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Wednesday 15 December 2010
Barnett leaps into record books P 27
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Tour de France aspirant wins scholarship P5
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Amalgamation fight goes to hearings
Craig Goodman
With critical meetings regarding the issue of amalgamation of Nelson city and Tasman district councils scheduled amid the hectic pre-Christmas rush period and on a congested itinerary, Hands Off Tasman architect Paul Searancke has been left shaking his head in dismay at the Local Government Commission’s (LGC) warped sense of timing. Three LGC members attended a meeting
in Murchison yesterday to listen to speakers they had pre-selected explain the content of their submissions on the highly contentious amalgamation issue, originally hatched and since hard-driven by new Nelson mayor Aldo Miccio. Ninety minutes and a quick plane flight later they were doing it all again in Nelson City. Paul says, “There are some people who would like to be at all these meetings this week to hear the full story and gain an understanding of public sentiment across
the whole region. Even a ministerial driver, police escort and repeat of the Helen Clark motorcade fiasco wasn’t going to be enough to get any concerned members of the public from Murchison to Nelson in time,” he says. Paul believes the issue, “which should never have been afforded credibility in the first place” has been poorly handled since day one by its advocates and every day since the LGC has been involved. “Not only opponents but proponents of
the issue asked LGC to be reasonable with regard to the timeframe of submissions in view of the local body elections and that a lot of affected folk are rural residents; many are farmers who had a busy lambing season to attend to. But they seem to have disregarded what we want and that sort of mismanagement and disregard is a big concern to me in view of importance of this matter and the fact they’re empowered to have influence in the decision making Continued on page 2.
Top teams clash at Moutere
Richmond team J Dawg & Da G Unit at the Bowater Group Top Team final. They are from left; Johnny, Vanessa, Alysha, Tommy, Maree, Levi and Jimmy.
After three keenly contested heats at Motueka, Saxton Field and Murchison over the past two months, the top 12 teams fought out the final of the Bowater Group Top Teams series at Upper Moutere on Sunday. Richmond based-Signature Homes Warriors were the winners of the senior section. Horrell’s Farmers of Motueka was second while the Lakers of St Arnaud who won the title last year were unable to rise to the occasion this time. In the junior section Lind & Franks were winners with Awesome Unicorns being runner-up. J Dawg & Da G Unit was awarded best dressed team with Levi Norris judged best dressed individual, his pretty pink dress complementing his rugged ‘castaway’ beard. One of the organisers, Hayden Bryant of Sport Tasman, says the event, based on the tremendously popular Top Town which screened on television during the 1980s, was very well supported by participants and spectators and may be extended to include Marlborough as a Top of the South competition next year.