Dannevirke: Live-in security fears at holiday park

Council's assets team manager, Kathy Dever-Tod.

Concern at on-site manager’s house

Moving a manager's house down into the Dannevirke Holiday Park is the wrong move, Basil Durrant says.

Mr Durrant's wife Eileen held the lease on the park for 15 years before the Tararua District Council extensively refurbished and upgraded the facilities, putting in Kim Spooner as the new manager.

The council is now selling the former manager's residence on George St and replacing it with a relocatable home down in the park itself, but Mr Durrant told the Dannevirke News the prospect of someone living down there when the camp is empty was "scary".

"Even with the gates closed there are those who got in," he said. "When I think of the things which happened in the past, such as deer fences being cut, leaving a stag roaming for three days, two females being assaulted and the slaughtering of a pig and some ewes, I don't think this is the place someone should be on their own."

However, Kathy Dever-Tod, the council's assets team manager, said safety and security are of the utmost importance for council.

"We're upgrading the lighting and the controls on the gates and it's not just a matter of plonking a house down there," she said. "Yes, Kim [Spooner] has raised her concerns and we're working through everything to improve the security at the camp which is paramount for us."

Ms Dever-Tod said having the holiday park manager down at the camp, rather than up on George St, was part of the focus to give campers a better experience.

Meanwhile, Mr Durrant acknowledged Kim was good value for the holiday park. "I hope she remains safe," he said.

Tararua District Council still has to make an application for the subdivision of the George St property, with the house being split on to a separate section leaving a building site to be sold as well. "The new house for down in the camp is being built now and is still a few months away," Ms Dever-Tod said.