It will be all hands to the pump, or at least the tap, when the Waikaka Hotel officially opens today.
It’s taken a while to sort it, but the Waikaka community has guaranteed it will have a hotel in the town from now on.
The pub, which was built in 1872, went on the market last year and community members concerned they might lose their township altogether, after losing the Waikaka Store a few years ago, put their heads together and came up with a plan to buy the local hotel.
To make it work, the Waikaka Hotel Enhancement Company, which included six directors, was formed. The company determined it would only employ managers or leaseholders at the hotel to ensure it would not be sold again and would be kept in community hands.
Carmen Pocklington and her partner, Daryl Meikle, are the new publicans of the Waikaka Hotel and they are looking forward to today’s official opening.
Since then the cabins had been refurbished and painted, so it was "all new accommodation".
Ms Pocklington, who is originally from Waikaka and previously served at the hotel for 12 years, said it was a great feeling to be back in the community.
"It feels like we’re coming home. It’s nice to be back and see the people happy knowing they have a pub and seeing the pub open. We have had lots of locals and families come and visit too — it’s been amazing," she said.
A band would be playing as part of the opening, breaking a long drought.
"There has been no music in the pub for such a long time," Ms Pocklington said.
While it was the official opening today, it would really be business as usual, although it might be a bit busier than that, as she was expecting to see the faces of those who had been away for Christmas or who missed the "soft opening" in mid-December.
By Graham McKerracher
