Successful year for Gisborne Holdings

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

BOB Proudfoot, chairman of the council's fully-owned subsidiary Gisborne Holdings, will report on a successful year to Gisborne District Council tomorrow. Gisborne Holdings' distribution will be $1.2 million larger than its statement of intent.

Among the main points in the company’s annual report will be:

Gisborne Holdings is aiming to have the council in its new building, which the company owns, by Christmasthe $8 million upgrade of the Waikanae Beach Top 10 Holiday Park is on schedule to be completed in time for the 2019 Te Ha celebrations.Mr Proudfoot will tell the council that the shareholder distribution will be $2.5 million, up by $1 million on last year and $1.2 million more than required in the company’s statement of intent.

His report on the first full year that the company has had the beach camp and vehicle testing station under its control will show a comprehensive income of $9.6 million, compared with $11.2 million last year, while the net cash inflow is $4.1 million compared with $2.9 million last year.

During the year, GDC transferred $7.8 million in assets and these, along with the profits, have moved its equity to $82 million, up from $64 million last year.

Mr Proudfoot says GHL is very pleased with the rebuild of the council’s Fitzherbert Street building, which the company will own, and is aiming for the first meeting of the council in the new building by December.

He described as exciting the refurbishment of the holiday park, which will include a pool and modern accommodation, the first refurbishment there for 30 years.

At Tauwhareparae Farms, GHL would concentrate on the reticulation of stock water on Tauwhareparae Station, where a serious drought was averted last year.

The forestry harvest at the station has begun.

Mr Proudfoot said GHL had a social conscience and if GDC’s community houses were transferred, as mooted to GHL, they would be managed on the same basis as they are now.

Rents on existing units would remain under same calculation basis as at present.

“Our attitude is that as the model is not broken, we don’t need to fix it,” his report says.

Given the size GHL has grown to, the board believes it is time to reorganise its administrative structure. That would include the appointment of a chief executive for the group and a financial controller, disestablishing the station manager at Tamatea Station, to be replaced by stock managers at Tamatea, Puketawa and Tauwhareparae stations, and ceasing accounting arrangements with Graham and Dobson and Jackson Blakeman chartered accountants.

GHL is in a sound financial position going into the 2017/18 financial year and is excited at the developments happening this year, the report says.