One of the country's largest venues, the Auckland Showgrounds, is set to reopen following the appointment of a new operator to run the site.
The showgrounds were placed into liquidation by its previous owners, the Auckland Agricultural Pastoral and Industrial Shows Board, in June 2021.
The landowner, the Cornwall Park Trust Board (CPTB), has today announced its appointment of the NZ Exhibition & Events Co (NZEEC) to operate the showgrounds under a temporary licence as an events and exhibition facility while it secures a new tenant.
It comes after a previous attempt to wrap up a lease agreement had been delayed by a legal challenge in the High Court, leading to the cancellation of a conditional agreement between the CPTB and Xytech in August.
CPTB CEO Murray Reade said the Board was "keen to get the gates open" after the court case was resolved last month.
"The past few months have been an extremely frustrating time for us – and for would-be users of the showgrounds," Reade said.
"While the case was before the Court, we simply could not provide the certainty any organisation needs to commit to a lease agreement – and with the threat of further injunctions hanging over us, we could not even achieve a viable temporary arrangement."
Reade said the board used the delay to complete a "wide range of deferred and important maintenance work to ready the showgrounds for operation again".
The board's agents will be seeking expressions of interest from potential operators shortly, and several parties have already expressed interest in taking over the lease, Reade said.
It's expected to take several months to secure an agreement with a new operator.
"Rather than wait for that competitive process to work through before we do anything else, we've managed to come to a short-term arrangement that gives event organisers the opportunity to plan with confidence, that gives us revenue to help fund the operation of Cornwall Park, and that gives the people of Auckland the opportunity to enjoy what we expect will be some first-class events," Reade said.
NZEEC director Mark Frankham said he was already in discussion with exhibitors who had previously used the showgrounds.
"We look forward to welcoming everybody back to the Auckland Showgrounds," he said.
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