PORT Macquarie-Hastings Council is seeking feedback on council-operated community halls as part of an operational review that will help determine future needs for these facilities.
Residents are being encouraged to complete an online survey available at www.pmhclistening.com.au to help the council plan for the on-going operation of 17 community halls.
The survey will also be available in hard copy format from council offices and libraries and from the council’s hall committees.
The survey seeks feedback from people who have hired halls as well as those who have attended functions or events at those halls with questions relating to everything from suitability of the venue to value for money.
Of the 17 halls available for hire, four are in Port Macquarie, seven are in the Wauchope area and six are in the Camden Haven area. Some of them are managed by voluntary S355 management committees, some are directly managed by the council through its customer service centre and others are managed by lease agreement. There are a number of other halls in the area over which council doesn’t have management responsibility.
The council’s community and organisational development director Lesley Atkinson said community halls provided an important place for people to meet and interact.
Locally, council-operated halls are each used on average 20 hours a week for a wide range of activities including exercise and fitness classes, martial arts, craft, friendship clubs, church services, dance and dancing tuition, weddings and family functions.
Ms Atkinson said it was important for the council to review the operation of those halls, including the fees charged and the way in which they are managed, to ensure they continue to meet the needs of the communities they serve.
The review will also look at the need for any structural improvements to the facilities.
A report considered by the council late last year indicated there had been a slight decrease in community hall usage in recent years.
Ms Atkinson said the council wanted to work with the community to promote the use of these facilities and to highlight the benefits they provide members of the Port Macquarie-Hastings community.
To take part in the survey, visit pmhclistening.com.au.
Feedback will be accepted up until the close of business on Friday 8 November – giving people five weeks to respond – after which a report will be prepared for the council’s consideration.
