Novel solution to vet service expansion plans

Some creative thinking and a strong community spirit has resolved an unusual real estate dilemma in Inglewood, involving a large veterinary business and a retired couple living next door.

The mostly farmer-owned Inglewood Veterinary Group in Kelly St desperately needed to buy more property for current and future expansion.

Its contractor/tenant, Inglewood Veterinary Services, started out with four staff and now has 24 (12 of them vets) operating in something of a rabbit warren.

The former council building across the road would have been ideal, but the vet group's tender was $50,000 short. It's a sore point for IVS managing director Ray Paewai that instead, the owner New Plymouth District Council sold it to an Australian-owned early childhood centre company, Kidicorp.

Vet Group chairman Rob Hooper says a number of different scenarios were examined. "First, we tried buying the section on the other side, then going up, then looking at a completely new site, but none of these was affordable or achievable for various reasons."

Then he suggested approaching their neighbours on the town side, Len and Pauline Stachurski at 31 Brown St, about making an offer for their property.

At first they were not interested, having lived there in a good brick house for 46 years, but then Len said he'd had his eye on a section at No 20, with a very old house on it, which he thought might be a future prospect, but it was too costly for them.

"So we went and talked to them and offered to buy the section and build them a new house, to a design that suited them, and a better house than they had," Mr Hooper said.

"They got interested, but it took a long time to agree and get it all in writing to satisfy both parties. There was some tension at times, but no harsh words and it worked because we trusted each other."

The process began two years ago. A design was selected, the house was built by Fabish and Jackson Builders, fenced off, landscaped, raised gardens constructed, even a clothesline provided.

The property titles were transferred last Thursday and the Stachurskis moved in on Friday.

They exchanged keys at a small gathering in the garage on Monday night.

The vets shouted pizzas and fish and chips.

Mr Stachurski says he and Pauline are very pleased with their new home.

Vet Group director Bryan Hocken says it was "a unique solution to a community problem.

"There was no financial gain for us. We just needed to expand somewhere.

"Len and Pauline's house was their castle and if we wanted them to move, we had to provide something at least equal to what they had.

"We didn't even need to use a real estate agent, but the lawyers on both sides didn't quite know what to do with it. They'd never handled anything like this before."

The vet service was originally provided through the NZ Dairy Board and after that industry's restructuring, Fonterra did not want to own vet services, so a community group was formed to take it over, with farmer clients becoming subscription-paying members.

"We now have about 500 members in our service area which extends from Tariki through to Mt Messenger and includes Waitara," says Mr Paewai.

He and three others own the IVS: Neil Chesterton, Greg Hall and Peter Benge.

The other Vet Group directors are Nigel Smith, Paul Fabish and Dennis Dravitski; Kevin Rowan is the paid secretary.

- © Fairfax NZ News