Port Chalmers Kindergarten head teacher Julie Peters and
preschoolers (from left) Jaxon Greer (4), Taufa Makanesi
(4) and Hemi Tamati (5) prepare for the demolition of their
kindy. Photo by Peter McIntosh.
"We want people to walk in the door and say, 'Hey look,
this is Port Chalmers'."
It is a vision Port Chalmers Kindergarten head teacher Julie
Peters has for the kindergarten's new facility, to be built
next year.
The present Albertson Ave facility will be demolished in
March, and while it would be sad to see their old home
trucked away in pieces, Ms Peters said the community was in
the enviable position of being able to rebuild and reinvent
itself with a "distinctly Port Chalmers flavour".
The more than 50-year-old building no longer met government
regulations for accommodating a kindergarten, she said. It
would cost too much to upgrade so it had been decided it
should be demolished and a new one built in its place.
While it would be funded by the Dunedin Kindergarten
Association, the Port Chalmers community had been fundraising
heavily for the past two years to help pay for the little
things that would give the building a local flavour.
It was hoped the new facility would be complete in December
2011, and Ms Peters said she was now looking for a temporary
site to hold sessions in the community.
"The new building is going to be absolutely awesome. We're
going to have a purpose-built place that is a creative
environment.
"We're also really into sustainability and looking after the
environment. We want to incorporate nice gardens where the
children can grow things."
- john.lewis@odt.co.nz
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