Pathway to prosperity: Te Araroa Trail’s $3m potential for Mid Canterbury
By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
Getting more boots on the ground could be worth about $3 million annually for the Ashburton District.
An economic analysis report revealed the potential for a significant financial boost for Mid Canterbury from the Te Araroa Trail, particularly benefiting the Methven area.
The report suggests that elevating the trail's profile could increase its economic impact, making it a valuable asset for local tourism and the wider community.
Te Araroa is New Zealand's long-distance tramping route, stretching around 3000km from Cape Reinga to Bluff.
In Mid Canterbury the Te Araroa trail crosses the district between Rakaia and Rangitata Rivers, creating a natural barrier that requires people to detour using roads to reconnect to the trail at either end of the district.
The result is trail walkers are forced out of the foothills to cross the rivers by road, presenting an opportunity for Mid Canterbury, specifically Methven, to capture the walkers looking to resupply or rest for a night.
The $22,000 report, co-funded evenly by the Ashburton District Council and the Te Araroa Trust, found that the existing 4000 Te Araroa hikers in the 2022-23 season spent $515,400 a year in Methven.
It’s estimated making improvements to the trail and increased marketing could bring in around $3 million annually to the district.
The Te Araroa Trust was interested in making the isolated Rakaia to Rangitata section more accessible for trail walkers and also cater to people not interested in or able to walk the full route.
The trust came up with the concept of a Te Araroa Iti (small piece), which if developed could increase the value to the local economy.
The Te Araroa Trust will need to invest in infrastructure along the track including huts, toilets and track maintenance to help improve the appeal of the bite-size walk.
Economic development manager Simon Worthington said the council has “leaned in to help the Trust understand the opportunity”.
Now it’s up to the council to “walk alongside them, helping them to engage with local groups… but not for us as council to put any investment into that”.
If the trust decided to proceed with developing the smaller trail, there was an opportunity for the council to support that through better promotion he said.
The trust was contacted for comment.
Worst Xmas ever?
There's a a lot of planning that goes into Christmas day and sometimes things just don't go to plan. But it can be a good thing - a family mishap or hilarious memory that you can laugh about in Christmases to come.
Whether you burnt the dinner or were stranded at an airport...
Share your Christmas mishaps 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 ❤️
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?
-
61.7% Summer
-
36.6% Winter
-
1.7% Other - I'll share below
Loading…
