OPINION: Fonterra's impending departure from Hamilton's central business district is causing anxiety among business houses.
For over 60 years, dairy
co-operatives have been one
of the biggest employers in
central Hamilton. Locals may
remember ‘gumboot castle’
for instance – the old NZ Dairy
Group building in the CBD.
Fonterra said it was committed
to retaining an office in
the Waikato, but it was looking
all over – not just in Hamilton.
The Hamilton Business Association
desperately hopes
the co-op and its 400 staff
stay in town; after all, the city
was built on agri-businesses
like Fonterra and it’s predecessors.
But Fonterra is seeing an
increase in employees opting
to ‘work from home’. This
means that a large site like
the eight-storey building on
London St is no longer fit for
purpose.