Club Metro sells property in Whanganui CBD, faces closure

Club Metro has struggled with patronage, an issue made worse by Covid-19.

Whanganui’s Club Metro has sold its 2149sq m Ridgway St property, but the sale will not cover the organisation’s debts, and it is facing closure.

President Mike Neho said it sold the property for $1.1 million, less than the $1.4m original asking price.

Neho said Club Metro‘s debts currently stood at $1.2m, and it was likely to close within a month.

“We have six months to move out, but unless there is some kind of miracle, we can’t go on.

“There will be no money in the bank, and creditors have to be paid.”

“It feels like we’ve let our members down. As a committee, we have to front up and own it. We haven’t managed to save the club.”

In 2018, the Cosmopolitan Club amalgamated with the Whanganui Returned Services Association (RSA) to form Club Metro, with the RSA building on St Hill St (now The Barracks Sports Bar) selling for $720,000.

Years previously, the Cosmopoliton Club took out a $660,000 loan for refurbishments, with the deal requiring it to be paid back in full rather than in instalments.

In 2021, former Club Metro board chairman Rod Hart said after the combined debts of the clubs were brought together, there was not enough money left to pay off the loan.

It remains at $660,000, and the club is still paying interest on it.

Speaking to the Chronicle this week, Hart said he felt for Neho: “I know exactly what he’s dealing with”.

“The debt was crippling, but it all boiled down to one thing - not enough clientele,” he said.

“There were times when it was full and everything worked perfectly, but they were few and far between.”

To save money, he had to cut deals such as the handle club, which caused some members to leave, Hart said.

“We tried a number of different things over the years and you’d attract new clientele but lose some old clientele.

“You’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t.”

An Anzac Day function at Club Metro in 2021. Photo / NZME

Earlier this year, Neho said Club Metro was looking at three potential sites for relocation with any funds available after the sale.

“Now, we haven’t got anything,” he said this week.

“We’ve got members who have been coming for 50 or 60 years.

“A substantial part of their life’s history is gone.”

The Cosmopolitan Club was founded by then-New Zealand Premier John Ballance in March 1893, a month before he died, aged 54.

Its first location was on Campbell Pl (now Rutland St) and it moved to Ridgway St in 1979.

Hart said Covid-19 had a major impact on the club and customers, especially those who were older, “just didn’t turn up again” when restrictions lifted.

Club Metro was not the only establishment grappling with a lack of patronage, he said.

“One example is the RSA in Tauranga, which used to huge,“ he said.

“They have just amalgamated with the Mt Maunganui RSA because of falling numbers.

“That’s a sign of the times.”

The property was purchased by Equippers Church, which could not be reached for comment.

According to the church’s Facebook page, services are currently held at Rutherford Intermediate.

RSA Welfare Trust president Robert Allen says memorabilia has been moved out of Club Metro for security.

What is next for the RSA?

Whanganui RSA Welfare Trust president Robert Allen said its office had moved out of the Club Metro building to 86 Maria Place extension, opening hours were being worked through.

The trust, which supports current and ex-service personnel, is a separate entity from Club Metro.

Allen said there were still 120 cardholding members of the RSA.

“For us to keep that going, we might have to be aligned to another club that’s an incorporated society,” he said.

“There are lots of avenues that are yet to be explored.”

Other clubs in Whanganui had offered to host RSA events such as Armistice Day and Anzac Day breakfasts in the future, he said.

“There is also a lot of RSA memorabilia which belongs to private divisions.

“That is being moved out [of Club Metro] and put into storage, for security.”

Allen said the welfare trust remained strong and the RSA was “still a valid entity”.

“The RSA has made this decision purely because of the uncertainty around Club Metro.”

His father (WWII) and step-grandfather (WWI) were also part of the RSA.

A few Vietnam and Korean War veterans were still members, but newer generations were not joining, an issue the national body - the Royal New Zealand Returned and Services Association - was working hard to address, he said.

Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily the Whanganui District Council.