‘We Erred’ – Stadium Policy That Threatened Nelson Giants Reversed

Saturday, 31 May 2025, 4:49 pm
Article: Max Frethey - Local Democracy Reporter

The future of Nelson’s basketball club looks brighter after a change of heart over a food and drink policy.

Nelson City Council and Trafalgar Centre manager CLM (Community Leisure Management) have agreed to give three community groups exemptions to a policy that otherwise gives CLM exclusive food and beverage rights at the NBS Nelson Giants' home court.

Four weeks ago, the Giants warned the council that the policy would “likely kill” the basketball club, which derives about 14% of its income from food and drink sales.

The policy was adopted without consultation with key users of the Trafalgar Centre when the contract for the facility was renegotiated last year.

On Tuesday, the council’s Tenders Committee met confidentially to discuss the issue and Mayor Nick Smith announced on Friday morning that a solution had been found for the city’s “beloved” club.

“The prospect of the Giants not being part of Nelson was just untenable,” he said.

“We erred in not engaging with our anchor tenants, like the Giants, when the change was made. You live and learn.”

The Giants, the NBS Dancing for a Cause charity fundraiser, and Te Tauihu o te Waka a Maui Māori Cultural Council kapa haka are the three users of the centre that were granted exemptions from the policy until the end of the contract on 30 June 2027.

The policy had been changed to align with other “premier” venues around the country, and to reduce costs to ratepayers who subsidise the facility by $2 million annually.

“I have no apologies for the fact that we want to minimise the cost to the ratepayer,” Smith said.

“The bit we did not understand was just the scale of the impact that would have on the finances of an organisation like the Giants.”

The addition of the policy allowed the council to secure a “significantly” cheaper contract for CLM to manage the facility, but some of those savings will now be paid back to CLM as compensation for the variation to the contract.

Smith said the cost of the variation for the council would not be disclosed because it was commercially sensitive.

Next year, the council will conduct a high-level strategic review of the Trafalgar Centre, which will include engagement with groups that use the facility, to ensure that the new 2027 contract will work for the community.

It was possible that other groups will secure exemptions through that process, Smith added.

Giants head coach and manager Mike Fitchett said securing the exemption was a “massive relief”.

Since his presentation to the council a month ago, he said he had been “surprised” by support from the community.

“It’s fair to say we’re pretty overwhelmed with the support we received.”

Last Saturday afternoon, Smith was presented with a petition urging the council find a solution.

“For that to generate 1200 signatures, and in a pretty quick time – it was fantastic for us. We know we’re really well supported, and this was another indication of that for us,” Fitchett said.

CLM Nelson community venues manager Mark Mekalick said the company was “proud” to be a gold partner of the Giants.

“Community’s at our heart and the Giants are a big part of this community, so it wasn’t a hard decision to make,” he said.

“We want this venue to feel like their home.”

Dancing for a Cause trustee Michelle Byczkow was “really grateful” to the council, mayor, CLM, and councillor and contestant Campbell Rollo that the fundraiser had been granted an exemption.

“It just provides a really promising outlook for another successful event in 2027.”

She said that this month’s biennial event had raised $670,000 for the Nelson Tasman Hospice, surpassing her expectations.

“That support has followed through to everyone getting behind us and saying how they were feeling about the way that we and the Giants, and other community groups, were being disadvantaged.”

The fundraiser had already negotiated its event hire agreement for its 2025 event and was therefore unaffected by the policy this year.

But she said losing food and beverage rights, which were normally supplied by sponsors for free, for the 2027 event could have made the event not financially viable.

“That’s not even somewhere that I want my mind to go.”

She called the three exemptions a “good step”, but said the fundraiser would be lobbying for “as many local community groups and charitable groups as possible” to also get exemptions in the 2027 centre contract.

In the meantime, Fitchett was confident that the Giants would make the play-offs.

“We are still looking to pick up our first win of the season at the Trafalgar Centre, but we believe we can win six or seven of those last seven games to sneak in there.”

Smith was cheering the club on: “Go the Giants!”

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