Camping grounds owned and operated by the Waitaki District
Council could be handed to the private sector to manage,
including popular summer destinations around the Waitaki
lakes.
The council is preparing a draft reserves management plan for
its camping grounds, after which it will seek expressions of
interest from the private sectors for managing them.
This is in the preliminary stages and the draft plan will be
put out for public consultation before any decisions are
made.
Property manager Dougall McIntyre acknowledged it was a
change from the current situation, but believed the private
sector could manage the camps effectively in the long term as
well as offer new activities from them.
The council is involved in running 19 camps around the
district. Four are leased, seven are managed by a contractor
(such as collecting rubbish and checking fees are paid), two
are privately managed, three are managed by local committees
and three are for freedom camping.
Last year, the council handed over management of the popular
Ohau C and Falstone camping areas on Lake Benmore's Haldon
arm to the neighbouring Aubrey family under a management
agreement. That caused some controversy when the new managers
introduced boat ramp launch fees for facilities that had been
free.
Other camps are leased, such as the land for the Omarama Top
10, or managed by the community, such as the Duntroon Domain.
The council still manages the camping grounds at the Waitaki
lakes, including Sailor's Cutting on Lake Benmore, Round Bush
and Lake Ohau and Parson's Rock at Lake Aviemore.
Mr McIntyre said once the management plan had been completed
and legal advice obtained, the council would call for
expressions of interest in camping ground leases.
The decision to involve the private sector was made after a
review of options for the sustainable management of the
camping grounds.
That review concluded the council could move to a passive
landlord role, encouraging private-sector involvement in
management, which could lead to the creation of tourism
opportunities and offer additional services to campers. In
addition to leasing the management of some camping grounds,
the council would withdraw from some smaller sites for cost
reasons.
At present, Waitaki ratepayers subsidise camping and
launching facilities around the lakes by about $90,000 a
year.
david.bruce@odt.co.nz
A name, residential address, and (preferably residential) telephone number is required from readers who comment on ODT Online. These details will not be visible to site visitors.