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Council funding approved for Karori Sanctuary

At a Wellington City Council meeting this afternoon, Councillors agreed to a $1.9 million loan to cover extra costs incurred by delays to the Sanctuary’s Visitor & Education Centre project.

The Council agreed to the interest-free loan of $1.9m to cover extra costs resulting from unforeseeable delays to the construction of the world-class visitor facility. The Sanctuary was also granted transitional funding of $300,000 and $600,000 in 2009/10 and 2010/11 respectively, as part of the Council’s commitment to continue supporting the Sanctuary Trust until the Visitor Centre is operational.

Sanctuary CEO Nancy McIntosh-Ward said the Trust, its staff and the thousands of supporters and volunteers were very grateful to the Council for its expression of continuing commitment to the Sanctuary.

“We all know that the Council is firmly committed to controlling spending in these difficult economic times. So this decision sends a clear message that Councillors continue to see the Centre as a sound, important investment for the city and that the reasons they put their weight behind the project back in 2005 are still entirely valid. It demonstrates the Council’s foresight in committing to a development that will bring substantial long-term benefits to the city and offer international and local tourists a unique, world-class attraction. It also recognises that proceeding with the Visitor Centre is critical to ensuring the Sanctuary ultimately becomes self sustaining financially.”

In agreeing to extend the loan and in view of its increased investment in the Visitor Centre, Council will require increased monitoring and reporting on the project and an independent review designed to ensure there are no further delays or cost increases.

“The Council’s requirements are more than reasonable”, said Mrs McIntosh-Ward

“All the parties involved are keen to ensure the smooth-running of the project in future and we welcome the opportunity to identify any areas where improvements might be made. Ultimately this is,  an investment for Wellington and one that future generations will be proud of.”’

The Centre is scheduled to open in April 2010, five months after the original forecast opening date.

Background:

The Council first approved the business case and an $8 million interest-free loan for the all-weather Visitor and Education Centre in March 2005. However, it wasn’t until June 2007 that the Government finally agreed to fund the $6.5 million shortfall.

Soon after the project got underway, geotechnical drilling identified unexpected issues with the stability of the bank behind the visitor centre. Design work was halted while project managers sought a second opinion.

In May the Trust had to go back to the Council to request an additional loan – the first sought for capital expenditure since the Council approved the $8 million loan in 2005. The Council agreed to consider an additional loan, but requested firm costings.

Further delays with the consent process between May and October pushed the project back by another five months, once again pushing up costs and further delaying the opening and thus significantly reducing forecast revenue for the period ahead.

From the outset, the Centre was widely considered to be a much-needed commissionable new visitor destination for the city, and a long-overdue facility where New Zealand’s conservation story could be told in proximity to both the national capital and one of the country’s most important conservation projects. The Sanctuary has established a national and international profile over ten years as the first fenced sanctuary. It recently made news headlines around the world for finding the mainland’s first tuatara eggs in over 200 years in the Sanctuary.

ENDS

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