NOTEWORTHY

MAKING WAVES

Wellington radio station RadioActive has just celebrated its 45th birthday. It started with a two-week broadcasting license and using a homemade transmitter. Three years later it had become the first station in the capital to use FM broadcasting (a change in the way waves are carried, which produces a higher quality sound) and by 1985 were broadcasting fulltime. The station has kick-started the careers of some of the country’s musical, and journalistic talents, including John Campbell and Tova O’Brien.

I SPY

The Security Intelligence Service (SIS) has agreed a settlement of $66,000 to compensate writer Nicky Hager (see Cap #81) for unlawfully accessing his phone records. The SIS originally pursued the records in an attempt to discover the unnamed sources Nicky consulted for his book, Other People's Wars, which investigated New Zealand's involvement in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars. The SIS apologised to the journalist in 2019 but it has taken until now to agree compensation. IT'S REIGNING WREN

The pīwauwau rock wren has been crowned New Zealand Bird of the Year 2022. The tiny yellow bird clocked up 2,894 number one votes on Forest and Bird’s website over the two-week voting period. Chief Executive Nicola Toki says, “As Aotearoa’s only true alpine bird, these tiny wrens are already feeling the impact of warmer temperatures, which encourages predators like rats and stoats to climb higher and invade their mountaintop homes.” PARK LIFE

Environmental groups including Forest and Bird Kāpiti-Mana, the Kāpiti Coast Biodiversity Project and Low Carbon Kāpiti are petitioning for flood-prone land in Paraparaumu to be turned into a wetland park. The 28-hectare piece of land is currently for sale and is being marketed for commercial or residential building, despite the known flood risk. A wetland would create a spillover area for flooding, as well as a muchneeded green space for the town.

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SWEET 16

Porirua city council has voted in support of the of Make it 16 campaign, which proposes lowering the national voting age. In November the Supreme Court ruled that the current voting age of 18 is unjustified discrimination under the Bill of Rights Act. Pāuatahanui general ward councillor Josh Trlin (pictured) moved the motion, wanting to push the government to make the change ahead of the 2025 local elections. It was voted for by almost all council members, with the exception of Ross Leggett and Mike Duncan.

DING-DONG

The Bell Gully Building on Lady Elizabeth Lane is the newest addition to the Wellington waterfront. Despite disruptions from covid and winter weather, the project was finished within weeks of its original completion date by developers Willis Bond. The 3,800-square-metre base-isolated building is occupied by law firm Bell Gully, real estate company JLL, co-working provider Servcorp, and optometrists Eye Institute. There are three retail spaces on the ground floor, one of them currently occupied. NAILED IT

A new sculpture by Glen Hayward has been unveiled on the Wellington waterfront. The Whanganui-born artist was commissioned in 2021 to produce a sculpture to honour the city’s maritime history. The Grove features 15 giant wooden nails, some four metres high, which give the impression they have been hammered into the pavement. The Grove is Hayward’s first permanent sculpture in Wellington, but he has previously participated in the Sculpture Trust’s Te Papa 4 Plinths project. A WEE WAY TO GO

The demolition of the Te Aro Park toilets leaves us wondering why Cuba Street has no public loos. Wellington City Council’s Urban Regeneration and Design Manager Farzad Zamani says public toilets “may not be appropriate and compatible with the street’s design and limit the space for pedestrians and other activities. Cuba Street has a unique character and is identified as a significant heritage area in our District Plan… We will consider this in our long-term planning”.

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Anne Frank : Let me be myself

12 January - 26 February 2023 ‘Let me be myself and then I am satisfied,’ Anne Frank wrote in her diary on 11 April 1944.

This exhibition connects Anne Frank’s life story with the present and makes the fate of the millions of victims of the persecution of the Jews during the Second World War personal and palpable. ‘Despite everything, I believe that people are really good at heart’ - ANNE FRANK