Committee working hard on refurbishment plans
The Puahue Community Hall committee has exciting plans to update, renovate and give the hall some much-needed love and repair.
The refurbishment work relies entirely on fundraising and donations, as the committee isn’t able to seek funding for capital works from the council or the Ministry of Education, so although progress might seem slow, behind the scenes, significant work is being put in.
Committee members have engaged the Greenstone Group to project manage the refurbishment, appointed Architects to develop preliminary and detailed designs, and have maintained regular contact with the Waipā Community Board (Waipā District Council) to explore ways in which they can advocate and support the project.
In November, the project got a donation of $86,900 from the Puahue Cookbook Committee after it sold out of cookbooks.
Funding applications to G & J Gallagher Foundation, Waikato Farmers Trust and Grassroots Trust for the project have also been successful.
The Puahue Stock Scheme continues to make a sizeable annual donation to the project, and the hall car park was resurfaced by KBL Civil.
The committee is grateful for their support. One donation has granted the project budget confidence, and the hall has now gone to contract with a local construction company. It hopes to make an announcement this month or in April.
A number of third-party funding applications are also in the works.
All of this behind-the-scenes work is important to ensure that the hall committee can meet its aim of ensuring the hall continues to be maintained and available for community use.
They want to make sure the funding locked in is adequate to cover costs as materials and stages progress.
The project has been a victim of Covid too – with building materials and contractors all affected, but plans and materials have been finalised.
The Puahue Community Hall committee is committed to completing this project and thanks the community for their collective efforts now, and in the future.
Source: NZ Herald
