Nelson s Long Term Plan adopted despite strong opposition stuff.co.nz - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from stuff.co.nz Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Council ready to splash the cash, providing 80 per cent of the funding, but questions remain about where that cash will come from and where the building will end up.
The new two-storey library would be built to brought up to speed to modern library standards, and would be constructed with a 5-star green-star rating. While the new library on the Maitai was the recommended option, other options on the table included the redevelopment/renovation of the current Elma Turner Library, along with the exploration of other sites around Nelson. From the hundreds of submissions, although there was strong support on both sides of the debate – the two recurring themes threatening to sink the proposal were the concerns over the $44m price tag, and the uncertainty about the potential for flooding at the site due to sea level rise.
LUZ ZUNIGA
Stoke Library is due to undergo about $700,000 of structural improvements and renewal work in the next four years, with a planned upgrade not due until after 2031.
Plans to redevelop Nelson s Elma Turner Library have grabbed the headlines in recent weeks, but what about the ageing library in the suburb of Stoke? The intended life span of Stoke Library was put at less than five years , in a building consent for remedial work on the building in 2019. Stoke Library did not feature in Nelson City Council s Long Term Plan, on which public submissions close on Wednesday, April 21. The council’s group manager community services, Andrew White, said the library was a well-used and much-loved community facility , and the council had no plans to close it.
Since economic recovery and regeneration is a priority, the council intends to continue its work with Project Kōkiri on economic recovery. The council has proposed “a reorientation of our social funding” to reduce social isolation, housing vulnerability and poverty to help in the social recovery of the region, and has bumped up its capital works programme to boost employment. That programme, among other expected expenses over the next 10 years, is projected to have a significant effect on the council’s debt levels. By 2031, debt is projected to be $291 million. The works will be fulfilling another of the eight key highlights – infrastructure renewal. The proposal in the LTP is for the council to invest $491m on “essential infrastructure” such as transport, water supply, wastewater and flood protection.