Newsline 248 - 8 April 2011

Friday 8 April 2011

This page contains articles from Issue 248 of Newsline.
Download as a PDF: Newsline 248 - 8 April 2011

Map Website Wins National Kudos

Tasman’s new map website, which shows topography, photographic views and location of services, has drawn national praise.

The service, developed by Tasman District and Nelson City Councils, won the National Award at the ALGIM (Association of Local Government Information Managers) GIS Symposium.

The Top of the South Maps website is like a satellite view of the region, except that with a click of the mouse you can switch from photos to topographical maps or street views.

The images can be tailored to show Property (addresses, boundaries and property values), Services (stormwater, wastewater and water pipes, stormwater drains, bus routes, rubbish and recycling collection days) and Recreation (playgrounds, toilets, parks and reserves, walking/biking tracks, dog exercise areas).

Geographical Information Systems (GIS) are generally used in planning and development work, “however the Nelson Tasman offering goes further,” says Nelson Manager Information Management Steve Petch.

“The ease with which the public can now access Council information has improved significantly, further enhanced by the increasingly familiar Google Maps-style interface.”

Tasman Information Services Manager Peter Darlington says that, working together, “the two Councils have delivered on the promise of value for money to ratepayers.”

Peter paid credit to the support of local companies Snap Internet and Network Tasman Ltd.

The website can be found at: www.topofthesouthmaps.co.nz

Mayor’s Comment

In the past few weeks I have been reminded of the role volunteers often play in shaping the future our communities. Earlier this month Jane and I were guests at the TrustPower Community awards at which the Nelson Tasman region was represented by SAVE or Students Against Violence Everywhere. Presented by two of the region’s future leaders, Johny O’Donnell and Jemma Wastney, the programme drew special recognition from the judges for the resilience, relevance and organisational skills displayed in achieving the outcomes it has already. So impressed, that while the programme did not receive an award, awards judge Tariana Turia is planning to come down personally to witness and glean from this group how it has achieved its success to apply those lessons to programmes at a national level. This programme is only one of many occurring within our communities today, all run by volunteers. Our community relies a great deal on such volunteers and we all appreciate their contribution to our lives.

Last week I received a delegation from Fujimi-machi, Richmond’s sister city in Japan. In a time that has seen their own country rocked by one of the biggest earthquakes in history, tsunami and now nuclear concerns, this group took the time to recognise generously through gifts and donations the people who hosted students from their area, the Richmond Friendly Town Committee and the Council itself. Looking beyond the catastrophe in their own country the Mayor Kazuhiko Kobayashi and the Fujimi-machi community made a specific donation to the rebuilding of Christchurch and offered their condolences and hope to those affected. We were moved by their generosity.

By the time you read this the public meetings the Council has hosted throughout the District regarding the Draft Annual Plan will have finished. Written submissions, either through mail or via the Council website, should be forwarded to the Council before 4.30 pm 21 April 2011. If you have any thoughts or suggestions, please make them known to us before the closing date. For those who took the time to attend the meetings I thank you on behalf of the Council for the time you took to contribute.

– Mayor Richard Kempthorne

Funding Safety Net for Youth Events

Organisers of youth events in Tasman District have a financial safety net thanks to the Council. The TUFFE (Tasman Underwriting Fund for Events) offers backup funding of up to $500 in case an event does not cover its costs.

There is no limit on how often you can apply for TUFFE underwriting, which is available year-round. Applications must be submitted at least four weeks before the event.

To qualify for underwriting, events must be:

Organised by young people
Safe and alcohol-free
Of benefit to young people in the region
Well-planned
Expected to break even

Paul McConachie, Community Recreation Officer, says the fund has an added benefit in that applicants receive advice and support in staging their event, putting it on a sound footing from the outset.

Events underwritten by TUFFE in the past include a 1980s disco at the Wakefield Village Hall, which received $485.

Forms and information brochures are available from Tasman District Council offices. They must be returned to Mike Tasman-Jones, Community Recreation Advisor. He is also happy to give groups a hand with planning their event and filling out application forms.

More information about the Tasman Underwriting Fund for Events

Paying Homage to the Essence of Life

World Heritage Day is celebrated on 18 April 2011 and the theme this year is the Cultural Heritage of Water. This is a chance to look at engineering heritage and to examine the way water has influenced the lives of Tasman residents, both Maori and Pakeha.

The Maori view of water and waterways is that they are taonga and fundamental to the health of the Earth and all people. “Ko te wai te ora nga mea katoa – Water is the life-giver of all things.”

Early Pakeha settlers used water extensively for goldmining and flourmilling. Hydro-electric schemes at Six Mile near Murchison and the Waikoropupu Valley in Golden Bay provided power for growing settlements and industries.

Water transport was also extremely important in the early days of settlement. There was a vibrant coastal shipping trade because other means of transport were poorly developed. Today heritage wharf structures are registered in the district at Onekaka and Motueka. The old stone wharf at Motueka, erected in 1887, is one of only three heritage-registered stone wharves in New Zealand.

A guided Motueka heritage coastal walk will take place on Monday 18 April 2011. To take part meet at the Old Stone Wharf, Motueka Quay, at 10.00 am for a walk to the saltwater baths. Wear your walking shoes and bring a drink. The event will be cancelled if wet.

For more information, contact Rose Biss - Policy Planner, Tasman District Council

Bring Out Your Surplus Stuff

Golden Bay is about to hold a huge swapmeet, and it happens right outside your gate. Second-hand Sunday, from 9.00 am to 1.00 pm on 17 April 2011, is a chance to give away household items you no longer want. You can also collect stuff from others for free.

The items are placed together in a pile at the front of the property (but still within the property boundary). A green poster , available from the Tasman District Council Service Centre in Takaka, the Takaka Library or Collingwood General Store, is placed on the letterbox or fence to declare that you are part of the event.

Second-hand Sundays are an idea borrowed from Gisborne District Council, which holds the swap-athons every month but January.

You can put out any items except food and dangerous goods (chemicals, faulty electrical equipment, firearms) – and definitely
no rubbish.

Any items remaining at 1.00 pm must be removed. (Leftover goods might be welcomed at the Hospice Shop and Trash Palace, the
GB Weekly runs a “free/koha” section, Golden Bay also has Resource Recovery Centres in Takaka and Collingwood, which are open on Sunday afternoons.

What You Need to Do

A list of participating addresses will be available at the Council’s Takaka Service Centre, the Takaka Library and on the Council website.

Tips for Second-hand Shoppers

Only take items from properties advertised and where the Second-hand Sunday sign is displayed.
Only collect from 9.00 am to 1.00 pm – no earlier.
Do not enter the property beyond where the items are placed – they should be at the front gate.
Check anything you collect to make sure it’s safe.

Construction Progressing at Busy Three Brothers Intersection

New Zealand Transport Agency work is progressing as planned at the junction of SH6/SH60 Three Brothers Roundabout in Richmond thanks to the care, courtesy and patience of motorists passing through the 400m long construction site.

Fulton Hogan has been busy installing new stormwater and water lines, and constructing new widening alongside Gladstone Road (outside Bays Nurseries) and Main Road Hope (outside Goughs). A lot of this work has been carried out at night to minimise disruption to the 15,000 cars and trucks that pass through the site during daylight hours each day. A dry and warm end to summer has also helped the project remain on schedule.

The remaining works include footpath, shared pathway (for pedestrians and cyclists) and entranceway construction, new kerb and channel and widening of the roundabout itself. When all the widening is completed, a new layer of asphalt will be placed over the existing road surface creating a neat and tidy finish in preparation for the new lane markings. In order to complete the surfacing and roundabout work, there will be some road closures (at night) with detours in place for motorists travelling south, north and east. All road closures will be well notified in the Waimea Weekly, Nelson Mail and on signs along the State Highway.

The intersection upgrade is still programmed for completion in June 2011 and is a New Zealand Transport Agency State Highway project.

Weeds in Their Sights

Would you enjoy swinging a grubber and extracting a knotty root of old man’s beard? Fancy ferreting around in some of our rarest alluvial forests hunting out the last of the banana passionvine seedlings?

A weedbusting group has been meeting about once every six weeks for a couple of years now, visiting the most special of the remaining native forests on private land across Tasman and Nelson to give weeds a hefty goodbye. These sites have been identified by the Councils’ Significant Native Habitats Surveys as being the most valuable remnants and most are in need of help to control pest plants.

The weedbusters meet on a Sunday for convivial outings for a good cause. The small team of ecowarriors are doing well, but could always use extra hands. If you want to make a difference, need some muscle flexing, like great company, and want to experience some of the true hidden treasures that this region has to offer, please email Michael North on totara@ts.co.nz or Ph. 03 545 2431..

Community Conversations - Keep Motueka Beautiful

Litter Cart and Walkways Work

Keep Motueka Beautiful’s recent committee meeting reveals that they are as busy as ever.

Litter Cart Operation

McDonalds, Our Town Motueka, Whitwells, Nelson Building Society, New World and Top 10 Holiday Park have agreed to contribute to the litter cart programme. If an application made to the Motueka Community Board for $500 is successful, there should be sufficient money to fund the Litter Cart for seven months. The committee agreed that the cart would start again in October 2011 and finish in April 2012.

Volunteer of the Month

The Keep NZ Beautiful national honour went to Motueka’s Bob Cooke, who received a travel bag and $100. He promptly donated the money towards providing a sign for the Adopt A Plot at the Inlet Reserve Walkway.

Inlet Reserve Plots

Bob said the undeveloped plots had been mulched and there was now a need to level these plots so the stockpiled soil can be spread while both the soil and ground are dry. The work, which would cost about $1000, was approved.

Inlet Reserve Walkways Signs

“Slow Down” notices for cyclists will be put up shortly. A finger sign has been deferred until the Wharf Road Walkway is completed.

Donations Appreciated

A $2000 donation from Network Tasman will go towards buying native plants. Beth Bryant and Mike Tooker have produced a plan for planting about 1000 suitable natives along the fringes of the estuary. Thank you to AMI for donating the $266 premium for insuring the Suzuki quadbike and trailer.

Public Meeting - Tasman Loop Cycle Trail

The Nelson Cycle Trails Trust invites you to a meeting in the Tasman District Council Chambers at 7.30pm on Tuesday 12 April 2011 to discuss the planned cycleway and in particular the route around the Waimea Estuary. The Trust is preparing a resource consent application for part of this route and welcomes input from interested people..

Urban Design Panel Gets the Green Light

At a recent Tasman District Council Environment and Planning meeting the Urban Design Panel was given the green light to continue its work after a successful one year trial.

The Panel of eleven members, drawn from the urban design, architecture, landscape architecture and planning professions, has provided expert advice on a number of commercial and housing developments in Richmond, Brightwater and Motueka.

Graeme McIndoe, the Panel Chairperson is a qualified and experienced urban designer who also chairs the technical advisory group for the Wellington waterfront. ‘The panel aims to assist applicants and Council to achieve high quality and successful project outcomes that will sit well in and contribute positively to their urban setting”, said Graeme.

Dale Ewers, whose mixed use commercial/residential development at Ellis St, Brightwater was assessed by the Panel said he’d found it helpful to go to the Panel, and overall it had been “an awesome process”.

At present applicants appear before the Panel on a voluntary basis. The Panel visits the site, hears the applicants’ presentation and asks questions. A report is provided to the applicant within five days.

For further information please contact Rose Biss - Policy Planner, Tasman District Council.

Richmond Fibre Artist Takes Award

Janet Perrior, of Richmond, has won $1500 in the national Changing Threads fibre art awards. Janet’s piece, A Sign of the Times, took the 2011 Tasman District Council Award for “Excellence in contemporary interpretation of work featuring traditional techniques.”

Other Winners in the Arts Council Nelson Awards Were:

Bernina Award for the “most creative entry using a sewing machine” ($2000 prize) – Objects of Desire, by Tracy Kennedy (Dunedin).

Nelson City Council Award for the “work which best reflects the theme of Water and/or Light”, ($1500) – Song from a Distant Earth, by Maria J Dalton (Nelson).

Business Development Company Award for “a work which uses any type of fibre to stretch our imagination”, ($300) – Melting Away, by Martin Maass (Palmerston North).

Arts Council Nelson Award for a highly commended entry from a resident of the Nelson Region – Grass Widow by Sue Henderson (Nelson). She wins a professional photo-shoot of her work by photographer Caroline Crick.

The works are part of the Contemporary New Zealand ?Fibre & Textile Arts exhibition, at The Refinery Artspace, Nelson, until 21 April 2011.

New Gym Shaping Up At Aquatic Centre

The doors of the new gym at Richmond’s ASB Aquatic Centre are set to open on Monday 30 May 2011.

The Health and Fitness centre will be run by pool manager CLM in a profit-sharing deal with the Tasman District Council.

CLM has part-funded the fitness centre building, and is paying for the fit-out. The Council will use its gym profits to offset the costs of operating the Aquatic Centre.

Membership of the gym will include group workout classes (boxing, pump weights, spin cycling, aquafitness) and use of the pools.

Staff will offer free personalised health assessments and prescribe individual workouts.

The equipment includes treadmills, recumbent and upright cycles, plus rowing machines. Fitness programmes take in eight-week
weight loss challenges, Boot Camps, Green Prescription exercises, and corporate memberships.

The Fitness Centre will be open seven days a week, and operational hours are extending from 30 May 2011, with the complex being open from 5.30 am Monday to Friday.

The Aquatic Centre is Council’s biggest recreational facility and has been a success since opening in 2004. It now encompasses the 25m main pool, a wave pool, tots pool, learners pool, Lazy River, spa and hydrotherapy pools. The millionth visitor was recorded in June 2010.

Memberships for the new gym are available already, with an earlybird special offer. Contact www.asbaquaticcentre.co.nz to book online or give the team a call on 03 543 9755.

Proposed Road Directional Signage Collingwood Area

Council proposes to revise road directional signage in the Collingwood area. The roads affected are Collingwood Bainham-Main Road, Collingwood-Puponga Main Road, Collingwood Quay and the Takaka Collingwood Highway (State Highway 60).

The affected signage is mostly around the intersection at Whites Bridge and the intersection of State Highway 60 with Collingwood Quay/Collingwood-Bainham Main Road.

The public can view the proposed changes at Council’s Richmond, Motueka and Takaka offices and at the Takaka Library.

The plan showing the changes will be available from Friday 8 April 2011 until Monday 2 May 2011.

It is planned that the proposed changes will be implemented after 1 July 2011, subject to the availability of funding.

If you have any enquiries regarding the proposal contact Steve Elkington - Transportation Projects Engineer, Tasman District Council.

Community Recreation - April 2011

Strengthening Our Communities

Tasman District Council supports the work of community groups across the District via advice, grants and partnership arrangements. The purpose of this activity is to strengthen Tasman’s communities by providing the resources that enable community initiatives and community organisations to achieve their objectives. Grants are predominately for ‘not for profit’ community and voluntary groups working for the benefit of Tasman District communities.

The following opportunities are available for funding support over the next few months.

Community Development Fund

This fund is to enable Tasman District’s smaller communities to make plans, provide activities, run events or services to enhance their town or to attract visitors. The fund has an allocation of $20,000 for the 2010/2011 year.

The closing date is 30 April 2011.

Creative Communities Scheme

Creative Communities is the local arts funding scheme that supports projects that increase access to and participation in arts activity.

The next funding round closes 10 May 2011.

SPARC Rural Travel Fund

The Rural Travel Fund is aimed at reducing the barriers to participation in sport sometimes experienced by young people living in rural communities.

The fund is designed to help subsidise rural travel for junior teams (schools and club sports teams made up of young people aged between 5-19 years), to assist them to participate in local sporting competitions.

Who is eligible? The Rural Travel Fund is open to support rural sports clubs and rural school teams.

The next funding round closes 30 April.

The guides and application forms for the Tasman District Council Community Funding rounds.

Positive Ageing for All New Zealanders

Dr David Bromell, a Principal Advisor from the Ministry of Social Development, will be providing a guided tour of the new Positive Ageing website at Richmond Library in April. He will also discuss how best to capture local initiatives, and would like to hear more about how we are promoting and enabling positive ageing in the Nelson-Tasman districts.

The presentation is at the Richmond Library, 280 Queen Street. 12.00 noon -1.30 pm on Wednesday 27 April 2011. All are welcome.

Get Found

Are you looking for contacts for local clubs or groups? The best place to start is www.found.org.nzwww.found.org.nz. This comprehensive database of contacts for community groups has been operating for 30 years, has over 1700 groups listed and had over a million visits to the its website in 2010.

Catch Water Leaks Early

If you have a leak in your water reticulation, Tasman District Council may be able to take some of the financial pain out of having it fixed.

Council offers rebates on excess water charges caused by leaks in the main water pipe from the meter box to the house, plus internal plumbing. So if you have received an abnormally high water account, first check that the reading shown on the account is correct.

If so, after checking that there is no water currently being used in the house, check your meter. If the red numbers on the dial are still moving, you can suspect a leak, says Water Billing Officer Jill Best.

Council may refund the cost of lost water, based on a calculation from your previous levels of use. However, written proof is required that the leak has been repaired by a registered plumber.

Rebates can run to hundreds of dollars, says Jill. The compensation only applies to the current six-monthly billing period, and any additional water lines running off that main pipe to the dwelling are not covered.

For a second leak within five years, the rebate drops to 25 percent of the extra cost.

Jill says that the Council does try to send letters to property owners with high accounts, pointing out increased consumption for the property. But it is the property-owners’ responsibility to monitor their consumption and check for leaks.

She advises routine checks on the meter – as often as fortnightly for heavy users. “Flick the lid and have a look.”

Jill says few local bodies offer such a rebate and Council’s aim is to encourage ratepayers to get all leakage repaired promptly.

For more information, contact the Tasman District Council.

Do Your Trees Hang Low?

Has your garden grown like mad during summer? Then now may be a good time to check that your vegetation hasn’t become a nuisance to others.

If you have a hedge, shrubs or trees that grow alongside a footpath, or near an intersection/corner it’s up to you to make sure they don’t grow too far out, making it hard for others to pass and obscuring visibility for motorists and pedestrians.

Now is an excellent time to give plants a trim so take a walk around your property to check if a hair cut is needed. Make sure you consider whether the footpath is easily passable for those in wheelchairs, on mobility scooters, or with prams – don’t just look at
it from a pedestrian’s point of view.

Is there sufficient room for people to pass each other? If not it’s time to reach for the clippers.

Overhanging tree branches are also a problem. If you have a tree growing near a footpath you need to make sure any branches are trimmed right back to your boundary. Trees overhanging footpaths become a problem in wet weather when the water weighs the branches down and they drip on footpath users.

Please check out your boundary and let common sense be your guide because it is up to you to make sure nothing from your property is obstructing the footpath.

If you’d like further information on this topic please call your local Council Office.