CCO merger a step closer

Councillors at today's meeting. PHOTO/BEN FRASER

Grow Rotorua and Destination Rotorua are a step closer to being integrated into a single agency.

At the Rotorua Lakes Council strategy, policy and finance committee meeting today, councillors voted to have the two council controlled organisations merge, with the intent to have the new agency operational on July 1.

The new agency, which has yet to be named, will have three key focus areas - business development, investment attraction and tourism growth. A new chief executive and board will be recruited to manage it.

However, the move to integrate was not without opposition.

Councillor Rob Kent said he did not have faith in the effectiveness of Grow Rotorua and "what it has actually managed to achieve for the people of Rotorua".

"One of our 2016 priorities was supposed to be coming up with a cost effective and efficient council and one of the biggest expenditure areas within this council is with Destination Rotorua ... and Grow Rotorua. I don't believe we have actually had a look at that to see whether in fact it is efficient and whether it is doing the job it is meant to be doing.

"I have issues with trying to represent Rotorua with an advertisement that has a female in an opshop dress jumping out from behind a mountain bike - I'm sorry but that is not good advertising for Rotorua. There are issues that go beyond just 'let's wrap it all up and push it off to the side' where it is tucked away and hope the people running Grow Rotorua will make it all work," Mr Kent said.

Mayor Steve Chadwick said she supported the recommendations.

"I do like the three directions that are very clear ... I don't think in the past that we've done enough about attracting new businesses so I'm glad it is in there and up front. I have no problem with tourism - in fact I totally dispute you there councillor Kent, tourism growth in Rotorua is astronomical."