Levin War Memorial Hall’s future considered in town centre revamp

Levin War Memorial Hall is up for development by private interests as part of the revitalisation plan for the town.

With renewed plans in the works to revamp Levin’s town centre, developers can come up with ideas of what to do with the hall, adjacent skate park and Village Green.

The Levin Town Centre Transformation Strategy, developed and adopted by Horowhenua District Council in 2018, aspires to make Levin a more vibrant, resilient and sustainable place. The revitalisation of the Levin War Memorial Hall site is just one aspect of how the town will be developed and modernised as the centre is bypassed and its population continues to grow.

The strategy lists the guiding principles of Levin’s future development. Its vision is “creating an attractive and vibrant urban town centre environment that supports economic growth, fosters community engagement and promotes sustainable development, ultimately enriching the quality of life for residents and visitors in Levin”.

The global pandemic put plans on hold, but the council revisited its vision last year, saying feedback gathered between 2016 and 2018 helped to inform the draft strategy. Many of the issues identified in 2018 remain relevant and a priority for the council.

Levin and Horowhenua are in an exciting period of unprecedented growth. With roading and passenger rail improvements planned to provide greater accessibility to and from Wellington, more people are recognising Horowhenua as a place to live, work, play and do business.

The next five years are going to see the district, including the Levin town centre, transformed.

Some $2 million of the Three Waters-related Better Off Funding was allocated to the town centre transformation programme by the Labour Government, enabling the council to progress this stage of the project without relying on ratepayer contribution.

Additional funding is provided for in the council’s Long-Term Plan, noting that the town centre plan expects to be largely self-funding.

The War Memorial Hall is classified as an earthquake-prone building, but a retrofit concept design has been completed that suggests the building could be strengthened to achieve greater than 44 per cent of the New Building Standard (NBS).

The hall was opened in 1956 to honour those who lost their lives at war. Wartime memorabilia was removed from the hall and taken to the Levin RSA in the 1970s.

The hall is currently available for public hire and used by the community to host markets and a range of other activities.

The development strategy has no preconceived ideas for how the hall could be used, as long as it has a positive influence on the town centre. There is the possibility of incorporating the Village Green and skate park sites if desired, though the skate park will need to be protected as it is a much-loved asset.