What we found when the doors to council workshops were flung open?

“I’ll turn the clock back to the early 1950s when we had all those Dutch people come over and some of them bought a barrel organ with them.”

What we found when the Invercargill City Council opened its doors to workshop meetings

There’s been a sense of scepticism amongst reporters around the Invercargill City Council’s closed workshops over the years.

They are the meetings where councillors are provided information from council staff and others on matters. It prompts questions, discussions and helps shape future consultation.

We, the public, haven’t generally been able to view that play out.

There’s been a feeling that these closed-door workshops are where the real debate has taken place.

Then when it comes to the actual decision-making meetings some sort of mock debate unfolds in front of the public where they already have a fair grasp of what way the vote is going to go.

You’ll do well to convince me there hasn’t been the odd occasion or two over the years where this hasn’t been the exact case.

But maybe we’ve overplayed what actually goes on in many of those workshops.

When Nobby Clark became mayor he asked, where possible, that those workshops be opened up to the public to view.

His feeling is the public should also hear what information is available in helping them reach decisions.

On Tuesday the council held one of those workshop meetings. I spent two hours tuning into the livestream for a couple of reasons.

Firstly, I thought it might be rude to grumble for some time about potential debate taking place behind closed doors, but when the doors are flung open to simply say, ‘thanks, but I’m too busy’.

Secondly the subject matter was around the City with Heart: City Centre Focus topic, something I know the public has a keen interest in.

What I found was when the curtain was lifted, at times, it resembled more a meeting of a jubilee organising committee than the intensity of those closed doors meetings that some had pictured in their minds.

And I say that in the kindest way. Here’s a few highlights.

At one point Cr Peter Kett asked his colleagues if they had ever heard a barrel organ played.

“I’ll turn the clock back to the early 1950s when we had all those Dutch people come over and some of them bought a barrel organ with them.” Kett said.

“That was a major drawcard, it was absolutely brilliant, it would bring people from miles. If we could source that, that would be something special.”

There was also a brief moment when some councillors recalled the glory days of the Granny’s Bar at the Northern Tavern, which Ian Pottinger pointed out was where he met his wife.

At one stage the topic of tyre marks was raised sparking a joke as to which councillor might be responsible after doing their laps of the city.

Look, it would be wrong if I didn’t point out that in amongst that jest, there was interesting information and discussion dished up. Information that the public should get to here.

Esk St - Kelvin St to Dee St - remains a discussion point in terms of whether it should be car free in the future.

Pottinger says he gets asked by someone every second day if Esk St is going to be car free.

It was suggested there’s the option for it to remain open to cars but to close it off regularly for public events.

There were loads of ideas thrown about to help make the inner city more attractive for people to visit. Whether it being putting in a public piano, introducing pop up youth concerts, public play spaces, public art options, putting a focus on the Civic Theatre foyer as the ‘city’s living room’ with regular daytime concerts.

It’s pretty exciting if that talk actually does transform into some action.

Questions were raised as to if street access to the new hotel, which will be opened at the old Menzies Building site, should occur via Dee St where Wachner Place is now.

Some offered thoughts that Wachner Place should remain as a public space and enhanced. Others felt Esk St could provide a better public place with it closer to key inner-city investment.

What we do know is for years Invercargill’s city centre felt like a decaying ghost town. There’s now been some genuine investment and enthusiasm thrown into changing that and that should be celebrated.

Although it should be pointed out, we could do with some of our inner-city building owners sorting out their facades, both from a safety and beatification view.