The "peppercorn" rents paid by

local interest groups are under review in a neighbouring council area. This is hardly surprising and not really even news.  Word had it that this was going to happen. The council is, like all other councils, looking for more money. 

These local interest groups cover seventeen sports clubs, four kindergartens and fourteen community organisations. Yes, sports clubs take up almost as many places in the review as the rest combined. I do not know whether they share any facilities. The four kindergartens are presumably providing a service the government considers "essential". The fourteen community organisations include things like a CFS base - for firefighting.

Yes. someone has to pay for these and pay for their upkeep. Some facilities can be shared but others cannot. The CFS base is a one purpose facility. You cannot have a gardening club meeting there. The bowling club does not want football boots on their green. The library on the other hand provides not just book related talks and groups but a craft group, a "tech" group and other interest groups. They are live streaming events from an interstate festival too. 

All these things are important, very important. Most people expect to pay something for the use of these facilities. They expect this just as they expect to pay something for membership of an organisation.

It occurs to me however that there are two things we are not talking about. The first is that not everyone can afford to pay. Some of those who might need the companionship or a group the most cannot afford to pay or cannot easily access a venue. Just getting somewhere if you are elderly or do not own a car can be an issue. Someone I know accesses two buses and a train to go to a meeting once a month. She intends to do it as long as she can but it is becoming increasingly difficult and nobody else lives in her area. The second issue is that the venue has to continue to be available. One group recently had to cancel a meeting because another group wanted the space and was given priority because the public had been invited to attend. No alternative space was available at short notice.

People need spaces to meet. Yes, we can pay a reasonable amount to meet in them but they need to be available. Ways need to be found for everyone to afford and be encouraged to meet for their special interests. This is not a luxury but an issue of physical and mental health. Peppercorn rents may be a thing of the past but we still need to ensure that everyone who wants to have access has access to groups they need as much as want.