The Lava Bar and X Base Backpackers on the corner of Ranolf and Arawa Sts. Photo / Kelly Makiha
The Lava Bar and X Base Backpackers on the corner of Ranolf and Arawa Sts. Photo / Kelly Makiha
Popular Rotorua nightclub Lava Bar could close at the end of March and become a medical centre that will form part of a new hub for the homeless - if a property deal goes through.
Homeless advocate Tiny Deane is behind the hub after working in partnership with a commercialproperty investor from Auckland who is about to buy the lease for the Lava Bar and neighbouring X Base Backpackers for the next 15 years.
Deane plans to look after the accommodation side of the new hub in the former backpackers and will run the 44 units similar to the way he operates motels Emerald Spa and Tuscany Villas on Fenton St.
The Lava Bar and X Base Backpackers on the corner of Ranolf and Arawa Sts. Photo / Kelly Makiha
Deane has also gone into partnership with social service agency Whānau Ora which intends to operate the medical centre at a heavily discounted rate for those in need.
It will be the end of an era for the Lava Bar which has been one of the main nightspots in Rotorua since it opened in 1996.
Situated on the corner of Ranolf and Arawa Sts, the Lava Bar, or "Lavas" as it was affectionately known, was not only the "it" bar for young Rotorua party goers, backpackers, students and tourists, it was also regularly used as a live music venue for touring acts and bands.
Former Lava Bar manager between 2000 and 2011 Garth Martin, who now lives in Sydney, told the Rotorua Daily Post he was sad to hear of the bar's planned closure.
The Lava Bar and X Base Backpackers on the corner of Ranolf and Arawa Sts. Photo / Kelly Makiha
"Lava Bar was the perfect storm. A combination of local talent and international travellers. Once we got the formula right we ran with it. It also filled a void in the night club scene. We played European dance music mixed in a little hip hop and party tunes and off the dance floor went."
Martin said the "great personalities" behind the bar and the music were points of difference.
"It is more than the end of an era, it was an institution, a home for a lot of locals. It's ironic it'll now be a home for the homeless."
Tiny Deane at his Fenton St motel Tuscany Villas. Photo / File
Deane said he intended to offer jobs to all staff, including cleaners, at X Base Backpackers and Lava Bar who wanted to work for his trust, Visions of a Helping Hand, to ensure no one was put out of work.
Auckland property investor Peter Bidois from Torin Holdings Ltd has confirmed to the Rotorua Daily Post the deal was signed on December 22 and was about to go unconditional. If it went through as planned, he officially takes over on March 31.
Bidois said Deane would then lease the site from him.
"I liked it as a viable business venture. He is funded by Government and is well received by the Government and I had a chat to him and offered him the accommodation side of the business."
The Lava Bar and X Base Backpackers on the corner of Ranolf and Arawa Sts. Photo / Kelly Makiha
Bidois said the medical centre idea was perfectly suited with the hospital nearby and fitted his background, having set up many other commercial properties for the health sector.
He said from what he knew, the Lava Bar had been "a joy for everyone" in the past.
"But for the city itself, it will be good to see it go to the needs of the people."
Whānau Ora Community Clinic director George Ngatai said the Lava Bar site would be the 16th Whānau Ora medical centre built in New Zealand.
He said families were offered funded healthcare for as little as $2 a family and such a facility would mean those struggling in Rotorua could put their health first.
He said the Rotorua centre would have at least one doctor and a nurse and would operate Monday to Friday.
He said while they would work to make sure basic health needs, including mental health, were met, Deane's trust would work with those living in the backpackers' accommodation to strive towards long-term housing.
Deane told the Rotorua Daily Post everything was moving fast but he was pleased the partnerships he had attracted would allow the new hub to be developed.
He said there was a big gap in Rotorua with people who needed medical help and had nowhere to go.
He said often they were taking up hospital beds in medical and mental health wards.
The Lava Bar and X Base Backpackers on the corner of Ranolf and Arawa Sts. Photo / Kelly Makiha
He said with the support of the medical centre, the former backpackers could fill that gap.
The backpackers hasn't been full since the outbreak of Covid-19 but it was currently home to some long-term tenants.
Deane said he was yet to decide how he would operate the accommodation side of the business but he would talk with the appropriate Government agencies.
"There are so many ways we can do this. We don't have enough mental health facilities and if they miss their medication it goes wrong, those are the gaps I want to fill.
Deane said he wasn't personally investing money in the project and would not be making any money from it.
However, he said he had made contacts with others, such as Bidois and Ngatai, who were prepared to spend the money to make it happen.
