Community groups in Avondale have been given a boost following the news that a building and two garage spaces are set to be leased for community use by Whau Local Board.
The building, at 33-37 Eastdale Road, Avondale, was formerly a groundsman shed and consists of a kitchenette, bathroom facilities, meeting space and two garage spaces.
Following due process, which will include public notification, Avondale Community Action will hold the lease on behalf of I Love Avondale.
Activities
The group will use the buildings to host activities such as fitness classes, sports modules and other community-led initiatives and provide a space for young people to gather with mentoring and support sessions and workshops. It follows an expression of interest process that ran between November 2018 and January 2019.
Whau Local Board Chair Tracy Mulholland says that the space will be valuable for the community.
“We know that the people of Avondale are creative, passionate and full of energy”, she says.
“I Love Avondale has been one of the most effective community organisations in the area for some time, and we know that they can deliver great community activities and events.
“Through the expression of interest process, their application clearly showed that they would be able to make really good use of this space.
"We are really pleased that there will be another area for the Avondale community to come together and explore interests together.”
No idea is a bad idea
Dayne Smith, from I Love Avondale and Avondale Community Action also welcomed the news.
“I'm grateful to Whau Local Board for granting us this lease", he says.
“We have already been in conversation with several other groups active here about creating a space where people of all ages and backgrounds can participate in activities related to sports, recreation and being active in general.
“We are of course open to other ideas as well – no idea is a bad idea. We're really excited to be given this opportunity and look forward to working with our community to do some good in our hood."
