01/08/2022
- Pleasant Point Primary School / Victor Wilson Hall - your feedback is required.
Dear Pleasant Point Community,
When the Pleasant Point High School closed in 2004 the Victor Wilson Hall that belonged to the Ministry of Education (MOE) and was previously funded by them for its ongoing maintenance was gifted to the Pleasant Point Primary School Board of Trustees.
Along with the gifting of the Hall passed all of the liability / responsibility to maintain and financially upkeep the building - an annual maintenance cost of up to $20,000 per year.
The Hall is now needing some major renovation work (up to $400,000) that has been known about for some time but with limited school funding has not been at the top of the Primary School Board of Trustee’s priority list. For the Board, supporting student achievement should and always will come before upgrading of a hall.
As a Board of Trustees we have spent many hours considering the best way forward for the Victor Wilson Hall.
These are the things that have been considered and the processes we have worked our way through:
a) Architect drawings and quotes to upgrade the facilities including refurbishing the toilets, moving the disabled toilet, an upgrade of the foyer, entrance and kitchen, resanding and coating of the floor, stage curtains, addition of an archives room, an outdoor deck with BBQ area, and improved entrance from the back courts / turf area into the kitchen - designed with the community in mind for future events.
b) Talked with Timaru District Council about a possible purchase of the hall.
c) Applied for the Timaru District Council Covid Stimulus Fund.
d) Asked for the options from the MOE as follows -
● Can we sell the hall? Yes, but it will have to be removed as it sits on MOE land.
● Can we gift it back to the MOE? No.
● Can we demolish the hall and who would pay? MOE will possibly help us with these costs as they see the hall as an ongoing cost/liability to the school.
● If we were to demolish it would we get the funds to help us build another hall? No.
The Point Primary Board of Trustees are grappling with the issue of do we as a school have the funds, and should we priortise, putting this amount of finance into a building that is not 100% focused on student achievement and the overall well-being of our students and community.
The answer to this question is we can use some funding reserves to partially fund the needed upgrade / building maintenance required, but as a Board of Trustees with overall responsibility for our students’ achievement, we don't feel right in making this decision without consulting our community.
Many of our community and past pupils and generations have happy memories of the Hall over the years and I for one would be very sad to see this building not upgraded and maintained for future generations to enjoy as we have. However the question remains for us as a community - is this our primary responsibility? Is a school with an amazing facility going to help in the best way.
We would value your feedback around this and want to explore every option available. You may have other valid ideas that we may not have considered.
Any thoughts / feedback on this matter is sought either in writing addressed to the Pleasant Point Primary School Board of Trustees or via email [email protected].
Thank you for your consideration of this important school/community matter.
Yours sincerely,
Rowan Rabbidge
Board Chair
Pleasant Point Primary School Board of Trustees
