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By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
When councils around the country were shedding their nurseries, Ashburton held onto its asset.
Tucked in the Ashburton Domain, it is a hive of activity that produces most of the plants and trees adorning the parks and reserves around the district.
… View moreBy local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
When councils around the country were shedding their nurseries, Ashburton held onto its asset.
Tucked in the Ashburton Domain, it is a hive of activity that produces most of the plants and trees adorning the parks and reserves around the district.
The exact origins of the nursery are unknown, but Ashburton District Council infrastructure and open spaces group manager Neil McCann said he suspected the nursery has been in operation since the domain was first formed about160 years ago.
Many council-run nurseries around the country were closed during privatisation in the 1990s, which saw many parks go out to contractors for nursery supplies, McCann said.
Not Ashburton, which held onto its home-grown plant production.
Some councils are looking at going back to council-run service delivery operations including nurseries to gain efficiencies, he said, citing Christchurch as an example.
“Having an in-house operation and nursery means staff can respond quickly to meet the needs of the council and community.”
The homegrown approach is much more cost-effective for the council than purchasing mature plants and it provides a learning environment for staff, including apprentices, he said.
“Their growing knowledge base allows the council further capacity in the open spaces area.”
The site uses three glasshouses, that according to Canterbury historic maps predate 1925, and one larger greenhouse to grow all manner of plants that end up all around the district, McCann said.
“Annuals are generally planted in flower beds and trees go out to streets and parks where needed.”
Most of the seeds are sourced from an import wholesaler but some are sourced locally.
“Some seedlings are sourced from the Harris Scientific reserve, mainly kānuka, or other natural areas with specific species present. Other seedlings are divided from previously used plants.”
The nursery mainly produces annuals and a mix of exotic and native trees, as well as some perennials and revegetation species.
In a busy growing year, the nursery can produce around 36,000 annual and two cycles per year, up to 3000 natives and between 1000 and 2000 perennials.
Annuals (one growing season) include alyssums, marigolds, gazanias, primula species, calibrachoa, lobelias, geranium and petunias. Native tree species include olearias, coprosmas, cortaderia, kānuka, Phormium, and pittosporum, and exotic shrubs include azaleas, fuchsia, lavender, and rosemary.
Perennials, such as rudbeckia, delphinium, perennial lobelia, various daisies, astilbe and helleborus, are propagated by division, a process of separating the plant into several pieces, each of which is potted up and grown on as a new plant, McCann said.
“Where we can procure seed, we germinate this on a heated seed raising bed then grow the seedlings on until we have a suitable sizes plant that can be planted out in the gardens.”
From the heated sand-based seed-raising beds with overhead automated mist irrigation in the glasshouse some seedlings move to the bigger greenhouse while others are placed in the open air, and once matured enough are then planted.
“We also use the glasshouses for drying off bulbs and dahlias when lifted before division and replanting.”
There are also some specific plants being grown for specific native planting areas, such as Wakanui and Ōtūwharekai Ashburton Lakes as part of the council’s biodiversity work.
“These are often species where the seed is eco-sourced or sourced within the same geographical/ ecological location and they are specific to their inland, lowland, or coastal environments.”
The nursery is an all-year-round operation but the work programme is seasonal, with six-monthly cycles for annual bedding plants.
“Natives are seasonal, trees are year-round as are perennial divisions.”
It is run by one full-time staff member with additional support from the council’s other horticultural staff that maintain the parks and reserves.
The nursery operates on the same site it always has and while the number of parks and reserves is increasing with urban development, there are no plans at this stage to increase its capacity, McCann said.
“Any plans to upgrade or further develop operations would need to be budgeted, and we are currently at capacity on this site – which is fine for what our requirements are.”
By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
It has been a busy start to life for Ashburton’s new library and civic centre, Te Whare Whakatere.
In its opening week the new Ashburton Library, Te Kete Tuhinga, had 7335 people walk through the front doors, almost four times the foot traffic in … View moreBy local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
It has been a busy start to life for Ashburton’s new library and civic centre, Te Whare Whakatere.
In its opening week the new Ashburton Library, Te Kete Tuhinga, had 7335 people walk through the front doors, almost four times the foot traffic in comparison with the same week in 2023 (1891) at the old library.
Those numbers are only likely to increase after the rest of the building's tenants moved in on Monday
That included local café One Ninety Nine which has relocated to Te Whare Whakatere.
Owners Gareth and Jamie Cadogan (pictured) have been running their café business in an alleyway off Burnett St for the past three and a half years, but started serving on the ground floor of the new building on Monday.
It was a simple decision moving the 100m across the CBD for what the foot traffic figures from the opening week show will be one of the most prominent places in town.
“It’s a great space,” Gareth Cadogan said.
Ashburton District Council chief executive Hamish Riach said One Ninety Nine was offered the spot in the building after a robust process to find the right business.
“We shortlisted a few cafes who were interested, and we believe Gareth and Jamie have the right business to complement the new library.
“We were mindful that we didn’t want to introduce more competition for existing coffee businesses in the area, so having One Ninety Nine already established in this part of the CBD is a win.”
The café owners weren’t the only ones celebrating their first day in the new building with the council’s staff also now operating from Te Whare Whakatere.
Staff were excited to finally be in the building for their induction last week and then open for business on Monday, Riach said.
“After the thick end of two months working remotely, it was great for staff to be able to all get together last Friday and reconnect with each other face to face.
“It’s been a long and winding journey at times to get here, but just great to be finally in and under way.”
With everyone moved in, there are still a few things left to complete the building.
The most notable is the metal mesh shroud on the front of the building.
After being installed it was found to be faulty and is being reworked by the manufacturers, Riach said.
An official opening date for the building is still to be confirmed, Riach said, with the council coordinating with the prime minister’s office over dates.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
There is growing community interest to develop a tract of unused land in Methven.
The Methven Community Board held a public meeting this week to gauge community interest in the council reserve land behind the Garden of Harmony.
Board chairperson… View moreBy local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
There is growing community interest to develop a tract of unused land in Methven.
The Methven Community Board held a public meeting this week to gauge community interest in the council reserve land behind the Garden of Harmony.
Board chairperson Kelvin Holmes said there was no plan for the site other than it being home to the historic RDR pipeshed.
The community board were after some community direction to see if there was a desire to develop it, and what that could entail.
The Methven Lions have already proposed to turn the site into a native bird sanctuary, launching the Methven Birdsong Initiative.
Spokesperson Mac McElwain said the vision is to create a new native habitat on the vacant council-owned land behind the Garden of Harmony – an area of council land already turned into a planted area with walkways.
They have set about gauging public interest and had 340 responses to a survey with 95% support, he said.
“Unless the community is onside and participating, we shouldn’t do it.
“We need to be certain the community will be on board as it has to be community run and maintained.”
The Methven Community Board will discuss it further and how to progress at its meeting on Monday.
There was also a pest control workshop held in Methven on Thursday as part of the process of establishing a trap library ahead of establishing the native sanctuary, McElwain said.
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By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
Construction has begun on a roughly $1.7 million, community-led recreation centre for Rakaia, which has been two decades in the making.
The old Rakaia Rugby Club's changing rooms and public toilets have been demolished and in its place will … View moreBy local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
Construction has begun on a roughly $1.7 million, community-led recreation centre for Rakaia, which has been two decades in the making.
The old Rakaia Rugby Club's changing rooms and public toilets have been demolished and in its place will rise a new, modern fit-for-purpose community facility, project manager Mark Boag says.
The project has been led by the Rakaia Rugby Club and a community that has been raising funds for a new facility in the Rakaia Domain for a decade.
The approximate $1.7m build will be completed around June.
“It would be built by now if it wasn’t for Covid and it taking a couple of years to sell the old clubrooms,” Boag said.
Building consent was granted in December, allowing local builder Ross Moore to start the project in early January.
“Getting all the consents took a bit longer than we anticipated.
“It’s going to be a four to six-month build, so looking around June.”
There had been a fleeting thought to delay construction, to avoid impacting the busy winter months in the domain, but with rising construction costs the decision was made to “just get on with it”.
The facility will not be available for use until the end of the rugby season but the focus was on getting it built, Boag said.
It’s been two decades in the making.
The rugby club started drafting up plans for new clubrooms as far back as the early 2000s, he said.
Those plans were shelved when the Rakaia Community Strategic Plan in 2009 introduced the idea of a shared sports facility in the Rakaia Domain, and the formation of Sport Rakaia.
That led to much bigger plans and the Rakaia Stadium Trust pitching to the Ashburton District Council in 2015 to back a new sports complex at the Rakaia Domain. But as the EA Networks Centre was set to open in Ashburton, the council baulked at the $1.5m funding request towards the estimated $5m proposed facility.
The rugby club then took charge again and, after Covid delayed progress, they pitched to the council at the end of 2021 to pay for the replacement public toilets in the building.
The council is funding the $351,000 replacement public toilets, a prefabricated toilet block that will be incorporated into the end of the centre, near the car park.
It then took a bit longer than hoped to finalise designs, get consent and start building, but the result will be a facility fo
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By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
Health Minister Shane Reti says the Government will shift more health decision-making back to the regions, but Ashburton’s mayor believes it is already under way.
District health boards were scrapped 18 months ago to form Te Whatu Ora/Health NZ in… View moreBy local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
Health Minister Shane Reti says the Government will shift more health decision-making back to the regions, but Ashburton’s mayor believes it is already under way.
District health boards were scrapped 18 months ago to form Te Whatu Ora/Health NZ in a bid to end geographical differences in healthcare.
Reti said the reforms went too far in removing local decision making.
"There are some parts that need to be owned by the centre [Te Whatu Ora], absolutely, but we need to be very careful because what has happened here is we've lost local accountability.
“We've lost local decision making and it's all owned by the centre."
Ashburton mayor Neil Brown said he believed a move to localise health was already happening under the current model.
The council doesn’t do health, its role is advocacy, but they have been involved in setting up a locality for health, Brown said.
Localities are part of the shift to the Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand system, aimed at delivering place-based planning for health and wellbeing services.
“We have been working with other councils to set up a locality for Mid-South Canterbury,” Brown said.
Ashburton is working with the Timaru, Waimate and Mackenzie councils, and local rūnanga to form a locality.
“To do localities you had to have council on board. We have the four mayors on board and our iwi Arowhenua ... all heading in the same direction, all wanting the best services for everyone.”
Whether the locality model would be retained under the new Government was yet to be seen.
However, Brown said the work had progressed to a point where it would work with Reti's suggestion.
“If it’s not called a locality we can still progress with it as a region.
“I think they will work quite well and have local people making local decisions for health from the Rakaia River to the Waitaki River.”
Reti stopped short of saying he would reintroduce district health boards and Brown questioned if the DHB model was that localised.
The Canterbury District Health Board was Christchurch-centric and rarely had elected members from Mid Canterbury, he said.
The council’s advocacy work is also looking at extending Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua’s Whānau Services into Mid Canterbury, which would happen under the locality system, Brown said.
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We can … View moreDid you know you can share details of community events with your fellow neighbours on Neighbourly? Please let us know if you’ve got a school fair, community market, workshop or other event coming up that the public can attend! Click the Events tab within Neighbourly for more details.
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