Welcome at Town Hall

Press, 15 October 1986, Page 26

Welcome at Town Hall

Delegates to the T.A.A.N.Z. Convention will attend a Welcome to Christchurch event tomorrow night. Organised by the Canterbury Promotion Council, it will be held at the Christchurch Town Hall and will include a cocktail function as well as a sit-down dinner for about 650 guests. The Mayor, Sir Hamish Hay, will extend an official welcome to the delegates, and the president of T.A.A.N.Z., Mr Bob Christey, will introduce the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Geoffrey Palmer, who will officially open the convention. The chief executive of the Canterbury Promotion Council, Mr Bruce Dunstan, says the occasion is an excellent opportunity to promote Christchurch and Canterbury. “It’s the local tourist industry’s chance to take advantage of the presence of the delegates by entertaining them in a stylish way, using local personalities, wines, foods and entertainment,” he says. . Christchurch jazz singer and recording artist, Malcolm McNeill, and some of the city’s fringe performers will entertain the delegates. There will also be surprise appearances by four well known Christchurch characters. The city’s garden city image will be emphasised by the large, floral Welcome to Christchurch message which will greet the delegates. The staff at the Town Hall will wear smart red, black and white boaters, which Mr Dunstan says will give a touch of the English character for which Christchurch is noted.

The wines to be served at the dinner are from two Canterbury wine estates, St Helena and Giesens, and the delegates will be served Canterbury lamb donated by Ashley Meat Exports, Ltd. Local businesses were approached to assist in meeting the cost of welcoming the delegates, and Mr Dunstan says the response has been generous. More than 50 firms are sponsoring the cost of the evening, most of these by donating cash, some with goods and services. Major sponsors are Ashley Meat Exports, Ltd, the Christchurch City Council, the Canterbury Promotion Council, Golden Chain Motor Lodges, H. and H. Gray Line, Johnston’s Blue Motors, Newman’s Tours, Queenstown Resorts, Ltd, and Travelodge. Mr Dunstan says many Christchurch venues were considered for the Welcome to Christchurch evening, and the Town Hall was selected as the most suitable. Cocktails will be served on the floor of the auditorium, and the seats in the auditorium will be used during the official part of the evening. The sit-down dinner and entertainment will be held in the foyer.

“We have had to be creative in seating and entertaining so many in the space — and I think we have succeeded,” Mr Dunstan says. Although this is the first time the Town Hall has been used for a function on this scale, Mr Dunstan says it will not be the last. Equipment, such as portable bain-maries, acquired for this occasion will be available for similar events in the future.