Paul Robinson: Thorndon Quay Collective Chairman on $1500 grant for businesses to stay afloat during disruption

Businesses on Wellington’s Thorndon Quay look set to receive $1500 to help them stay afloat during ongoing roadworks and disturbances. 

Wellington Council voted in favour of investigating whether to give businesses this “micro-grant” but the mayor has stressed it is not compensation. 

Chairman of Thorndon Quay Collective Paul Robinson tells Heather du Plessis-Allan losses are in the millions for businesses on Thorndon Quay and the $1500 grant will not help. 

LISTEN ABOVE 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now Wellington Council has voted in favor of having a
look at whether they should give businesses on Wellington's Thornton
Key a micro grant. This would help them stay afloat
during ongoing roadworks and disturbances. The microground grant is worth
just fifteen hundred dollars. Paul Robinson is the chairman of
the Thornton Key Collective, which represents the area's business as

(00:20):
hat Paul high heather, fifteen hundred bucks doesn't sound like
a lot. Is it going to help?

Speaker 2 (00:27):
Well, it won't help. It's just a distraction from the
real issues, which are what well. The real issues are
that businesses are facing a downturn along Thornton Key that
is far more severe than any downturn that's been caused

(00:47):
by the economic circumstances. We presented a petition to Wellington
City Council two years ago asking them to do an
external review of the likely packs of this roading project
on businesses and they refuse to do it. They turned
us down. The economic consequences have been vastly in excess

(01:12):
of what anybody anticipated, so we present another petition asking
them to do that and also look at other issues
such as the pipes that run under Thornton Key that
need replacing and looking actually at the original business case,
but we get knocked back again.

Speaker 1 (01:29):
So the disruption that's caused you is the removal of
the car parks and all the digging up of the
ground and all that kind of stuff.

Speaker 2 (01:35):
Yeah, yep.

Speaker 1 (01:36):
And how much do you reckon it's cost your business?

Speaker 2 (01:40):
Well, we own one of the old historic buildings. My
family has got the old Wall Store down in Thornton
Key and that's been a wonderful community over the last
twenty years and it's never really had any vacancy. But
now you know, we've got four vacancies out of the
twenty odd tendancies in there, and more will emerge in

(02:02):
the coming year.

Speaker 1 (02:03):
And have we done the numbers? Have you any idea
how much this has cost you?

Speaker 2 (02:08):
Oh? Look, I could hazard a guess. We will know
when the qvs come out, but it's millions. Well that's
a twenty million dollar building and who knows whether it's
had thirty forty percent of its value knocked off, So
you're taking multiples of millions. Paul.

Speaker 1 (02:26):
How long is this this disruption supposed to carry on for?

Speaker 2 (02:31):
Well, it should be finished by the middle of next year.
The difficulty we've had with that is that the communication
has said you'll only be disrupted for twelve weeks while
work happens outside your building. But the reality is, for
anybody who goes down Thornton Key, you see we've been
orange cone orange coned basically from our navel to our neck.

(02:57):
How long? Oh, for the whole eighteen months?

Speaker 1 (03:01):
So are you telling me? So? They've given you fifteen
hundred dollars for eighteen months worth of disruptions, not even
one thousand bucks a month?

Speaker 2 (03:11):
Oh? Hell no?

Speaker 1 (03:12):
What is this money supposed to do?

Speaker 2 (03:14):
Like?

Speaker 1 (03:14):
Who were they kidding? What is fifteen hundred dollars supposed
to do?

Speaker 2 (03:18):
Well? I know what I'm going to If we get
fifteen hundred bucks, I probably should share it with my
brother and two sisters. But actually probably what I will
do is I'll probably go down to the Capital restaurant
and have a fifteen hundred dollar lunch.

Speaker 1 (03:29):
I think, why don't you spend it on an advert
in the local paper telling everybody how annoying the counsel is.

Speaker 2 (03:36):
We have spent a lot of time on social media
telling the public how annoyed we are with the council
and we have a huge following. If I put a
post up tomorrow, I'll get six or seven thousand people
acknowledging that post.

Speaker 1 (03:52):
Paul, thank you for your time, best of luck dealing
with these numpties. It's Paul Robinson, Thorndon Key Collective Chairman.
For more from Hither to plasye Allen Drive.

Speaker 2 (04:01):
Listen live to news talks.

Speaker 1 (04:02):
It'd be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast
on iHeartRadio.