All that work for another move for the Club
Very soon Dog Sports Rotorua will move from the Rail Park to another venue.
I find this very difficult as it was about setting up a bunch of community groups to help the Rail Park be successful. However, new brooms which are really, old brooms have decided that the plan for community involvement is not going to happen.
The original idea, which was progressing very well, was that six groups would work from the Rail Park and be responsible for promotion, and fund raising, so the Lessor of the land, the Rail Trust, could gain brownie points towards renegotiation of the lease for the land which is in the Treaty Pot.
The Groups who had agreed to use the land and contribute in both a direct funding and a community support role were, Te Whare Hauora who wished to run vegetable and fruit gardens on unused land,
Progress Ngongotaha who wanted to run community based events from the land, and who would have been ideal to take over the Shop and Museum so that it was a focal point for the community,
The Tractor and Machinery Club, who should have been encouraged to use part of the workshop and who were the hosts of a Tractor and Machinery day at the Park. Dog Sports Rotorua who were to organise a number of events that would be promoted by them to get people onto the Park to ride the trains at the same time. The Kiwi Club, a large number of influential African ex-pats who wanted a local project such as planting wetlands in order to attract birds and look after the environment. The whole thing being overseen by the Rail Trust, with a view to furthering Heritage Railway in our Region.
My reasoning was that there needed to be 50 events per annum, featuring the venue, which the Trust would piggy back from - running the miniature rail and the model room and hopefully selling food and tea and coffee.
Dog Sports were capable of providing 30 events that, promoted by them, brought in 50-100 people who would also buy other things, such as train rides, food and Rail Trust Membership. Dog Sports has achieved this, but there have been no train rides, the Trust is totally disinterested in fund raising at these events.
There were three good events on the calendar for the Rail Trust. Kiwi Culture Day, Mid Winter Fun Day and Tractor and Machinery Display Day.
The options to find other events was very high. For example, Neil Oppatt had offered his Rail Riders experience to the Trust to use whenever we booked it - say for a Sunday every three months, to sell rides to the Rotorua Locals at discounted prices and provide a local experience at a reasonable cost. He would not charge us for use and whatever we sold the rides for would be ours. This was a truly wonderful opportunity for the Rail Trust. So say, they had gone ahead with three per annum. We now have 36 weekends filled with marketable days.
The Kiwi Club launch of wetland preservation and all the good publicity that environmental enhancement brings to any group would have made at least one more day.
Following enquiries from the Rotorua Model Trains groups, I was very keen for them to take over the Model Room, so that could have brought a new dimension to the Park as well. Plus the need to build relationships with those who had seven and a quarter inch rail, both steam and diesel, who might have liked to have a festival on the park. All they wanted was an offloading ramp from their trailers to the track.
There was also organisation afoot to hold a Music Festival at the Park featuring Ukeleles, and there were a number of kite flyers wanting to use the Park as well.
Following my resignation as Trust Chair, I offered to stay on as Events Manager to bring all of the above to fruition. I put it in writing but never got a reply. It is my view that all of these groups and events could have been happening at the Park.
The Trust's response has been abysmal, mostly wanting me off the Park for running a business, ie Dog Training from their land. Well I wish that were the case. My committment to the Dog Sports Club was to grow the membership to 50, which I have, to put in place a games regime for the Club to run, which I have. My job is over. It is however a Club of which I am a member. I run free Puppy Classes for the Community and organise NALA and run Thursday Flyball for the Club. I am about to launch a new Game set for the Club. This is my Club work for which I volunteer. I have been taking my own clients onto the Park so that the Rail Trust Benefits by $2 each time, but I don't need to now, as 35 Club members participate each week and they all pay $2, which pays some rent to the Rail Park. The Trust say it is not enough. The Trust also wants $50 for every event held including those where it is just Club members running their Monthly National Competition.
My Dog Training Business is run from my home and is charged professionally. The work at the Club, is $5 training to get dog people through the gate and into the Club to play the games and be supported and pay rent to the Rail Trust. It has taken me three years of 22 hours per week to achieve this, and I have loved every minute of it. The Dog Sports Club has a fantastic committee and a great bunch of hard workers. None of the events run by Dog Sports does much but break even with the sausage sizzle putting a little tomato sauce on top. However, this Dog Club has a huge Community following, and committment to all dog owners, including Pitbulls, who have their own times and events, and dogs who have been rehomed and rescued , many of whom go on to perform on the National Stage. We have a Giants and German Shepherd Class, unheard of at other Dog Training Clubs. We have clicker Training by Chris, we have Difficult Dog Class and Tracking Class by Gus and we have Competition Agility by Judy. Community Games Days run by Karen. All of this is totally affordable by even the least affluent of our citizens. We have a trekking group for those who just want a leisurely ramble with their dogs.
The Club has a significant reputation Nationally for running Flygility Tournaments that are incredibly efficient and enjoyed by all attracting competitors from Wellington on a regular basis.
The next venue will be interesting and at least will allow for considerable growth.
Dog Sports will be sadly missed in Ngongotaha, I will miss the Community Dogs as well and an oportunity to put together a calendar of events to enhance the Rail Park will be gone forever.
Very sad.
Raewyn Saville September 3rd 2012
