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By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
They have the views and now just need the loos.
A Matariki observation deck has been installed next to what will be a new toilet block at the Rakaia Gorge Campground, with the $450,000 project on track to be completed by the end of the year.
… View moreBy local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
They have the views and now just need the loos.
A Matariki observation deck has been installed next to what will be a new toilet block at the Rakaia Gorge Campground, with the $450,000 project on track to be completed by the end of the year.
Council infrastructure and open spaces group manager Neil McCann said while the platform has been constructed, it is “not ready for opening as it still requires some finishing work and signoff”.
“There is no public access at this stage and is still a secured work site.”
The old public toilets at the Rakaia Gorge Campground, which were built in the 1970s, are being demolished and replaced with a new prefabricated dry-vault toilet block.
“The new toilets are arriving at the end of November and will be operational a couple of weeks later.”
For the Matariki viewing platform, there will be interpretive signage and a Matariki narrative, which the council is working with Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua, McCann said.
There is also some lighting, deck and picnic furniture, new carparks and path, and landscaping to complete around the area.
The site is tracking towards being open to the public in December, with the details of an official opening and site blessing still to be confirmed.
The project is running under budget, McCann said, with the $451,000 project receiving $277,000 from the Government’s Tourism Infrastructure Fund (TIF).
Council open spaces manager Ian Soper explained in March that round six of TIF applications last year had a directive to incorporate a focus on the Matariki public holiday, which was why the council’s toilet replacement had included the star viewing deck.
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TIF fund finished
The Tourism Infrastructure Fund has come to an end.
MBIE manager of investment management performance David Talbot said budget allocations for the fund have now been exhausted, with round seven the final planned round.
“Decisions for the future of a TIF is for the incoming government.”
It was introduced in 2017 to provide up to $25 million annually to develop tourism-related infrastructure in regions facing pressure from tourism growth.
Over the seven rounds since 2017, the Ashburton District Council received $1,175,273 for three projects.
It received $739,945 for the upgrade of the Rakaia Salmon site in 2019, $158,328 for enhancing the rest areas at Taylors Stream and Awa Awa Rata Reserve in 2021, and then $277,000 for the redevelopment of Rakaia Gorge toilets and Matariki observation deck in 2022.
Neighbouring Selwyn District Council has cashed in almost $2m of funding across all seven rounds of the TIF to upgrade its public toilet network.
They have received a total of $1,954,450 with the majority of the projects related to upgrades or installation of new public toilets.
The Southland District Council received the most from the TIF, receiving $10,518,535 – which included $6.5m towards the Te Anau wastewater project.
The Westland District Council received $6,828,115, followed by Thames-Coromandel ($6,554,857), Queenstown Lakes ($5,336,781) and the Far North District Council $5,002,371.
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From local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
A roading expert has explained why Ashburton district's potholes are repeatedly patched up rather than properly fixed.
It all comes down to funding.
During a recent meeting, councillor Lynette Lovett questioned why the process was to … View moreFrom local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
A roading expert has explained why Ashburton district's potholes are repeatedly patched up rather than properly fixed.
It all comes down to funding.
During a recent meeting, councillor Lynette Lovett questioned why the process was to repeatedly patch up potholes rather than just fix the section of road.
Lovett asked if any analysis was done on the cost of repeat pothole patches.
“Is it cheaper to do the darn things properly and clear them, than coming back each week and putting up jolly signs and putting black stuff in the potholes?
“It must balance out somewhere along the line for coming out and filling them all the time to actually digging it up and fixing it properly.”
Roading manager Mark Chamberlain said it comes down to funding.
“Ideally, if there is a bit of pavement getting potholes in it and needs to be dug out, that we would be able to just go ahead and dig out it out and do the repair.
“It’s to do with funding we have got available.
“Some of them have to keep getting patched to try and hold them until we have that money available.”
It had been noted before that the contractor is only paid for the first pothole patch repair. The contract is for $6000 per year, and any subsequent repatching is at their own expense.
The road funding conversation may have given many in the room déjà vu.
Potholes are the perennial number one complaint the council receives.
Funding, and specifically the lack of it, has been a regular discussion around the table, making it a big gripe for council and ratepayers.
Mayor Neil Brown reminded councillors the district has a sealed network of 1500km in the district.
“Last year we replaced 8 to 10km of new road.
“Do the equation and it's 150 years to go around and renew all our roads.”
The new roads are built to last 25 years and “even if they last 40 years we need to be doing 37km a year, but we are doing 8 to 10km, he said.
“Money is the problem and we are going backwards."
In the lead-up to the election, National announced it would establish a Pothole Repair Fund.
The pledge was to establish a $500m fund for state highway and local roading repairs, set a new directive to Waka Kotahi to double the current rate of roading renewals and halve the standard response rate for pothole repair from 48 to 24 hours.
Incoming Rangitata MP James Meager said the funding would be included in the new Government’s revised draft government policy statement that is in its 100-Day Action Plan.
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By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
A Methven resident says his privacy and views will be ruined if a resort's expansion plans go ahead.
Mark Brownlie lives by Methven Resort and is one of the neighbours objecting to the consent application for the hotel's expansion.
… View moreBy local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
A Methven resident says his privacy and views will be ruined if a resort's expansion plans go ahead.
Mark Brownlie lives by Methven Resort and is one of the neighbours objecting to the consent application for the hotel's expansion.
Independent commissioner Darryl Millar is deciding on the consent application, with a public hearing held in Methven on Thursday.
During the meeting, Brownlie described the proposed expansion plans as a “brutal privacy intrusion”.
The development plans would deny him “privacy, outlook and daylight”, with the effects “much more than minor”, he said.
Brownlie said he didn't oppose the resort owners developing of the site, but was against the positioning and height of the proposed new accommodation wing.
His view of the mountains – one of the main reasons he bought land and built there - would be ruined by the proposed development, he said.
The resort wants to build two new accommodation wings, one on the north boundary and one on the west.
The application was lodged by The Methven Limited, which is controlled by Ultimate Hospitality Limited. The company is a subsidiary of The Ultimate Global Group, which is run by entrepreneur Levin Da Costa.
The commissioner will determine if the plans are as intrusive as the neighbours say or if the applicant and its panel of experts are correct in their description of the affects as being “less than minor”.
The commissioner is being asked to consider whether the original resource consent granted in 1982 is still applicable.
Legal advice provided to the council in 2007, the last time an expansion of the site was considered, was that the original consent could no longer be implemented without further consent.
The applicant’s solicitor, Gerard Cleary, argued the consent remained valid and that it “does not include a condition requiring development be in accordance with specific plans”.
The 1982 consent granted permission for four three-story wings extending from the central hotel area, but only one wing was originally built to the south.
The commissioner must also weigh up whether the plans are non-compliant with the district plan, as the site is residential zone C.
A series of conditions have been proposed by the applicant to mitigate the effects of the expansion.
There was also discussion of the potential height reduction of the west wing from three storeys (10.4m height) down to two storeys (7.3m).
If the configuration could be changed, Brownlie suggested the entire expansion could be one block along the northern side, which wouldn’t impact any neighbours.
At the conclusion of the hearing, the commissioner said he would issue a minute asking the council to seek legal submissions, with the applicant then able to have a right of reply.
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By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
One of the biggest hotels in the tourist town of Methven wants to expand, but neighbours are opposing the move.
Methven Resort in Canterbury wants to build two new wings on the site, along the west and north boundaries.
However, concerns have … View moreBy local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
One of the biggest hotels in the tourist town of Methven wants to expand, but neighbours are opposing the move.
Methven Resort in Canterbury wants to build two new wings on the site, along the west and north boundaries.
However, concerns have been raised the expansion will block sun and impact privacy for neighbouring residents.
The resort, which opened in 1982, currently features 47 guest rooms, a bar, restaurant, swimming pool, hot pools, and function rooms.
Ashburton District Council processed the resource consent for the expansion under limited notification.
Three submissions opposed consent and an independent commissioner will decide on the application. A public hearing to hear submissions would be held at the Mount Hutt Memorial Hall on Thursday (October 26).
Issues raised include the building's height impacting on the privacy of the neighbours and not meeting zoning rules, according to the executive summary of the planning hearing report.
The hotel sits in the Residential C zone, which is described as medium-to-low density housing with permanent residents.
The two proposed accommodation blocks exceed the 8m height limit for the zone.
It also does not comply to zoning as more than five guests would stay per night and it exceeds operating hours.
The council’s assessment of the application “raised issues of concern regarding the impact of the western accommodation block on the privacy and outlook enjoyed by the submitter's properties”.
“As such the effects are considered to be more than minor on those properties.”
Before granting consent, the council must be satisfied that either the adverse effects of the activity on the environment will be minor, or the proposed activity will not be contrary to the objectives and policies of a proposed plan.
The executive summary outlined that the “district plan makes clear statements that commercial development should be guided to the business zones" and the character of residential areas should be protected.
The summary said if the proposed western accommodation block was reduced to two storeys, then it could be approved.
The resort's owners did not respond to a request for comment.
The resort has been a subsidiary of the Ultimate Global Group since May 2021, which is a New Zealand-based conglomerate that has a hospitality footprint across the country and Asia.
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Methven Resort’s long line of owners
The hotel opened as Centrepoint in 1982, with numerous ownership changes over the decades - and even a blaze damaging the hotel’s interior in the 1990s.
Originally a family-owned business, it has since been under hotel chains such as Grand Chancellor, Sovereign, and Dynasty Group.
Under the Dynasty Group, it was sold in a mortgagee sale in 2008 after the company failed to pay a long list of creditors.
The hotel was steered back to stability by former French Farm Winery owners Mark Smith and Ann Tillson, who operated it for five years before being sold again.
The landmark hotel struggled when Covid-19 shut the borders to international tourists. It was closed down in June 2020 after the lessees, Gretha Group Limited, went into liquidation.
The family of the building owners, Maxim Fashions, reopened the venue in October 2020.
The venue has again changed hands with the Ultimate Global Group running the hotel since May 2021.
By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
The way Ashburton's council is elected is up for review, but the mayor says it doesn't necessarily mean anything will change.
Māori representation, wards, and the number of councillors will be considered.
Ashburton mayor Neil Brown … View moreBy local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
The way Ashburton's council is elected is up for review, but the mayor says it doesn't necessarily mean anything will change.
Māori representation, wards, and the number of councillors will be considered.
Ashburton mayor Neil Brown said the review would discuss possible changes and decide if they are necessary.
“We don’t have to change for change's sake.
“If we think we have it right, then we have it right. When we did this six years ago we did change."
Any proposed changes will go out for public consultation.
The review will cover the number of councillors and if they are elected in wards (electoral areas) or at large (whole city), options for district-wide voting as well as wards, of a single rural and single urban ward or southern and northern rural ward.
The review will also consider Māori representation options.
Strategy and policy manager Mark Low said the district doesn’t meet the threshold for a Māori ward under current legislation.
“Part of this conversation is around potential other ways of representation," he said.
Democracy and engagement group manager Toni Durham said the legislation had been due for change ahead of the 2025 elections, including removing the formulaic approach to Māori wards.
However, Cyclone Gabrielle put that on hold.
The Methven Community Board boundary will also be considered, with the board proposing it change in response to the urban growth of the township.
In the last review in 2018, the council reduced from 12 to nine councillors, and there were some adjustments to the ward boundaries.
Councillor Richard Wilson said the review outlined all the different options for the council, including keeping the status quo.
“What we currently do could be fit for purpose so we don’t have to change.”
The pre-engagement for the review will take place before the end of this year.
That will allow the council to form an initial proposal to be notified by the end of May for consultation with the community.
The process and timeframe for the final proposal will depend on submissions received, a council spokesperson said.
The process needed to be completed by the end of August.
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