Waihanga Centre

Supporter Profile – Trevor Hawkins DRAFT needs to be approved by Trevor.

Trevor is a well known face around town, the driving force behind Martinborough Transport which is now managed by his three sons, staunch supporter of the Martinborough Rugby Club and a Trustee of Hau Ariki Marae. David Kershaw asked Trevor for his thoughts on the Waihinga Centre project.

Despite being initially opposed to saving the Town Hall Trevor says he is happy to put aside this view in order to support the proposed Waihinga Centre plan. “My original opinion was that the Town Hall should be demolished and rebuilt but based on what I now know about this development I’m happy to support it.”

He says it’s time for the community to get behind the project too for the sake of the future of the town. “I’m keen to see it get built and up and running. It’s a strong, well thought out project that will provide for the long term needs of our community. The work that has been done is top class.”

“It will offer lots of opportunities for our whanau. Our tamariki will have the space in the building to use the library and internet after school as well as enjoying the new playground. Our mums and babies can enjoy having Plunket, the library and Toy Library under one roof and our tipuna will have somewhere to go and read the newspaper in the sun. When you add in the performance space in the Town Hall it will be the heart of Martinborough and I’m fully behind it.”

Waihinga Charitable Trust update
The Waihinga Charitable Trust is a registered charity with details now publicly available on the Charities Register. The official registration number is CC52984.

The Trust’s charitable purpose is defined as “..the development of community facilities and services, and in particular for the Martinborough Community Centre, and also for the advancement of education, for the people of Martinborough and surrounding districts.”

The initial Board of Trustees was appointed by the Mayor, Chairperson of the Community Board and the project Steering Group. Further trustees have been appointed by the Board for their skills and their involvement in fundraising to date.

Current Trustees are: Max Stevens (Chair) Catherine de Groot (Secretary), John Meehan (Treasurer), Lisa Cornelissen, Ro Griffiths, David Kershaw and Victoria Read.

During the build phase of the Waihinga Centre the Trust will have two main roles:
• raising funds and accepting donations for the development of the Centre.
• disbursing those funds as required for the completion of the project.

Once the Waihinga Centre is open the role of the Trust will be reviewed by Council with Trustees appointed and elected to reflect the new requirements.

The Trust will shortly be contacting members of the community who have offered financial support for the project, to begin the process of redeeming those pledges.

Lisa Cornelissen, Waihinga Charitable Trust

SWDC Update
Following the Council decision to proceed with the Waihinga Centre project there has been a significant amount of work taking place behind the scenes. Subject to tenders, building is expected to start in July and we will be providing updates on progress through The Star and other print media, Libraries, the SWDC website and the ratepayers’ newsletter.

Paul Crimp CEO, South Wairarapa District Council