Community
The South City and greater Invercargill community celebrated the formal opening of The Pantry, on the corner of Grace and Ness Sts, on Saturday – the milestone was celebrated with a powhiri, community barbecue and local entertainment with Invercargill deputy Mayor Darren Ludlow cutting the ribbon on the day.
The second phase of the build, expected to begin next month, will include providing a community area for meetings, socialising and events, as well as a South Alive office and outdoor areas.
Koha Kai will eventually house its new commercial working kitchen in the middle of the store, and the South Alive community kitchen, located just in front, will host demonstrations, supply food for the coffee counter and be available for local community groups to use to make food for fundraisers.
South Alive Trust Board director Janette Malcolm said the South Alive Charitable Trust, which was set up 5 years ago, owns and runs The Pantry, with all profits going towards the Trust’s costs and future projects.
The Pantry is open Monday to Friday, from 7.30-5.30pm and open Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 3pm. The coffee counter is open Monday to Friday, 7.30am-4pm and will operate the same hours as The Pantry during the weekend.
A public meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, May 31 at The Pantry from 6.30pm-8.30pm. It is a chance for the public to hear what South Alive has been up to and put forward your ideas for what else you would like to see happening. Nibbles and refreshments will be provided.
South Alive is still looking to raise money to complete the last part of Stage 1 of the project. Contact the South Alive office on 2186882 for more details about business sponsorship and visit givealittle.co.nz/cause/thepod to donate to the cause.