Take notice that the Masterton District Council will make an application to the High Court at Wellington on 15 July 2024 at 10.00am (“Date of Hearing”) for orders under Part 3 of the Charitable Trusts Act 1957 approving a scheme (“Proposed Scheme”) to replace an existing scheme approved by the then Supreme Court in 1966 in respect of the trusts established by the Will of Arthur Powys Whatman who died in 1938 (“1966 Scheme”).

The trust property subject to the 1966 Scheme relates to property known as “Panama” or the Panama Village in Masterton. This property is currently held by the Council in trust to provide accommodation for the aged and needy.

The Panama Village currently contains 44 senior housing units, a tenanted home on a separate title, and an area of undeveloped land. The house site containing the tenanted house and the developed land together is described below as the “Vacant Land”.

The Proposed Scheme seeks to:

1. provide for the sale or lease of the Vacant Land subject to it being used for public housing (as described in the Proposed Scheme) with an appropriate encumbrance or covenant to that effect being placed on the land;
2. authorise the Council to apply the proceeds of the sale or lease of the Vacant Land to the carrying out of the necessary infrastructure works to enable the development of public housing on the Vacant Land and for any balance funds to be used for further investment in the Council’s public housing stock including at Panama Village; and
3. modernise aspects of the 1966 Scheme and remove those provisions that are no longer relevant.

Any person desiring to oppose the Scheme is required to give written notice of his/her intention to do so no less than seven clear days before the Date of the Hearing to:

1. The Registrar of the High Court at Masterton; and
2. Masterton District Council, care of its solicitors, Simpson Grierson at the address for service or email address below; and
3. Crown Law Office on behalf of the Attorney-General, the Justice Centre, Level 3, 19 Aitken Street, Wellington Central 6011 (PO Box 2858, Wellington 6140).

The applicant’s address for service is the offices of Simpson Grierson, Lawyers, Level 5, 40 Bowen Street, Wellington 6140. Written notice of opposition may be left at the address for service or may be emailed to the Council’s solicitors at donna.hurley@simpsongrierson.com and duncan.laing@simpsongrierson.com.

Further particulars, including the High Court application, the Proposed Scheme and the Attorney-General’s report, may be obtained from the offices of Masterton District Council, 161 Queen Street, Masterton between the hours of 9.00am and 4.00pm, Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays). It is also available on the Council’s website https://www.mstn.govt.nz/council/news/public-notices-and-alerts?category=public-notices.