibility assessment.
Risks	Unrealistic and unaffordable to progress planning and capital projects in the current funding environment. Feasibility not established for all investment opportunities – particularly the high investment opportunities. Requires additional programmes/budgets due to the broad scope of the opportunities that need to be explored.
Financial	This option would require the preparation of indicative budgets and timelines for each item as part of the draft 2024-34 LTP process. Currently Council has not made provision within the 2021-31 LTP for capital investment or operational grants for new or partnered swimming pool facilities.

Rationale for the recommendations

1. Overview of the problem or opportunity

1.1 The purpose of this report is to provide Elected Members with an opportunity to respond to the recommended opportunities presented in the ‘Aquatic Facilities and Water-based Recreation Needs Assessment’ (the Needs Assessment, see Attachment 1).

1.2 These opportunities range from making immediate operating changes to pool scheduling, considering low investment opportunities (e.g. school partnerships), to making significant investment in redeveloped or new facilities.

1.3 The opportunities aim to meet the City’s wide-ranging water-recreation needs, including catering for participation/leisure and competitive swimming, in a balanced way.

1.4 The Needs Assessment was completed in August 2023 by RSL Consultants and smartz. This work was funded through LTP programme 1899 with a $51,000 budget.

1.5 Council now has an opportunity to decide which opportunities should be progressed to respond to identified needs and to inform further decision-making.

2. Background and previous council decisions

Background

2.1 The network of water-based facilities in Palmerston North includes a range of Council, education, and private pools along with natural bodies of water. The Council operates three aquatic facilities (see Section 6.2.1 of the Needs Assessment) – the Lido Aquatic Centre, the Freyberg Community Pool and Splashhurst.

2.2 The strategic direction for the swimming pool activity sits in Whāinga 2: He tāone whakaihiihi, tapatapahi Goal 2: A creative and exciting city and Te mahere hapori hohe Active communities plan. Swimming pools are also covered by the Parks and Reserves Asset Management Plan.

2.3 Consultation on the 2021-31 LTP generated over 700 submissions, with approximately half of these in the ‘active communities’ activity area. Submissions on aquatic facilities dominated this topic.

Manawatū-Whanganui Regional Sport Facility Plan – review of the Palmerston North section

2.4 The Needs Assessment forms part of a wider planning process expressed in the Manawatū-Whanganui Regional Sport Facility Plan 2018 (RSFP). The Palmerston North section of the RSFP was reviewed in October 2022 by consultants RSL.

2.5 The revised ‘Aquatics’ section recommended the following planning approaches for further exploration:

a) Gain more access to school pools (although this only increases the capacity of the pool network during summer months, when it is least needed).

b) Cover the existing 50m pool at the Lido Aquatic Centre (this would add sufficient year-round access to lane space to the sports pool network up until approximately 2041. This would allow Council to consider longer-term options to protect the network).

c) Develop new pool space, including:

- Deepwater pool space for sport and recreation activities that require greater depth such as water polo.

- Warmwater pool space which is often developed for therapy and rehabilitation purposes.

- Leisure water for tamariki (particularly targeting the 4-8 year old age group)

These approaches were reported to Council in November 2022 and guided the scope for the Needs Assessment.

The Needs Assessment

2.6 The research was carried out in response to several factors, including numerous community requests through the 2021-31 LTP for the Council to build new water-based sport and recreation facilities.

2.7 The key objectives of the Needs Assessment were to understand:

a) If the Council needs to make changes to its current operating policies to increase the use of current facilities and/or invest in current or new indoor and outdoor aquatic facilities to serve the City’s water-recreation needs.

b) The types of facilities that would best meet the water-recreation needs of the community and provide value for money for users and residents.

c) When any additional capacity is required and provide a timetable and cost estimates for future capital works programming.

2.8 Specialist sport and recreation consultants, RSL Consultants and smartz were commissioned to carry out the work early in 2023.

2.9 A Councillor workshop was held on 24 May 2023 with the consultant team. In preparation for the workshop the consultants surveyed Elected Members asking them what the community values about aquatic and water-based recreation facilities in Palmerston North.

National Aquatic Facilities Strategy (2013) review

2.10 Alongside the Needs Assessment, Ihi Aotearoa Sport New Zealand has been reviewing the 2013 National Aquatic Facilities Strategy (the Strategy). Key insights from this review have informed the Needs Assessment. The strong guidance from the Strategy is that the facility focus should be on local level facilities. The Strategy is due for completion by the end of the year.

Annual Plan 2023-24 and Long-Term Plan 2024-2034 process

2.11 Thirty-seven submitters commented on aquatic facilities through the Annual Plan 2023-24 process. All supported an increased Council investment, larger pool and/or new facilities, as well as proceeding with LTP programme 1899 (Aquatic Facilities and Water Recreation Preliminary Feasibility Study/Needs Assessment).

2.12 There is provision in this year’s Annual Plan, through LTP programme #1899, to investigate the feasibility of the recommended opportunities in the Needs Assessment.

2.13 The Council referred an aquatic facilities business case to the Long-Term Plan 2024-2034 process. At this stage, no programmes have been included for consideration.

3. NeEDS ASSESSMENT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDED OPPORTUNITIES

3.1 The Needs Assessment was guided by a key goal:

To provide opportunities for everyone to enjoy aquatic activities safely and equitably.

Key findings

3.2 The main findings are set out in the Executive Summary (in pages 2 – 4 of Attachment 1) and in the main body of the Needs Assessment with the following highlights:

Ø Comparing the City’s supply with the national demand profile, more pool water should be allocated for leisure and hydrotherapy and less for fitness/lane sports water sports and learning/education activities (e.g. learn-to-swim).

Ø The City is growing, meaning our facilities need to cater for both participation/casual (11.4% of the city’s population) and competitive (1.2% of the city’s population) water-based activities.

Ø The analysis of pool space scheduling demonstrates there is peak time (i.e., mornings and evenings) availability in the three Council-operated pools.

Ø The (draft) National Aquatics Facility Strategy 2023 states swimming and diving sports do not require additional international or national level event facilities, as there are enough to serve event needs now and into the future. Any event-focused facility development should be district or possibly regional-level facility.

Ø To meet the range of community demands, all operational and upgrade/repurpose options are recommended for exploration before developing new facilities.

Recommended opportunities

3.3 Section 9 of the Needs Assessment covers a range of opportunities to address the imbalance of pool water type ahead of other demands. While these opportunities support addressing the imbalance of pool space (to accommodate leisure swimming and hydrotherapy needs), they also provide for competitive swimming activities to grow.

3.4 The recommended opportunities (see Section 9 of the Needs Assessment), with indicative timeframes are:

Ø A: Immediate opportunities – operational pool scheduling adjustments, user liaison

Ø B: Partnership low investment opportunities (2023-2026) – predominantly exploring school partnership options

Ø C: Significant investment opportunities (2027 beyond) – upgrade and new facility proposals

3.5 Staff note that the costs for recommended low and high investment opportunities (i.e. opportunities B and C) are estimates and have not been assessed for feasibility or taken to a business case stage. A brief description of the opportunities and costs for each are in Attachment 2.

3.6 To help understand how the opportunities address the need for more leisure pool space and hydrotherapy provision, further explanation is provided in section 9 of the Needs Assessment below:

Ø Opportunity B aims to address leisure swimming demand by making school pool water space available for casual, out-of-school hours access over the summer months.

Ø Opportunity C includes an option to enclose the Lido’s 50m pool to provide a sport-focused pool facility, therefore freeing up other pools for leisure and recreational activities. To a lesser degree, the potential upgrade of the 25m pool to a 50m pool would do the same, although an upgrade would absorb pool space that could be used more for leisure and recreational activity.

Ø During the summer months and outside of the peak lane swimming times, any new 50m pool would be used for leisure swimming. Any new multi-pool facility in the growth area would have a leisure and hydrotherapy focus (see the Albany Stadium Pool case study).

3.7 The opportunities are inter-linked, i.e. they should be approached sequentially. This is because one group of actions may resolve issues and change the nature or scope of the potential low and high investment opportunities.

3.8 The sequential relationship between the Needs Assessment’s proposed opportunities is illustrated in the diagram below:

Figure 1: Relationship between the Needs Assessment’s proposed opportunities

3.9 Recommendations from the Needs Assessment aim to balance the type of pools we have to meet leisure swimming and hydrotherapy needs. The purpose is also to achieve resilience across the City’s network of facilities for water-based activities.

4. DESCRIPTION OF OPTIONS

4.1 Option 1:

· Continue current levels of service for the swimming pool activity, outdoor paddling pools and splash pads, and the canoe polo facilities at Hokowhitu Lagoon.

· Initiate work on the recommended immediate opportunities (A) in the Needs Assessment where possible:

Ø Council policy setting options for scheduling of casual swimming lane space in public pools

Ø Morning pool space optimised for sports groups

Comment

· Sport Manawatū and CLM are well-positioned to work with Council and sports user groups to seek better optimisation of pool use in the mornings.

· Allows time to monitor impacts of operational adjustments.

4.2 Option 2:

· Option 1 (as above) AND explore the low investment opportunities (B) through LTP programme 1899 this year (2023-24) to inform future decisions:

Ø Summer school pool access is encouraged and, where appropriate, resourced in partnership, e.g. pool network resilience funding scheme

Ø Network resilience support for the current indoor school pools available for community use, e.g. capital grant or loan

Ø Network resilience through strategic investment in upgrades selected to school pool facilities

Ø Leveraging Council’s pool management contract to improve technical capability and capacity across the network

Ø Leveraging resources to develop an asset upgrade and renewals programme across the pools network

Ø Hokowhitu Lagoon water quality, weed management and improvement to stormwater inflow

Comment

· Report back to Council on the outcomes of the investigation into the low investment opportunities to inform future decision-making.

4.3 Option 3:

· Option 1 AND 2 AND make funding provision within the draft 2024-34 LTP process to plan for capital and operational implications of the recommended high investment opportunities (C):

Ø Lido 50m pool enclosure with a roof structure

Ø Demolish the current Lido 25m indoor pool and replace with a 50m indoor pool facility OR a new 50m pool at Lido

Ø New local level, multi-purpose pool facility as the city grows (e.g. in the Kākātangiata urban growth area)

Ø Lake opportunities – access to or purchase of privately owned ex-quarry lake/s

Ø Explore the development of an artificial Canoe Polo outdoor courts facility

Comment

· This option requires the preparation of indicative budgets and timelines for each opportunity (likely to be place-holder budgets as depend on the outcomes of exploration into the low investment opportunities and would be developed without information from feasibility/business cases).

4.4 Figure 2 shows a summary of each of the options, and how they potentially align with Council’s long-term planning.

A diagram of options with text

Description automatically generated

Figure 2: Summary of options in response to the opportunities presented in the Needs Assessment

5. Analysis of options

5.1 Option 1: Make immediate operational adjustments (opportunity A) and consider the low and high investment opportunities later.

Pros	Cons
Focuses effort on better use of existing infrastructure including maximising use of lane space and pools	Pushes out timeframes for further research, including feasibility and building timeframes
Provides the potential for better delivery to address immediate demand pressures and user needs	Unsatisfactory outcome for parts of the aquatic community, such as organised sports groups wanting facilities to be built sooner
Low cost option compared to investment opportunities

5.2 Option 2: Option 1 (opportunity A) AND explore the low investment opportunities (opportunity B) through LTP programme 1899 this year (2023-24) to inform future decisions.

Pros	Cons
Would result in more definite costs associated with this opportunity to be determined (e.g. refine estimated costs, and quantify grants to schools)	May cause frustration to stakeholders as the focus is on more research rather than building facilities
Places the Council in a better position to inform future LTP cycles given the impact this opportunity may have on high investment items and ongoing operational costs	Uncertain internal and external funding environments for our potential partners
Provides an opportunity for organisational relationships to be built and for a more ‘joined-up’ / network approach
Exploration of this option could create long-term resilience across the City (and therefore less reliance on Council’s provision alone)
Aligns with the RSFP investment decision-making process that is best practice for sports facility planning; explores other solutions to problems that don’t involve new facilities
Gives some breathing space when Council is faced with juggling multiple community facility projects requiring investment decisions
Can use programme 1899 to explore this opportunity

5.3 Option 3: Option 1 and 2 (opportunities A AND B) AND make funding provision within the draft 2024-34 LTP process to plan for capital and operational implications of the recommended high investment opportunities (opportunity C).

Pros	Cons
Would signal the level of commitment from the Council to the community to planning and investing in solutions to meet the wide-ranging needs served by these facilities	Challenging to progress planning and capital projects in current funding environment
	Feasibility not established for investment items – particularly the high investment opportunities
	Requires extra budget or a new programme due to the broad scope of the opportunities that need to be explored

5.4 In response to the Needs Assessment, staff recommend Council should implement the immediate opportunities (A) AND explore the feasibility of low investment opportunities (B) to inform future decisions (Option 2). The community benefits of Option 2 enable some ‘quick wins’ and also provide opportunities to consider the most effective solutions to the identified needs.

6. Conclusion

6.1 The Needs Assessment recommends that Council consider several opportunities to better balance the type of pools to meet the forecast demand for participation and competitive swimming, and other water-based activities.

6.2 The low investment opportunities can be explored in 2023/2024 through LTP programme 1899 and will enable decisions on future LTP cycles.

7. Next actions

7.1 Depending on the decisions of Council, work on the immediate opportunities can begin under delegated authority.

7.2 LTP programme 1889 could be used to initiate work on exploring the low investment opportunities.

8. Outline of community engagement process

8.1 The Needs Assessment has involved a considerable level of community engagement but not public consultation. Section 8 and Appendix 5 of the Needs Assessment outline the stakeholder engagement process.

Compliance and administration

Does the Committee have delegated authority to decide? If Yes quote relevant clause(s) from Delegations Manual		No
Are the decisions significant?		No
If they are significant do they affect land or a body of water?		No
Can this decision only be made through a 10 Year Plan?		Yes
Does this decision require consultation through the Special Consultative procedure?		No
Is there funding in the current Annual Plan for these actions?		Yes
Are the recommendations inconsistent with any of Council’s policies or plans?		No
The recommendations contribute to Goal 2: A Creative and Exciting City
The recommendations contribute to the achievement of action/actions in Active Communities The action is: Carry out a needs-assessment for swimming and other water-based recreation
Contribution to strategic direction and to social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being	Water-based recreation facility provision plays an important role in the safety, health, and wellbeing of the Palmerston North community. The City has a network of water-based recreation facilities that are used by the community for developing aquatic safety skills, improving health, and for water recreation and sport activities. The community need and demand for future aquatic facilities and water-based recreation provisions have been determined through this research. The Aquatic Facilities and Water-based Recreation Needs Assessment provides a basis for Council’s aquatic facility planning.

Attachments

1.	Aquatic Facilities and Water-based Recreation Needs Assessment (August 2023) by smartz and RSL Consultants (attached separately)
2.	Summary of opportunities and estimated costs from 'Aquatic Facilities and Water-based Recreation Needs Assessment (August 2023) (attached separately)

Memorandum

TO: Culture & Sport Committee

MEETING DATE: 8 November 2023

TITLE: Reserve Management and Development Planning Update

Presented By: Jason Pilkington, Parks Planner and Kathy Dever-Tod, Group Manager - Parks and Logistics

APPROVED BY: Chris Dyhrberg, Chief Infrastructure Officer

RECOMMENDATIONS TO Culture & Sport Committee

1. That the Committee note the progress on reserve management and reserve development planning.

2. That the Committee publicly notifies its intention to review the Ashhurst Domain Development and Management Plan under the provisions of the Reserves Act 1977.

1. ISSUE

1.1 The Reserves Act 1977 (The Act) provides the legislative framework for how Council manages, develops and disposes of its reserves.

1.2 The Act requires the Administering Body, in this case the Council, to have Reserve Management Plans (RMPs) in place for reserves and stipulates how the plans are developed and adopted.

1.3 This report provides an update on reserve management planning since the last report to Council in 2018.

1.4 The report also outlines the future work programme and seeks Council approval to publicly notify its intention to commence the review of the Ashhurst Domain Development and Management Plan.

2. BACKGROUND

2.1 In June 2015 Council received a memo titled Sport and Recreation Planning Framework. The memo described the requirements for reserve management planning under the provisions of the Act.

2.2 The memo described a process and priority order for managing the large body of work required to comply with the reserve planning provisions of the Act.

2.3 In August 2018, the Sport and Recreation Committee received an update on the reserve planning process. The report outlined that a significant phase of the work programme, the reserves auditing exercise, was nearing completion.

2.4 It was also noted that since the 2015 report, a few RDPs had been completed (Memorial Park RDP and Ahimate Reserve RDP). In addition, work on Victoria Esplanade and Te Motu O Poutoa was underway.

2.5 The Committee adopted a revised work programme. The 2018 programme is presented in Table 1.

Timeframe	Reserve	Type of Plan	Who
2018/19	Victoria Esplanade Te Motu o Poutoa Reserve Status and Classification	RMP Co-manage n/a	External Internal/external External
2019/20	Te Motu o Poutoa Manawatu Linear River Park	RDP RMP	Co-management body and City Networks City Networks & City Future
2020/21	Te Motu o Poutoa Ashhurst Domain	RMP RDP & RMP	Co-management body and City Networks City Future & City Networks
2021/22	Manawatu Linear River Park Sport and Recreation Reserves	RDP – Review RMP	City Future/external External
2022/23	Kahuterawa Outdoor Recreation Plan Recreation and Ecological Linkages (including shared paths and walkways)	RMP & RDP RMP	External External
2023/24	Aquatic Facilities	RDP	TBA
2024/25	The Square	RMP & RDP	TBA

Table 1: Reserve Management Planning programme adopted by Council in 2018

2.6 Note: The review of the Turitea Reserve Management Plan was not included in the 2018 programme and is not included in this report. Whilst the Turitea Reserve is subject to the Act, the primary purpose of the reserve is quite different to the reserves covered in this report. The Turitea Reserve is mixed purpose, including water supply. At the meeting of Council on 4 October 2023, Officers advised Council that the review of the Turitea Reserve Management Plan has been delayed, pending the outcomes of water reform.

3. CONTEXT FOR Reserve management planning

3.1 Section 41 of the Act sets out the provisions for reserve management plans. Section 41(3) states: ‘The management plan shall provide for and ensure the use, enjoyment, maintenance, protection, and preservation, as the case may require, and, to the extent that the administering body’s resources permit, the development, as appropriate, of the reserve for the purposes for which it is classified, and shall incorporate and ensure compliance with the principles set out in section 17, section 18, section 19, section 20, section 21, section 22, or section 23, as the case may be, for a reserve of that classification’.

3.2 The Local Government Act 2002 makes provision for the development of a Long Term Plan (LTP). In relation to reserves, the LTP is informed by several documents, including the Parks Asset Management Plan (AMP). The AMP sets out the investment in parks and reserves and related activities over a 30-year period to ensure the delivery of agreed levels of service to the community in the most cost-effective manner. In this regard, the AMP is the primary document informing the development of reserves.

3.3 The function of a reserve management plan in the context of local government therefore, is primarily use, enjoyment, maintenance, protection, and preservation of reserves Council administers.

3.4 The Palmerston North District Plan sets out the rules and objectives for the use and development of land in the city. The District Plan seeks to mitigate adverse effects, and therefore limits activities permitted on reserves. Reserve management plans need to consider the impact of reserve activities on the surrounding environment.

3.5 The development of reserve management plans is a very large and time-consuming body of work. Before preparing a reserve management plan, the Council is required to:

a. give public notice of its intention to do so; and

b. in that notice, invite interested persons and organisations to send to the administering body at its office written suggestions on the proposed plan within a time specified in the notice; and

c. in preparing that management plan, give full consideration to any such comments received.

3.6 Once the draft plan has been prepared, Council is then required to publicly notify that the draft plan is available for inspection, inviting written objections and suggestions over a two-month period. Council is then required to provide a reasonable opportunity for anyone who wishes to speak to their submission before considering submissions and adopting the reserve management plan.

3.7 Despite the work involved, there are advantages to Council adopting management plans for the reserves which extent beyond compliance. These are:

a. Providing the community with opportunity for input into the way reserves are managed and preserved.

b. Setting objectives and policies for matters that are not covered by a bylaw or Council policy, for example - no golf on sports fields, no open fires, etc.

c. Simplifies re-leasing of reserve land. If leasing of land is anticipated in the RMP, then Council is no longer required to a pass a resolution and publicly notify its intention to renew a lease and hear submissions under the provisions of the Act.

d. Simplifies issuing new leases. Council could determine how it will engage with the community, and potentially speed up and simplify the leasing process. For example, as part of the reserve planning process, Council could identify reserve areas in the city for community gardens.

e. If a Reserve Management Plan makes provision for the issue of licences for certain complementary activities within reserves, such as coffee carts, then these licences could be issued simply and cost effectively in line with the fees and charges set by Council.

3.8 Ultimately, the adoption of RMPs will provide more certainty to the community and reduce the time and cost involved with activities consistent with strategies, plans and policies of Council and the District Plan.

4. Reserve Management planning PROGRESS

4.1 Table 2 summarises progress with reserve management and development planning since the 2018 report.

4.2 As part of the 2021 Long Term Plan, Council adopted two new reserve development areas: Marae Tarata and the Hokowhitu Lagoon. These have been added to Table 2 for completeness.

4.3 The table shows that reserve management planning has not progressed as quickly as planned for a few reasons. The development of reserves management plans is managed by staff, with external expertise engaged when needed, through Programme 1073 of the Long Term Plan.

4.4 The Parks and Logistics Division have been recruiting for a Parks Planner for the past nine months, with no success to date. The large volume of work associated with District Plan changes for growth and medium density housing have diverted the limited staff resources away from reserve management planning.

Park or Reserve	Plan Type	2018 Timeframe	Progress
Manawatu River Park (River Framework)	RDP		Complete - 2016
Linklater Reserve	RDP		Complete - 2016
Ahimate Reserve	RDP		Complete - 2017
Memorial Park	RDP		Complete - 2017
Victoria Esplanade	RMP & RDP	2017/18	Complete - 2018
Te Apiti Masterplan	External		Complete - 2022 (PNCC partner)
Sport and Recreation Reserves	RMP	2018/19	Not started
Recreation and Ecological Reserves	RMP	2018/19	Not started
Te Motu O Poutoa	RMP & RDP	2019/20	In progress – concept design complete, Business Case under development
Ashhurst Domain	RMP & RDP	2018/19	Preliminary background work underway. Delayed pending outcomes of Te Apiti Masterplan and Te Ahu a Turanga
Kahuterawa Outdoor Recreation Plan (review)	RMP (review) & RDP	2020/21	Stakeholder engagement complete. Increased support for urban growth work and a staff vacancy have hampered progress
Aquatic Facilities		2019/20	Needs assessment in progress^{^[4]}
Te Marae o Hine/ The Square		2020/21	Not started
Marae Tarata (part of River Framework)	RDP	2022/23	Stakeholder engagement complete
Hokowhitu Lagoon (part of Manawatu River Park)	RDP	2022/23	On hold – pending completion of adjoining Centennial Park residential area

Table 2: Reserve Planning programme and progress

4.5 While initial preparatory work was undertaken for the revision of Ashhurst Domain Development and Management Plan, Officers did not initiate a full revision process while a few related planning works in the wider related environment progressed. These included Te Apiti Masterplan work, Te Ahu a Turanga (Gorge Road replacement), the Ashhurst to Palmerston North shared path, and the Ashhurst Urban Growth planning.

4.6 In May 2022 the Te Apiti Masterplan was formally adopted by the Te Apiti Partners. In the Officer report to Council on 10 August 2022, it was noted:

‘In the delivery phase it is noted that only one project (the ‘Ashhurst Three Bridges Loop Track’ identified as ‘P1’ in the masterplan) has Council as the specific lead. In two other cases, and potentially some others, Council is identified as a support partner. As such, the expectation is an Officer will continue to perform an active role as part of the Secretariat group, from existing budgets, for such a significant area.^{^[5]}’

5. FORWARD work programme

5.1 With a reduced capital works programme in 2023/24, and the reserve component of the District Plan changes largely complete, the reserve management planning programme and plan approach has been reviewed.

5.2 To ensure that the limited resources of Council can be used to get the best coverage of reserves, in the shortest timeframe, Officers propose the following plan structure:

a. Each City Reserve^{^[6]} would have its own reserve management and development plan.

b. Te Motu o Poutoa will continue to progress as a separate reserve development and management programme under the provisions of the Kawenata and the Rangitāne o Manawatū Committee.

c. The Kahuterawa Outdoor Recreation Plan would have its separate plan as a unique blend of recreation, commercial forestry and ecological areas. Its review is in progress.

d. All other reserves will be covered in a single Omnibus Reserve Management Plan with chapters addressing the different reserve types. This is the approach taken by most other councils in New Zealand.

5.3 The omnibus plan sections/chapters would be based around the reserve categories contained within the Parks Asset Management Plan.

5.4 This would enable the management of similar reserves across the City to be aligned, avoiding undue repetition, whilst maintaining the uniqueness of reserve categories.

5.5 The omnibus chapters would not have associated ‘Development Plans’. The Parks Asset Management Plan is the more appropriate place for the programme of works associated with the development of categories of reserves, where demand and levels of service for these park areas are reviewed and programmes of work to address any identified gaps identified, and forwarded to the Long Term Planning process for consideration.

5.6 There is nothing preventing Council from developing a separate reserve management plan in the future for any reserve covered by the omnibus plan, should circumstances arise.

5.7 Table 3 describes the proposed reserves plan workplan. The programme is based on full staffing levels and ongoing funding of programme 1073.

Reserve Type	Plan Type – individual or omnibus	Plan Type	Year
City Reserve	Ashhurst Domain (review - underway)	RMP and RDP (review)	2023/24 – 2024/25
Outdoor recreation	Kahuterawa Outdoor Recreation Plan (review - underway)	RMP and RDP (review)	2023/24
Part of City Reserve	Marae Tarata (former quarry – end of Tip Road)	RDP	2023/24
City Reserve	The Manawatu River Park	RDP (review River Framework)	2024/25 – 2025/26
Omnibus RMP	Chapters on: 1. Generic policy and management that applies to all reserve types 2. Neighbourhood Reserves 3. Suburb Reserves 4. Special Character Reserves 5. Cultural Reserves 6. Ecological Reserves (including walkways, gullies and linkages) 7. Sports fields	RMP (new)	2024/25 – 2026/27
City Reserve	Te Marae o Hine (The Square)	RMP (new)	2026/27
City Reserve	The Victoria Esplanade	RMP and RDP (review)	2027/28
City Reserve	The Linklater Reserve	RMP (new) and RDP (review)	2027/28
City Reserve	Memorial Park	RMP (new) and RDP (review)	2028/29

Table 3: Reserve Planning Proposed Programme

5.8 The timing is right for Council to resume work on the review of the Ashhurst Domain Reserve Development and Masterplan.

5.9 Council adopted the Manawatū River Framework in February 2016. It is recommended that the River Framework be reviewed in 2024/25.

6. NEXT STEPS

6.1 Publicly notify the Council’s intention to review the Ashhurst Domain Reserve Development and Management Plan as per requirements of the Reserves Act.

6.2 Begin the public consultation process for the review Ashhurst Domain Reserve Development and Management Plan.

6.3 Report back to Council with a draft Kahuterawa Outdoor Recreation Plan for consultation.

6.4 Report back to Council with a draft Marae Tarata Development Plan, to be incorporated into the Manawatu River Framework review.

7. Compliance and administration

Does the Committee have delegated authority to decide?		Yes
Are the decisions significant?		No
If they are significant do they affect land or a body of water?		No
Can this decision only be made through a 10 Year Plan?		No
Does this decision require consultation through the Special Consultative procedure?		No
Is there funding in the current Annual Plan for these actions?		Yes
Are the recommendations inconsistent with any of Council’s policies or plans?		No
The recommendations contribute to Goal 2: A Creative and Exciting City
The recommendations contribute to the achievement of action/actions in Active Communities The action is: Reserve Management and Development Plans and Masterplans (prepared under the Reserves Act 1977) – Te Āpiti/Manawatu Gorge, Victoria Esplanade, Memorial Park, Ahimate Park, Manawatū River, Kahuterawa (Arapuke), Ashhurst
Contribution to strategic direction and to social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being	Ensure the strategic direction of Council is implemented through the development of Reserve Development and Management plans.

Attachments

Nil

[2] Included an additional grant of $80,000 for Covid-relief and a grant towards repayment of counterweight flying system ropes and wires.

[5] PNCC Council Report: Te Āpiti Masterplan, 10 August 2022, Jeff Baker

[6] Te Marae o Hine, Manawatu River Park, Victoria Esplanade, Memorial Park, Ashhurst Domain and Linklater Reserve

Rachel Bowen (Chair)
Billy Meehan (Deputy Chair)
Grant Smith (The Mayor)
Mark Arnott	Leonie Hapeta
Vaughan Dennison	Debi Marshall-Lobb
Lew Findlay (QSM)	William Wood
Roly Fitzgerald	Kaydee Zabelin
Patrick Handcock (ONZM)

COMMITTEE WORK SCHEDULE – NOVEMBER 2023
Item No.	Estimated Report Date	Subject	Officer Responsible	Current Position	Date of Instruction/ Clause number
1.	~~November 2023~~	~~Annual Report 2022-2023 - The Regent~~	~~Acting CE Unit Manager~~		~~Terms of Reference~~
2.	~~November 2023~~	~~Annual Report 2022-2023 - The Globe~~	~~Acting CE Unit Manager~~		~~Terms of Reference~~
3.	~~November 2023~~	~~Annual Report: Sport Manawatū 2022/2023 to Palmerston North City Council~~	~~Chief Planning Officer~~		~~Terms of Reference~~
4.	~~November 2023~~	~~Aquatic Facilities – Feasibility Study~~	~~Chief Planning Officer~~		17 August 2022 Clause 23-22
5.		Scope and cost of a needs assessment for performance spaces	Chief Planning Officer / Chief Customer Officer	To be addressed via LTP	Council 31 May 2023 Clause 88.16-23
6.	Early 2024	Rural Games – annual presentation	Acting CE Unit Manager		Council 31 May 2023 Clause 88.11-23
7.	April 2024	Six Month Performance Report - Te Manawa, The Globe and The Regent	Acting CE Unit Manager		Terms of Reference
8.	April 2024	Draft Statement of Intent 2024-2027 - Te Manawa, The Globe and The Regent	Acting CE Unit Manager		Terms of Reference
9.	June 2024	Final Statement of Intent 2024-2027 - Te Manawa, The Globe and The Regent	Acting CE Unit Manager		Terms of Reference
10.	June 2024	Development of conservation plan for Caccia Birch House and property, costed and included in the CBH Masterplan programme of work for 2023/24	Chief Infrastructure Officer		Council 2 June 2021 Clause 50.5-21
11.	June 2025	Review of in-house service delivery of Caccia Birch House	Chief Customer Officer		Council 2 June 2021 Clause 50.7-21