Mackenzie County to take on Twizel

Press, 5 September 1983, Page 9

Mackenzie County to take on Twizel

Twizel now has a future — the Mackenzie County Council on Friday decided' unanimously to accept the Government’s offer for the town.

The council has received 966 applications and deposits for the 325 houses offered by the Government. There are at present 903 houses left in the township, 200 of which are empty, and 600 of these houses are within the area planned to be retained as a town. Cr D. E. Dann, the Twizel representative on the Mackenzie County Council, successfully moved that the written agreement to the council’s offer be made, but this agreement should stress that the council’s acceptance of the Government’s offer does not prejudice or influence negotiations for the land differently designated, or for any additional land that is required for future development. Although the .council did not agree fully to details of the Twizel Community Council’s recommendations about the take-over and the allocation of houses, there was warm applause from representatives of the community council when what must be an historic decision was made. On the motion of Crs Dann and N. C. Anderson a special committee of five to deal with Twizel was set up. It comprises Crs Dann, Anderson, J. de B. Galwey, B. Scott, and the county chairman, Mr B. J. O’Neill. The County Clerk, Mr B. J.

Dwyer, and the consulting engineer, Mr J. R. Fougere, will be advisers to the committee.

The need to have priorities in allocating the houses was discussed at length, and the chairman, Mr O’Neill, stressed that if Twizel was to be viable there must be as many permanent residents as possible. It was agreed that Twizel residents who are prepared to live in Twizel permanently should have first preference and that applicants from elsewhere who would become permanent residents would have second priority. If there are houses left over, these will probably be allocated by ballot.

In the same way, existing businesses in Twizel are likely to have first preference in buying the properties they occupy. The new Twizel committee will take the responsibility of drawing up a questionnaire about the intentions of applicants for the houses and the Government will be asked to place a freeze in the further removal of homes from Twizel until the full needs are clarified.

Cr Dann was congratulated on the timetable of action which he had drawn up and this was referred to the new committee for consideration. The committee will make recommendations to future meetings of the council.

A decision was also made that, as the comity as a

whole will be responsible for the finance to get Twizel off the ground, it - must benefit from any profits made in establishing the town.

Mr J. A. Gilchrist, who has been added to the staff to deal with Twizel, said that the 966 applications had come from all over New Zealand, but most were from the South Island. There were 257 applicants from within the Twizel township, three were from Western Australia and one was from Hong Kong. The council’s costs were estimated at $457,000, but it was estimated that $850,000 would come in from the 20 per cent deposits on the properties. The sale of all Twizel properties was expected to bring in $425 million and when property sales by Government were originally intended, the proviso by the county was that $l2 million be set aside as a capital sum with interest thereon for maintenance costs, and that $400,000 be reserved to finance further capital works.

Associated with any decision to retain Twizel, he said, was the need for extensions to the council’s administrative headquarters in Fairlie, and it was possible that a new building might be incorporated as part of a community centre. It was possible that a considerable amount could be invested to offset county rating needs in exactly the way proposed for Twizel.