Submitter
Submission id number: 964705
Submitter name:
Ruth Graham
Organisation
Do you want to speak to Councillors at the hearings?
Yes
Supporting information
No associated documents with this submission.
Submission
How are we doing? Is there anything you would like to tell us?
Kia ora,
I’m Ruth Graham. My late mother, Anne Turvey, was the last Deputy Mayor of the Borough of St Kilda and a long serving Dunedin City Councillor. For nearly 30 years she attended Annual Plan consultations to advocate for the establishment of a permanent public library in the South Dunedin area. In 2019, the Council purchased a property for the development of a Library and Community Complex but that construction has been delayed until February 2025.
Sadly, my mother passed away in 2021 and out of respect to her commitment to this project I am making this submission.
I wish to express the concern of myself and my family to the delay in the development of the proposed South Dunedin Library and Community Complex. I appreciate there have been efforts to work with the remaining tenant to find a satisfactory alternative location, but without success.
In the 2021-31 10 year plan an amount of $11.56 million was allocated to construct a new building. But, as the Council is well aware, construction delays can only result in increased costs.
In this review period, I respectfully ask the Council to review and revise to the allocated budget for the South Dunedin Library and Community Complex to reflect current costs.
I believe that if the allocated budget is lower than the perceived costs stakeholders will lose confidence in the viability of the project. I also worry that when the project does get underway a budget “blow-out” could become a point of contention around the Council table.
My message to the Council is, please honour the decision that was made in 2019 - to build the South Dunedin and Library Community Complex – without division or controversy.
Ngā mihi,
Ruth Graham, PhD
What other ideas should we be thinking about to include in future plans for our city?