11 minute read
Speed plea
Excitement building
Jonathan Leask
Advertisement
A sneak peek inside Ashburton’s new library and civic building, Te Pātaka a kā Tuhituhi and Te Waharoa a Hine Paaka, has only increased the anticipation.
Chief executive Hamish Riach said the shapes are starting to take form after taking a tour of the construction site last week.
Riach said councillors have been visiting the site regularly to monitor progress, and with each visit the excitement builds as it takes shape.
“It feels like building your own house and waiting on completion to move in.”
The $56.75 million project remains on track for the revised completion of mid-2023.
Riach said the project is still on budget, but it’s very tight and there is a lot pressure due to ongoing supply chain issues.
There will be visible progress for the public soon with the building facade in production to go up in the next few weeks.
Once complete, the library will be a major upgrade, both in size and modernity, from the existing library on Havelock Street which is considered an earthquake risk.
Riach said that a library isn’t all about books anymore and the new site will include a sound studio, wet and dry areas, big screen and event space.
The cafe will be more like an espresso bar, with the lease yet to be taken up, similar to Te Ara Atea, the Selwyn District’s library in Rolleston.
One unique aspect of the build is incorporating the Historic Pioneer Hall into the building.
The new three-storey building will engulf the 106-year-old hall, which will become part of the children’s library.
It will be encapsulated by a large glass atrium spanning between the two main buildings and people walking between the main and secondary building will be able to look down on the space.
A time capsule is also to be placed in the new building.
The council received $20m from the Government’s shovel-ready project scheme for the building.
Sitting Mayor Neil Brown and chief executive Hamish Riach check on progress at the new library and civic building, Te Pātaka a kā Tuhituhi and Te Waharoa a Hine Paaka. PHOTO LILI HAYDON
S chool to get speed restriction wish
Jonathan Leask
Reduce the speed.
That’s what Longbeach School students told councillors needed to happen outside their rural Mid Canterbury school – and they’re likely to get their wish.
The student leaders told the councillors their principal, Neil Simons, had requested a speed reduction back in 2009 and the school was still waiting which was “not okay”.
“It’s now 2022 and the speed limit past our school remains at 100kph,” Addison Griffi ths said.
The students wanted to know why other schools have had speed reductions, but their road “remained a signifi cant danger to the children who cross this daily”.
Their presentation was soon followed by the Ashburton District Council revealing speed of its own by approving an interim speed management plan to go out for public consultation. It would focus on reductions around schools, including Longbeach School.
Roading manager Mark Chamberlain said as a category 2 rural school it was eligible for a 60kph variable speed limit.
“It hasn’t been enabled to have a lower speed limit under previous rules and guides, and getting approval from Waka Kotahi for a reduction,” he said.
“Longbeach, along with other rural schools, have actually got the ability to reduce the speed limit on those [roads] now.”
Chamberlain said the council had about $600,000 to install variable speed signs.
Chamberlain said the hope was to have the school changes in place for the start of the new school year.
Reducing speeds around schools is an important safety measure Chamberlain said, but it’s not where the fatalities happen.
“We are doing our schools and everyone says, ‘schools, that’s great. That’s easy’, but that’s not where we are having our crashes and our fatalities.
“Our fatalities are on rural roads and rural intersections in particular, and yet they seem to be the ones we want to do the least work on and that’s part of the discussion we still have to have.”
Stranger danger incident
A local mum has issued a warning after her 8-year-old son was approached by a stranger and told to “get in” his car. The incident took place at 8.30am on Monday, September 12 at the corner of Osborn Grove and Middle Road in Allenton with the suspect driving a white sedan with dents and scratches on it. “The man was described as wearing a black hat and possibly a mask or balaclava,” a police spokesperson said. Police ask anyone with information to contact 105 quoting fi le number 220912/8118. Commemorative service
Prayers, readings and refl ections will form the basis of today’s commemorative church service for Queen Elizabeth II at St Stephen’s Church, Ashburton, at midday. Rev Bob Dorans, priest at St Stephen’s, will provide one of the refl ections, along with Steve Murray, a church deacon and Neil Brown, Mayor of Ashburton. All Mid Canterbury people are invited and can come and go during the hourlong service if they wish. New minister
The new vicar at Ashburton’s St Stephen’s Anglican Church is looking forward to her role when she starts in November. She’s Rev Indrea Alexander, who’s currently vicar of Waimate and Marchwiel Parish in Timaru. The Bishop of Christchurch, Right Rev Peter Carrell, said among Rev Alexander’s strengths was her experience and skills in leadership. Alexander enjoys walking, cycling, board games, movies, folk and classical music, books companionship and creativity. “I use my life experience to minister to others and I seek to encourage and enable others to do so as well,” she said.
Students off to Tongariro
Year 10 students from Mt Hutt College are going to the Hillary Outdoors centre in Tongariro. They will be participating in a variety of activities. They have been given a grant from the Methven Community Board and also the Sir Edmund Hillary Trust to help fund the trip, along with undertaking multiple fundraisers.
The Wakanui Craspedia, known as the Craspedia diversicolor, has been known to botanists for over 20 years, but it’s been on a four-year journey to ensure it doesn’t disappear from existence. PHOTO VAL CLEMENS
Bringing plant back from brink
Lili Haydon
A local woman has been part of a four-year journey helping ensure Wakanui’s very own native species lives on.
She’s Forest and Bird volunteer Val Clemens, who’s been working hard to help a Wakanui sub-species of the plant Craspedia be saved from extinction.
The population got as low as four, then two plants died and the other two were not producing viable seeds, Clemens said.
Luckily, Dr Ilse Breitwiser, from Landcare Research in Lincoln, did some propagating “magic” and seedlings were produced.
The team also completed DNA analysis in a long, complex process to get to the point of awarding the plant a scientific name. So that makes it a species now, rather than a sub-species.
Now named Craspedia diversicolor, it’s been known to botanists for over 20 years, but it’s been a four-year journey to ensure the species doesn’t disappear completely.
The team’s been able to successfully propagate seedlings, which are now growing in three locations – the Christchurch Botanic Gardens, a private Mayfield reserve and the Harris Scientific Reserve.
“This project, to save this small plant from extinction, has succeeded because of close co-operation between scientists, the landowner and the community,” Clemens said. Dr Tom Mulholland holding up one of the many books he’s written with his non-broken arm Healthy Thinking. How to turn life’s lemons into lemonade. PHOTO LILI HAYDON
Dr Tom’s passion for prevention
Lili Haydon
Eight years ago, Wellington-based doctor Tom Mulholland decided he’d had enough of being the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff and wanted to teach New Zealanders about prevention.
While working in an emergency department, Mulholland realised there were an overwhelming amount of patients visiting the hospital who had preventable illnesses but, for many, the damage had already been done.
Mulholland made it his mission in life to educate New Zealanders about prevention by hopping in his converted old Chevy ambulance that his team have transformed into a popup medical clinic, and has since been helping New Zealanders all over the country, particularlythose in isolated places.
“Farmers look after their stock and machinery before themselves,” he said.
Methven has been his home for the past month, but his crusade has had a bit of a setback after breaking his arm last week while snowboarding in Mid Canterbury’s backcountry.
“I have been coming to Methven and enjoying everything it has to offer for 40 years.”
Despite that, he’d managed to fit in a few workshops, and even ambo stops before coming a cropper.
He was supposed to be helping the medical centre as an on-call GP at the weekends, but “I went from doc to patient within three seconds”, he said with a chuckle.
Mulholland said he could not praise the Methven community enough for looking after him.
“(Methven Medical Centre) is one of the best practices around New Zealand.”
Mullholland, who been a doctor for over 40 years, has teamed up with the Methven A&P Association to host a workshop on September 21 at the Mount Hutt Memorial Hall.
This is for locals to bring their family and staff members to hear useful tips to help keep themselves out of the emergency department.
This will be followed by a free dinner and cash bar.
Ashburton garage arson plan put on paper
A Christchurch woman wrote on a piece of paper the plan she delivered on to torch an Ashburton garage used by her gang member brother.
Hinemoa Moana Carroll, 34, admitted the charge of arson and another of breaching a temporary protection order when she appeared before Judge Jim Large in the Timaru District Court.
The protection order breach occurred on March 31, 2022, when Carroll visited a property where her former partner and his children were staying.
Judge Large entered convictions on both charges, with Carroll remanded on bail until December 14 for sentencing.
The court’s summary of facts, presented after the guilty pleas, said the Ashburton property was rented by the defendant’s mother. But the external garage was used as a gathering place and a games room by her brother, who was a member of the Mongrel Mob in Ashburton.
The court was told how Carroll drove from Christchurch to Ashburton on March 10, 2022, arriving around 4am.
“Prior to leaving Christchurch, the defendant wrote a plan on a piece of paper, detailing how she was going to burn down ‘the pad’,” the summary said.
“The plan included picking her petrol container up from an associate’s house and then driving out to the victim’s property, parking around the corner, and scootering to the address.
“Once at the address, she planned to walk through a paddock to get to the back of ‘the pad’, slide a window panel out using a butter knife then set fire to the building using a long match and petrol.”
Three people were sleeping in the main dwelling on the property, about 12 metres from the garage, when Carroll set fire to the garage. “They were woken by a passerby, who saw the garage on fire.”
The fire totally destroyed the garage and investigators established “a flammable liquid was introduced to the garage on the inside eastern window”.
“The replacement cost of the garage was $47,975.48.”
Looking after farmers with a giggle
Farmstrong is hosting a series of comedy shows for Canterbury rural communities in support of Mental Health Awareness Week.
Farmstrong is a nationwide wellbeing programme for the rural community and ambassador, Sam Whitelock, is encouraging farmers to make the most of “a fun night out and a good laugh”.
It’s been a couple of challenging years for Canterbury farmers and Farmstrong communications’ Nigel Beckford said these shows were originally scheduled earlier in the year but postponed due to Covid.
“The shows also support Mental Health Awareness Week activities – the theme this year is reconnection after so much Covid disruption,” Beckford said.
Four of the country’s top comedians – Nick Rado, Tevita Manukia, Courtney Dawson and Tarun Mohanbhai – will be performing shows in Omihi, Sheffield and Methven.
The comedians will be performing Saturday, October 8, Methven – Mt Hutt Memorial Hall.
“The last few years have tested everyone’s resilience,” Whitelock said. “Nights like this are a chance to celebrate getting through and support a good cause.
“So, grab your mates and neighbours and treat yourself to a fun night out.”
Last year, more than 15,000 farmers attributed an improvement in their wellbeing to their involvement in the Farmstrong programme.
