Ellerslie Flower Show

By Juliet Speedy

The Christchurch City Council has finally admitted what it paid to secure the rights to the Ellerslie Flower Show.

And they are calling the price tag of $3 million a great deal for the city. They say bit was worth every cent then, and is worth even more now.

“The crowds for Ellerslie exceeded all expectations, it’s wildest dreams stuff,” says Sue Wells, Christchurch City Councillor.

The council released the figure reluctantly. After a long battle by media groups including 3 News to get the cost, the chief [...]...

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The benefits from major events can be enormous and far reaching and yet the perception of Auckland is that we lose or miss out on major events - the V8s, Ellerslie Flower Show, Tua v Cameron - and never see the potential benefits.

There is no doubt the region's fragmented set up around major events is part of the problem and there will never be a better opportunity to get our act together than now as we move into a new era for Auckland.

Currently there is no one agency responsible for major events in Auckland. Several agencies work in the area. Tourism Auckland and AucklandPlus are involved from a tourism [...]

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