Community House enjoys healthy finances

November 21st, 2009
By David Armstrong

Motueka Community House is enjoying new-found financial health, thanks to a full roster of tenants and several building improvements.

The annual general meeting of the House last week reported a five-figure bank balance, thanks largely to better use of the facility by community groups. This was up from a deficit two years ago.

The Community House, off the northern end of the Decks Reserve car park, is used by not-for-profit groups as a base for their services, and its meeting room often rented out for regular and one-off activities and presentations.

There are now 10 service groups paying tenancy for rooms, with another two on the waiting list. The committee which manages the house are pleased that this shows greater use by Motueka residents of community activities and services in general, as well as increased dedication by people offering services. Three new committee members volunteered their services at the AGM.

"The past year saw quite a lot of overdue maintenance and improvements to the building, including the installation of a heat pump, skylights and bike stands," says Jude Freer, acting secretary/treasurer. "This has helped make the facility more attractive to users."

The House has also begun running what they call "whanau meetings" - lunchtime get-togethers open to all people who are interesting in knowing what's going on and networking with other community minded groups. They are held on the first Wednesday of each month, and usually include a guest speaker.

Current House tenants include Red Cross, Community Law, Grey Power, Women's Support Link, Adult Learning Support, Neighbourhood Centre, Relationship Services, Supporting Families in Mental Illness, Saint Vincent de Paul Society, and FreshFM Community Radio.

The House used to be the old town courthouse, and was moved to its present location 20 years ago to start its new life.

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