Back to the city – business supports CBD return as Covid conditions ease

Getting more people back working and spending in Hamilton’s central business district is a key to helping inner city outlets recover from the Covid-19 downturn. In the second of a multi-part Waikato Times series, Stephen Ward talks to councils and businesses about their support for a CBD re-invigoration drive.

As Covid-19 restrictions ease, councils and businesses in Hamilton’s central business district have moved to get more workers back to the office.

It’s aimed at boosting their own efficiency and it will also help local businesses whacked by the pandemic.

This supports a drive by the Hamilton Central Business Association, kicking off this month, to revitalise the inner city.

The association stresses people should keep following all official guidelines to keep themselves and others safe.

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While councils and firms spoken to, except Fonterra, have dropped staff vaccination mandates for entry, all agree safety is still crucial.

Waikato Regional Council – which shifted to its Ward St headquarters just last year – could have up to 450 staff working there in “normal” circumstances.

But lockdowns saw only essential staff working from the office. Many worked remotely after lockdowns ended.

Chief executive Chris McLay said last week all head office employees can now work from Ward St again and that about 30 per cent of them were. “More staff have confidence to come into the office now.”

Once the traffic light setting goes to orange the council will remind staff it’s OK to return. But it will still be all right to work remotely, as per pre-Covid flexible working practices.

“It’ll take some time for people to transition back. We’ll remind staff of the benefits of working in the office as well.”

He sees better staff communications and morale, and social interaction, as the benefits.

Hamilton City Council had up to 400 staff on site at its Garden Place headquarters pre-Covid-19. CEO Lance Vervoort said staffing levels on site were around 40 per cent of this last week.

Some staff were still hesitant about coming back to the office but Vervoort expects the numbers to climb when the traffic light setting shifts to orange. The council is encouraging a return.

“We think a lot of our staff are a bit over working from home.”

Returning will help with motivation and good face-to-face interactions, and also support the central business district.

“It’s a bit of a balancing act at times,” said Vervoort, adding that meeting over Zoom could stymie interactions and that staff not in the office were missing out on “water cooler conversations” and easy access to each other for problem solving.

Deputy chief executive Sean Murray said staff feedback indicated they liked face-to-face kōrero and social interactions, and that they liked the CBD vibe. “We are social beings.”

Any re-invigoration drive, coupled with recent inner city developments, could be a springboard for boosting the inner city generally, said Murray. The council will support the association’s drive with up to $85,000.

Mark McCabe, Waikato managing partner at central city professional services firm PricewaterhouseCooper, said office staffing had been restricted to 23 people out of 75 in recent times to help protect workers.

But now staff were encouraged to be back in the office to improve connectivity and most were back.

“We are absolutely humming in here and the office is full,” he said last week.

People had been going out for lunch and bringing back shopping.

“The buzz is definitely coming back to our office, it’s strong.”

Some remained reluctant to return and there was still flexbility, like pre-Covid-19, for staff to work remotely.

McCabe supported the association’s push: “We all want to see a vibrant CBD. We want to play our part in that.”

Craigs Investment Partners in central Hamilton, with 35 staff, had different teams either working from home or at the office until recently. But the office fully re-opened last week, with most staff back.

Area manager Hayley Nelson said: “People were actually missing the team collaboration…that connectivity.”

Face-to-face kōrero was better than Zoom and staff wanted to help out inner city firms. “A lot of our people genuinely want to support our local businesses.”

Meanwhile, Fonterra’s London St offices, where 600-800 can be based, only re-opened fully last week. Staff are being encouraged to return.

“Over the course of [last week] we have had 220-280 people a day in the London Street office and we expect these numbers to rise over the next couple of weeks,” said Kate Daly, the dairy giant’s managing director, people and culture.

Under a new policy from April 1, all staff and contractors coming to the office need to be fully vaccinated, although unvaccinated employees can commit to a daily testing regime instead.

The regional council’s McLay, meanwhile, said that, while it was good having more staff contribute to the life and economic health of the inner city, “we have to be mindful we’re still in a pandemic”.