Council invites rural communities to take the lead

Rural communities in the Franklin area have the opportunity to manage their own halls, in response to community feedback.

Auckland Council issued a Request for Expressions of Interest (EOI) for the management and operation of 11 community halls across the Franklin Local Board area on Thursday 5 November 2014.

On Tuesday 28 October, the local board approved the operations model for the halls whereby the local board will be responsible for governance and strategy, while day-to-day operations will be managed by hall committees appointed by the local board.

“Franklin Local Board received a strong message from our communities in the Wairoa sub-division about how they want to operate their halls – run by the community, for the community. Currently, management of halls is undertaken differently within the rural areas of Wairoa, Pukekohe and Waiuku,” says local board chair, Andrew Baker.

“We’ve used a community-management model across some parts of Franklin, so we know that with the right support and agreements it can work well. Communities in rural locations take responsibility for their own local halls, giving them more flexibility and encouraging greater use of the halls as a community resource.”

Through the new model, there will be one way of operating as chosen by the community and supported by the local board. This means operations across Franklin will be consistent, transparent and efficient.

“It also means all of the halls will have strong local connections – we know rural communities have a high level of ownership over their venues,” adds Mr Baker.

The EOI will be used to identify those community groups with an interest in operating each hall. Each group must be an incorporated society or trust, or have the ability to become incorporated.

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