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What should we do with Balmoral Hall and the old Polytech land?

Me aha te Hōro Balmoral me te whenua Kuratini o mua?

Currently, the Council owns the Balmoral Hall and the old Polytech site on Cameron Street, Ashburton.

The Balmoral Hall is not classified as a heritage building but was built in 1936 and has been used by many generations and people since.

Balmoral Hall needs significant repairs – it has watertightness issues, unsuitable heating, and inadequate kitchen and bathroom facilities. Originally, we allocated around $480,000 in the current Annual Plan (2023/24) for these upgrades, but a recent estimate put the costs at around $1.3 million. This excludes any ongoing operational costs.

Further investigation of the work Balmoral Hall needs triggered the requirements of a building consent. As this is a public building, it is subject to additional requirements including fire protection systems, having the right ratio of sanitary fixtures, and accessibility. This is where the additional work, and costs, have arisen from.

The Hall is underutilised, and due to its layout, can only be booked by one group at a time.

On the Polytech site, the main classroom is outdated and is possibly past the end of its useful life.

Maintaining and operating both sites is expensive, and the income received doesn’t currently cover the costs. We expect that in time the income will reduce further, partly because some users are unwilling to pay higher fees, and some have either stopped operating or have moved to other facilities. Currently, we charge $25/ hour for hall hire, up to a maximum of $150/day.

What are the options?

  • Option 1

    Retain and repair Balmoral Hall and the Polytech site

    Balmoral Hall would be repaired and retained for its current use. The Polytech land would also be retained and continue to be leased until a clear future for the site is determined. It’s important to note we do not see any benefit in retaining the hall if the repairs and maintenance are not carried out.


  • Option 2 (preferred option)

    Sell both sites

    The Balmoral Hall and Polytech site would both be sold ‘as is where is’. The capital value for Balmoral Hall is $1.007 million and Polytech is $1.45 million. There is a plan to construct a multi-use studio at the EA Networks Centre to meet dance community needs. See below for more information.

  • Option 3

    Demolish or relocate buildings and redevelop the site

    Both sites would be cleared. Some buildings on the Polytech site would be relocated. The main two-storey classroom building on the Polytech Land and Balmoral Hall would be demolished, and the sites redeveloped. There is a plan to construct a multi-use studio at the EA Networks Centre to meet dance community needs. See below for further infomation.

EA Networks Centre Internal Building Changes and Multi-Use studio

The sprung floor at Balmoral Hall is a unique aspect to the hall and is sought after by dance groups. If the hall is sold or demolished, to address the needs of the dance community, construction of a multi-use dance studio is proposed as part of internal building changes planned for the EA Networks Centre in Year 1 of the Long Term Plan.

This studio would have a 100m2 floor space, which is smaller than the current floor space at Balmoral Hall. It is likely that the cost to hire this would increase. The total cost of this project (including the dance studio) is $325,000 which would be funded through debt. The effect of the total project would add around $8 annually to the UAGC from Year 2.

If the hall is retained, it's likely that the multi-use studio would not be included as part of the project.

Option Analysis

Learn more about the costs, advantages and disadvantages of each option.

What will it cost?

Advantages & Disadvantages

Capital: Estimated at $1.3 million (This excludes any ongoing operational costs).

Operating: Approximately net costs of $388,000 from year 1 slowly decreasing over a 10-year period to repay the loan.

Debt: Would increase by at least $1.3 million

Rates: Approximately an extra $1.89 per $100,000 capital value from year 1 slowly decreasing over a 10-year period. Funding for repairs and maintenance and ongoing operational costs (currently $45,000 per annum) would mostly come from the general rate, with the balance coming from the fees and charges paid by users.

Advantages

  • Community assets retained for use by community groups.

Disadvantages

Balmoral Hall

  • Increase in budget required, with no real improvement to the level of service the hall provides.
  • Unlikely to see an increase in use or income following refurbishments.
  • Current groups using the hall are unwilling or unable to pay more if fees were increased proportionally to repair costs.
  • General ratepayers would be subsidising the operating costs of Balmoral Hall for the facility users.

Polytech site

  • Funds will need to be committed to undertake deferred maintenance.
  • Long-term use will need to be found and the site redeveloped to suit.

What will it cost?

Advantages & Disadvantages

Cost: There would be a commission on the sale of the sites, which would come from the revenue received. No cost to the ratepayer.

Debt: Overall debt would reduce as Council have previously indicated the sale proceeds would be used to offset debt incurred by construction of Te Whare Whakatere.

Rates: $0

Advantages

  • Sale proceeds used to offset debt incurred by construction of Te Whare Whakatere (Library & Civic Centre).
  • Repairs and maintenance budget no longer required for Balmoral Hall or the Polytech land.
  • A modern dance studio at EA Networks Centre would likely be available to replace the sprung floor being lost at Balmoral Hall.

Disadvantages

  • It is likely that the hall and main Polytech classroom would be demolished by the purchaser, so community groups are likely to lose their current facilities.
  • The dance studio proposed at EA Networks Centre would be smaller and more expensive to hire than the current space at Balmoral Hall.
  • Heritage groups are unlikely to agree with selling Balmoral Hall.

What will it cost?

Advantages & Disadvantages

Capital: Costs for redevelopment would likely be funded through debt. These are unknown and would need to be approved through a future Annual Plan or Long Term Plan.

Operating: Demolition costs: $180,000 for Balmoral Hall; $450,000 for Polytech buildings.

Debt: Redevelopment would be funded through debt, repaid from the general rate. The amount of debt is unknown at this time.

Rates: Approximately an extra $3.07 per 100,000 capital value for year 1.

Advantages

  • Likely to create income from the redevelopment.
  • A modern dance studio at EA Networks Centre would likely be available to replace the sprung floor being lost at Balmoral Hall.

Disadvantages

  • Heritage groups are unlikely to agree with demolishing Balmoral Hall.
  • Loss of community assets used by community groups.
  • The dance studio proposed at EA Networks Centre would be smaller and more expensive to hire than the current space at Balmoral Hall.

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Have questions or want to learn more about a project, contact us below:

Phone 03-307 7700
Email info@adc.govt.nz
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2 Baring Square East, Ashburton 7700