In 1996, Russell Grubb moved to Alexandra from Invercargill to be the manager of Inland Revenue's first (and to date last) branch office in Central Otago.
At the time, Mr Grubb (60), had worked with the tax department for 23 years.
Prior to Inland Revenue establishing a base in Alexandra, the Central Otago district was serviced by offices in Dunedin and Invercargill.
Mr Grubb said there was demand for a branch in Alexandra as revenue throughout the area was being "threatened" by the nature of businesses in Wanaka and Queenstown.
Inland Revenue was also continuously "restructuring" its operations throughout the country, he said.
The department invested a lot of money and resources to establish a purpose-built branch in Alexandra, which was welcomed by the community.
It came on the heels of Oamaru's branch office being closed, and those who lost employment in Oamaru were given the opportunity to work at Alexandra.
Joining the six Oamaru employees in Central Otago were people from Invercargill, Dunedin, Wellington, and Christchurch, as well as locals.
Overall, about 20 staff were employed at the Alexandra office, which residents saw as a symbol of positive development and the growth of necessary services in the area.
"We had an excellent staff, and many who bought houses and settled with their families here. We were doing really well and built up a great rapport with the local community - especially the accountants," Mr Grubb said.
Queenstown and Wanaka were also serviced by the Alexandra branch.
Two years after the office opened in May 1996, Mr Grubb was told by his superiors it would be closed at the end of March 2000.
Initially, Mr Grubb was not able to inform his staff of their impending redundancy, and the stress that would continue to mount over two years began.
"I kind of knew there were plans afoot for further restructuring, that's just life in Inland Revenue, but this was a massive shock. The staff also knew there was some minor restructuring on the horizon, but they had absolutely no idea about what sort of effect it would have, or where," he said.
Despite his allegiance to his staff, Mr Grubb had to maintain his professional composure for the department and wider community, while battling his own sense of betrayal.
"It was a really difficult time. It felt like someone had shattered our dream.
"After I told the staff, I then had to try and keep their morale up for the 21 months we were due to stay open before closing, which was very stressful," he said.
Some staff left within six months, others transferred to different Inland Revenue offices, a few sought employment outside the department both in and away from Alexandra, but the majority stayed.
National management did not provide support for staff in the Alexandra office, or for Mr Grubb as their manager, he said.
"I was offered a job with Inland Revenue in Christchurch, but I took the opportunity for a career change myself and I love what I'm doing now," he said.
After three years of study and almost five years as a pastor in Roxburgh, Mr Grubb now takes people on coach tours into Milford Sound from Queenstown.
"I've had a number of offices to work in over the years, but this one is the best. Ever since I was a little kid I wanted to drive a bus and two years ago the time was right to get my licences and follow that dream - to tick another item off my bucket list," he said.
