Business South August 2020

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FIND US ON FACEBOOK & BUILDERS CRACK REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT » Ashburton District Council Sparking up business in Mid Canterbury Heating up: Don Chen the chef and owner of ‘Formosa’ - one of Ashburton’s businesses included in the Mid Can Open For Business directory . Kim Newth A shburton District Council wasted no time in finding a solution to help rebuild the local economy after Level 4 Lockdown, launching a new and improved ‘shop local’ campaign to kick start economic activity. ‘Mid Canterbury Open for Business’ features a free online business directory (midcanopenforbiz. nz) where people can find businesses, along with exciting local specials. Hundreds of business registered following the April launch with the campaign also including a district-wide advertising and promotional drive. “The real beauty of the campaign is that it eases some of the financial pressure on businesses to ad- vertise,” says Ashburton District Council’s Economic Development Manager Bevan Rickerby. Not all are finding it easy, but anecdotally the feedback has been positive with people responding well to the ‘spend local’ message. Almost two-thirds of the district’s working popu- lation were deemed essential workers during the lockdown, which also helped soften the economic impact of Covid-19. Bevan, along with the council’s chief executive Hamish Riach, is leading an economic recovery ad- visory committee, bringing together sector leaders to pool resources and brainstorm further strategies to benefit the district. Another big support for the local economy, as it charts uncertain waters ahead, is the Ashburton CBD Revitalisation Project. It is poised to transform the CBD with revamped streets and pavements and new street furniture and landscaping. “This is a two-year project employing local sub- contractors and generating a lot of positivity,” says the Council’s Infrastructure Services Group Manager Neil McCann. “It’s putting a smile back on people’s faces.” Council staff are working closely with local busi- nesses to minimise the impact of the CBD works, with some construction activity timed to take place at night. Regular newsletters are being distributed to keep the business community updated with progress. Giving a lot of pleasure to locals this winter, as works have continued, is a beautiful display of fairy lights in trees on Ashburton’s East Street. “A lot of people have been commenting on how wonderful they look – the feedback has been unbe- lievable,” Neil says. Ashburton has long been an attractive place to live and work, servicing the needs of Mid Canter- bury’s highly productive primary and food manufac- turing sectors. The district’s farmers are among the most in- novative in the country. In July, Ashburton’s Eric Watson took out the Guinness World Record for the highest wheat yield - for the second consecu- tive time – having produced an astounding 17.398 tonnes per hectare wheat crop. As well as having the biggest irrigated farming community in New Zealand, Mid Canterbury is also the backbone of this country’s seed industry. Key employers include Talley’s and ANZCO Foods. Mt Hutt is a big seasonal drawcard for Mid Canterbury. This popular ski field, voted NZ’s best ski resort for five years running, opened to a record crowd this winter. There could soon be more reasons to visit Meth- ven too, with building consent recently granted for the new Opuke Thermal Pools & Spa development. Later this year, construction of the new $1.6 mil- lion Ashburton Library and Civic Centre is also due to begin, (replacing old facilities that are no longer fit for purpose). The design has a strong emphasis on sustain- ability, with groundwater planned to drive heating and cooling systems and natural timber selected as a predominant building material. The final phase of the CBD revitalisation project will be timed around this key civic asset, with streetscape elements complementing the new building. “By the end of 2022, we aim to have the whole CBD project and the new civic building completed, giving people even more of a reason to stop off in Ashburton,” Bevan says. The Council is also awaiting final decisions on four ‘shovel-ready’ proposals for the district that could further boost the town’s ongoing recovery.