Statement to the Mangawhai Focus (and Members) 23/01/2018 Statement from Mangawhai Domain Committee 23/01/2018 Please accept this statement from the Mangawhai Domain Society (Inc) regards the questions you (Julia Wade, Mangawhai Focus) raised in your email to the Secretary on 22nd January. In answer to your questions about recent resignations from the Committee: As per the information already published on our web site (Resources Page) Pip Beavan (Chair) and Maureen Beavan (Secretary) resigned effective 14th January and the Committee thanked them for their contribution over the years. It would be inappropriate for the Committee to comment on their reasons for resigning and suggest you contact them for further comment. Dave and Denise Thomas also resigned at the same meeting and once again we will respect their privacy and not publish any discussion on their resignations and suggest that you speak with them directly.What we can say is that their resignations are not directly related to any decisions the committee has made regards MFC and their proposed plans for the Domain grounds. The decision by the Committee to decline the MFC proposal was a unanimous vote of all members present (9) at the regular committee meeting held on Monday the 8th of January. The current committee consists of seven members as published on our web site and as per the Rules of the Society the committee has the power to fill any vacancy that may occur at a regular committee meeting. There are a few spaces available so if interested in joining and contributing to the running of this special place please contact the Secretary. In answer to your questions about the decision to decline the MFC proposal: It is important to clarify (again) that there was never any formal acceptance of the MFC “proposal” which per the minutes of the Domain committee meeting on 14th Nov 2016 was suggested as a “Community Gym/Club Fields” project. Your suggestion there was some agreement for the proposal to proceed at the AGM held on 28th October 2017 is incorrect. There was no discussion.Due to the lack of detail regards the proposal the committee in a letter to the MFC on 20th Nov 2017 asked the MFC to provide details of their plans no later than 22nd Dec 2017 else the committee would assume the MFC no longer wished to continue with the development. The information provided by MFC on the 21st of Dec 2017 consisted of a basic power point presentation that was first tabled on 14th Nov 2016, along with a Site Feasibility Report which showed among other things some options for playing fields. Given the lack of clarity in that no building footprints or parking areas were shown, and the fact that the fields alone would consume a significant amount of the Domain grounds (more than 50% of the available green space) and thus impact the availability of this space to the wider community and also the concerns of neighbouring residents and Society members in general, the committee decided to decline the MFC proposal on 8th January 2018. The number of emails to the committee from members supporting this decision is we believe confirmation the majority wish to keep this 7ha (per Title on Web site) open green space available for the community as a whole to use. Approximate space that would be used by the proposed fields (not including any provision for buildings and parking etc) is as shown at the end of this document. As stated above, the decision to decline the MFC proposal was a unanimous committee decision supported by legal advice in relation to the Society Rules and any suggestion that “personality clashes” were involved is ludicrous. The decision regards the proposed MFC development of the domain does not in any way affect their ability to book and use the facility as per other sports groups and clubs. Their bookings for Mondays, Thursdays and Saturday mornings have all been confirmed. Any suggestion the committee would discriminate against any potential user would be totally outside the Objects of the Domain Society and not in keeping with the Domain being a place for our community as a whole to use and enjoy. It should also be noted that at the committee meeting on 8th January it was proposed and agreed that the playing fields in front of the main building be upgraded along with modernisation/refurbishment of the showers and changing rooms under the building. This is due primarily to concerns expressed by some of the sports clubs using the facility and the increased demands being placed upon it. Some $33,000 was also spent in 2015 installing extensive drainage in the area MFC propose be used for their fields so as to make the area more available at all times of the year for community use. One of the possible field layouts from the MFC provided Site Feasibility Study. The marked area does not include the additional space that would be required for Buildings/Parking etc  Recent Resignations It is with regret that the Mangawhai Domain Society, announce that Pip & Maureen Beavan have decided to resign from the Committee, effective from the 14th January 2018. Pip and Maun have given many valuable years of service, and their input has been greatly appreciated. Pip’s knowledge of the grounds, is second to none, and he has always been on hand for those little and sometimes, not so little maintenance jobs that crop up, on a fairly regular basis. Maun’s work on the History of the domain, as seen on the website, has been a great insight for many, who do not know the history of Mangawhai, and its’ domain. Thank you both for all your time, input and effort. Kind regards The Mangawhai Domain Committee. |