Council to allow bus access but retains clock in Wachner Place 'compromise'

“I think we are getting a little bit confused around the impact that allowing the maximum of about five or six buses for two minutes through a shared space will actually have."

The Invercargill City Council has voted to allow tour bus access through Wachner Place to access the hotel being developed in lower Esk St.

The Invercargill City Council has voted 10-3 in favour of a compromised plan for Wachner Place.

The council on Tuesday decided to allow tour buses through Wachner Place in the future to access the new Distinction Hotel development in the old Menzies Building on Lower Esk St.

However, it has also decided to retain the clock in Wachner Place and have busses travel beside it to the new hotel.

The council had consulted the public around two main options. One was to have pedestrian access from Dee St through to Leven St.

The preferred option was to clear Wachner Place and open it up as a one-way street to allow tour bus access through that area.

Mayor Nobby Clark had publicly declared his support of clearing Wachner Place.

However, after the consultation process, Clark put up an amendment option on Tuesday which was to retain the clock but still allow for tour bus access to the side of the clock.

“I’ve listened carefully to what was said at the public submissions and also carefully listened to what was said around the table at some of our workshops…. I think there can be a win-win by introducing a middle ground,” Clark said.

However, some around the council table did not view it as a compromise.

Councillors Lesley Soper, Ria Bond, and Peter Kett voted against the motion.

While mana whenua representatives Evelyn Cook and Pania Coote did not get to vote on the matter they also did speak against allowing bus access through Wachner Place.

Cr Soper did not view it as a compromise between the two options put forward.

“I still believe the genuine decision to make today is whether as a council we agree with vehicle access through Wachner Place,” Soper said.

Soper also pointed to the fact 86% of the 173 submitters were against allowing bus access.

Mana whenua representative Evelyn Cook agreed with Soper.

“This doesn’t actually advance the cause of making the decision about bus or no bus, this is just about clock or no clock,” Cook said.

Cr Kett voted against the motion believing, by allowing bus access through that area, it open up a wind tunnel.

“The ones that remember what it was like, it was the most dangerous place in Invercargill city until Wachner Place was built.”

Cr Crackett did not view the tour bus access as being as big of a deal as some might expect.

“I think we are getting a little bit confused around the impact that allowing the maximum of about five or six buses for two minutes through a shared space will actually have.

“The remaining 23.5 hours a day will be totally dedicated to retaining the intention of what Wachner Place has and would always stand for,” Crackett said.

“I would also like to point out that 173 submitters of a populous of 57,000 people in Invercargill is 0.3% of the voices of our people.

“So, if they are not yelling at us considerably louder than they are that they want to retain this space, and they are not happy with what we are considering, then they would have made their voices very well-known, like they did around several other sagas we have gone through, like the museum over the last couple of years.”

Deputy Mayor Tom Campbell was pleased with what Clark had put up as an alternative option.

“A lot of the people who spoke to us, both through the formal submissions and conversations we had, talked about us trying to preserve aspects of Wachner Place. A very key part of that being the clock.

“I think what you have proposed is a very good compromise, and there’s nothing wrong with compromise.”

Those who voted in favour of the bus access, but retaining the clock, were Clark, Campbell, Crackett, Ian Pottinger, Steve Broad, Darren Ludlow, Barry Stewart, Grant Dermody, Alan Arnold, and Trish Boyle.

With Clark’s amended option voted in favour council staff will now go about working through the design phase of the Wachner Place development to allow for the bus access.