16 February 2005

Council Grant For Mangere Bridge Progressive Business Association

Manukau City Council’s Economic Development Committee has approved funding for the amount of $10,000 to work towards the Mangere Bridge Town Centre becoming a targeted rated area.

Ratepayers (retailers) in a targeted rated area pay their rates to Council then the money is granted by the Economic Development committee to the relevant business/mainstreet associations under contract. This then goes back into the Town Centre business Association to use in specific initiatives to upgrade or revitalize it.

Council Planner, Pam French says, “The targeted rate cannot be established until Council has completed its review of the targeted rates policy. It was therefore agreed that funding would be granted to support the Business Association to develop the necessary strategies to become a target rated area. Council will monitor the progress as they work towards this goal.

“At present there are two targeted rated areas in Manukau: Otara Town Centre and the Howick Village Association. Council works with all town centres to work towards achieving this status to give them autonomy and long term funding so they can progress the development of their centres at a faster rate.

“Other Councils have been proactive in this type of rating system and the results speak for themselves in Takapuna, Heart of the City, Newmarket, Blockhouse Bay and Ellerslie.” This form of partnership between business associations and Councils works in a positive way to progress town centres.”

Manukau City Council is involved in many projects to revitalise and redevelop the city. It recognizes the role town centres play in Manukau’s economy and to this end has developed the Manukau Town Centre Strategy which is driven by Economic Development because of its economic focus.

Mrs French says, “As town centres contribute to the economic development of an area they therefore need to be nurtured and developed. The main objective of the strategy is to transform town centres into vibrant, clean, safe and smart places that reflect the distinctive character of their local communities.

“ This is a huge undertaking and cannot be achieved in the short term, but has been scheduled over a ten year time frame.

“We have adopted a four point strategy which includes: unlocking opportunities through targeted action and investments; planning and partnerships - with stakeholders and the community; sequencing developments according to need; and tayloring the right type of plan to suit each town centre.

“Mangere Bridge falls into the ‘selected action’ category of the strategy, which means it will be the target of specific action and investment, where smaller improvements are made rather than an overall upgrade.

“Positive trends for the area include a major increase in personal services premises and available floor space in the village. For the future growth of Mangere Bridge Town Centre there are considerable opportunities to draw on, including encouraging small scale ‘village’ and ‘visitor destination’ activities such as restaurants, designer products, arts, crafts and gift shops.”

For further information on Manukau’s Town Centre Strategy visit the website www.manukau.govt.nz/town-centres.htm

ENDS

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