What is to Replace the Hydro Grand?

Can you imagine how many people would have laughed when Richard Pearse announced to the people of South Canterbury over 100 years ago that he had invented a machine that could fly.

Many would have called him crazy but despite that Richard Pearce not only flew a machine he created a goose that laid golden eggs.

 

The first golden egg was called air travel and with air travel came tourists who all needed accommodation. Some towns saw the potential in tourism and they built modern high class hotels to accommodate these wealthy tourists.

In 1912 another South Canterbury man W K McDonald saw potential in Tourism and he built a tourist hotel on a prime coastal site in Timaru and he called it the Hydro Grand Hotel.
Ninety one years later the Hydro Grand has out lived its usefulness as a tourist hotel and needs to be replaced with something more modern.

 

In more recent times Timaru has sat back and watched while other South Island towns and districts such as Queenstown, Wanaka, Cromwell, Tekapo have all  benefited from the tourist dollar. Our excuse has always been that there is nothing in Timaru to attract Tourists.

Rubbish, they are here all right but the trouble is we are all too blind to see them.  The one essential thing that we don’t have in Timaru is an International tourist hotel or in house conference facilities.

 

If we were to build a large Tourist Hotel on the Hydro Grand site look at what we would then have to offer our wealthy tourist friends.

A Tourist Hotel with one the best scenic views in New Zealand. This icon would be situated in the heart of the mainland with only a couple of hours drive to Christchurch, Dunedin and Mount Cook.

 

In addition to travelling to and from these places tourists would be able to play golf on our wonderful golf courses, fish in our rivers and lakes, ski on our mountains, swim in our beaches rivers and pools. After visiting the second largest dairy factory in the world they would be able to visit our farms and see sheep, cattle, deer and a host of other agriculture activities that they may never see in their own country.

Situated in the Centre of the South Island the Hotel could be built to also cater for corporate conferences which would attract many New Zealand visitors to our district. The location of the Tourist Hotel would be within walking distance of many other fine Hotel and Motels in the City.

 

Let me give you one good reason why we need to turn South Canterbury into a tourist destination and I’ll do it with just three words.  Local Body  Rates.

 

In recent years our city fathers has spent a lot of money on redecorating the Timaru City and from all reports they have not finished yet. I think that under the leadership of our current Mayor Mr Wynne Raymond and his team of councillors they have done an excellent job in brightening up the City.

However when we look at what is yet to be spent on redecorating the Council Chambers and Caroline Bay plus a new swimming pool one cannot help but get somewhat nervous about who is going to pay for all these luxuries.

 

The $2000 household rate demand could well be closer than you think.

We all want more, a nicer looking town with more facilities but the hard facts are that unless we increase our revenue or the number of rate payers then you and I will continue to give our hard earned golden eggs to local government to spend as they wish.

The answer is simple, if we want to have the luxuries of life then why not import more people to pay for them.

 

If we are going to build a Tourist Hotel in Timaru and I have no doubt that it will happen one day then surely it would make good sense to form a public company and give every man women and child in South Canterbury the opportunity to invest in it.

 

If all the investors in South Canterbury sold their Auckland Airport shares and invested that money in a Tourist Hotel in their own city then we may even have enough dollars left over to turn Richard Pearse airport into an International Airport.

 

Can you imagine what it would be like sitting up on the top floor of the most popular Tourist Hotel in New Zealand, enjoying a meal with your family while admiring the view, with the southern alps and Mount Cook  on one side and the ocean on the other.

Knowing that you and your family along with all your friends and acquaintances own a part of it.

 

I may be a dreamer but so too was Richard Pearce and he built a goose that laid golden eggs so why don’t you and I take over where he left off and build a goose that will lay golden eggs for our families and descendants to follow.

 

We can do it folks, there are business people in this town that can make the dream happen but the question is, will they share it with you and I?

To see the results and vote on stage 2 of the poll click here