Market day stoush in Ashburton
From local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
Key Ashburton retailers are opposed to a new CBD market day, saying further “restricted trading’’ is not what they need.
The proposed Ashburton Market Day would replace the now defunct Boulevard Day, but the application from organiser Carol Johns would mean the temporary closure of East St, Burnett St, and Tancred St on Monday, September 26.
Her proposal has received three objections, which will now go before the Ashburton District Council, with Johns to front Wednesday's hearing.
Ashburton Paper Plus owner Terry McNabb said he doesn’t have a problem with a market day, but “I do have a problem with holding it on the street”.
“For a few years now, we have had these days where the roads in the CBD get closed off but all we are doing is inviting out-of-town stall holders to park up outside our doors for the day.
“That does not help any of the locally owned and operated businesses in that area.”
McNabb said his business has had nothing but disruption for two years from Covid, the CBD redevelopment, and now a new demolition next door.
He said he operated two essential service businesses inside Paper Plus, those being NZ Post and AA Driver & Vehicle licensing, which served a lot of elderly customers whose access would be impacted.
Bob McDonald, from Health 2000 in the arcade, has submitted an objection on behalf of 15 CBD businesses that, like McNabb, “believe another day with restricted trading is not beneficial for the CBD”.
Because of the CBD’s new one-way system, McDonald said closing East St would “effectively shut down the whole CBD”.
McDonald and Sue Cooper used to run the popular Boulevard Day, which was unable to be held in 2020 because of Covid-19 restrictions. It then had to be held in Ashburton Domain last year due to the CBD being a construction zone, which was the first time in 45 years it was held outside of the inner-city location.
He and Cooper hoped to find someone new to take over the running of Boulevard Day this year but that had not happened.
That’s why Johns, who has previously run events on the same day as Boulevard Day and who is standing for a seat on the council in the local election, has stepped up to fill the void.
Her Ashburton Market Day proposal now falls to the council, with the hearing taking place at 9am on Wednesday.
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
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62.4% Summer
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36.2% Winter
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1.4% Other - I'll share below
Best way to use leftovers?
I'm sure you've got some excess ham at home or cold roast potatoes.
What are some of your favourite ways to use leftover food from Christmas day? Share below.
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
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