Tuesday 6 May 2008

JOINT MEDIA RELEASE

Auckland Regional Council and Manukau City Council

Councils make decision on flower show

The Auckland Regional Council (ARC) and Manukau City Council have agreed to continue to work together to promote a series of horticultural, musical and other cultural events at the Auckland Botanic Gardens.

The two Councils have decided not to go into a head to head competition with the Auckland Flower Show.

The Ellerslie International Flower Show, formerly held at the Auckland Botanic Gardens in Manukau City, departed for Christchurch in 2007.  The ARC and Manukau City have been working together to determine the feasibility of creating a replacement show and carried out a Request for Proposal (RfP) process. 

ARC Chairman Michael Lee says the Councils received some interesting proposals that examined the demand for an event focussed on gardening and horticulture.  The advent of the Auckland Flower Show, an independently organised event being held at Alexandra Park, was also taken into consideration.

“We looked at a number of replacement options and would like to thank all those that took part in the Request for Proposal process. 

“At the end of the day, we decided it would not be prudent to create an event that would compete with the privately funded Auckland Flower Show,” he says. 

Manukau Mayor Len Brown stressed that the Councils are committed to working collaboratively on other event opportunities at the Auckland Botanic Gardens.

“We would love to see an annual event that celebrates Manukau’s diversity at the Gardens.  The ARC looks after a stunning regional facility on our doorstep and it makes sense for us to work together to create a uniquely Manukau celebration, exhibition or festival,” he says.

Both Councils wish the Auckland Flower Show well with its new venture.

ENDS

·         The Ellerslie Flower Show was held ten times at the Auckland Botanic Gardens between 1998 and 2007

·         In recent years, around 60,000 people visited the show

·         The 64 hectare Auckland Botanic Gardens has a purpose-built event site that is available for hire for large-scale exhibition events

·         Each year around one million people visit the Auckland Botanic Gardens.

·         In the summer of 2007-08, 314,000 people visited Stoneleigh Sculpture in the Gardens – a three month large-scale outdoor sculpture exhibition. 

·         The next Stoneleigh Sculpture in the Gardens will be held in the summer of 2009-10.

 
ends

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