A public workshop will be held from noon on Wednesday — before a Cromwell Community Board meeting.
All Central Otago residents were urged to help come up with a name for the nearly completed building, which is due to open in July, at the Central Otago District Council meeting in December.
The working name of Cromwell Memorial Hall and Events Centre had been in use during construction but the council is now consulting on a formal name.
The Cromwell Community Board had recommended the $45 million venue have dual names — one English and a gifted te reo Māori one, Central Otago district councillor Sarah Browne said at the December meeting.
There were strong opinions in the community about the building’s name and no matter what the final choice was, some people would not like it, she said, adding her desire that the conversation be "as far-reaching and appropriate as we can make it".
Deputy mayor Tracy Paterson said, at the time, the decision was for the whole district, "not just a decision for Cromwell".
Annual operating costs for the building, which included a 400-seat auditorium, a 40-seat cinema, a museum, a cafe and flexible meeting and entertaining spaces, were $1.7 million, with annual revenue starting at just $100,000. It was expected that would increase to $550,000 by year six of operation.
The $45 million construction bill would be met by the sale of Cromwell endowment land. However, all Central Otago ratepayers would pay for operating expenses because of the council’s "districtisation" policy of spreading its outlay across the whole district.
