About 395 square metres of land donated to the Kaipara District Council will be included in a park and children's playground in the main street at Maungaturoto. Policy and planning manager Brendon Neal told the council at a meeting in Dargaville this week that trustees of the Station Road Hall Trustat Maungaturoto had made an unsolicited offer to donate the land in Hurndall St West to the council. "The land on offer is road frontage and adjoins the picnic/play equipment area. The acquisition of this land would greatly enhance the useable space within the park," he said in a report. The offer was subject to the council paying legal, surveying and fencing costs, expected to total $6000. Mr Neal said costs could be kept down by accepting a community offer of free labour for the fencing. The council approved acquisition of the land in principle, delegating authority for chief executive officer Jack McKerchar to meet conditions laid out by the trust and obtain council possession of the property with a $1 transaction fee. Councillors discussed how to thank the trustees for their offer and it was decided this would be carried out when work on incorporating the donated land into the playground had been completed.
