Auckland Showgrounds has a new lease of life after New Zealand Exhibition and Events Co (NZEEC) entered into an agreement landlord Cornwall Park Trust Board to keep the doors open for at least another 12 months.
The deal comes after the board that operated the former ASB Showgrounds went into voluntary liquidation on June 22, owing more than $4.8 million.
Cornwall Park Trust chair Adrienne Young-Cooper said having a new operator in place within a month was a "tremendous outcome". ASB has stepped aside as a naming sponsor.
While Young-Cooper said the longer term future was still uncertain "this solution minimises disruption to potential exhibitors and the public".
NZEEC was established by former ASB Showgrounds manager Mark Frankham and another two long-term staff members, Dean Mulholland and David Scott.
Frankham said the three of them only wanted to keep the venue running, and keep paying its 20 staff. "We're simply stepping up to ensure NZ's biggest exhibition venue is able to function. We certainly aren't here to clip the ticket as has been suggested."
Frankham said the company had been in discussion with exhibitors who held previous bookings, and had confirmed 15 large shows to December, including the Auckland Food Show later this month and September's Home Show, expected to attract upwards of 60,000 visitors.
But, he said, that will still depend on whether there are covid lockdowns or not.
"Unlike malls, we can only function at level one, so any move up the scale shuts us down. Neither government or council seems to care about that either."
