Market Day toilet stink
By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
Market Day organiser Carol Johns doesn’t want to see Ashburton's East St lined with portaloos for her annual event.
The former Boulevard Day market took place on South Canterbury Anniversary day on the last Monday in September for almost 50 years and Johns said was “never, ever been a portaloo in site’’.
Now, though, the toilet requirement appears to have changed with Johns’ event.
“I’m quite happy to monitor the toilets throughout the day and supply my own toilet paper, but I’d hate to see a market day up East St with portaloos stuck outside people’s shops.”
The annual Boulevard Day event along East St was abandoned in 2022, after being held in the Ashburton Domain in 2021, but the Johns-run Ashburton Market Day stepped in to fill the void. It needed council approval after the road closure request met opposition from CBD retailers.
The council approved the closure but placed several conditions on the event.
Council compliance and development group manager Jane Donaldson said the event did not comply with all of its conditions.
“There were issues around the lack of toilets which, following a review of the event, will be something that all event managers holding major events in the district will need to address,” Donaldson said.
Johns had been advised by the council she required portaloos to service the large crowds, but proceeded without them and the public toilets ran out of toilet paper.
“It’s something that just needs to be managed, to have more toilet paper. But I’ve already received an email, saying that unless I have portaloos this year I will not be given permission to run the event,” Johns said.
Event organisers were also required to be responsible for managing the waste and recycling of their own event, so the council waste bins had been covered over, Donaldson said.
Johns brought in Eco Management to handle it but it “didn’t work”.
“Within a very short time it was a disaster.”
With the waste management sites at each end of the three blocks of the market, the crowds simply piled the rubbish on top of the plastic covered bins, Johns said.
She plans to supply her own bins this year and her road closure application for September 25 has been notified, with public objections need to be lodged by August 28. The council will then consider the request on September 6 to decide if the event goes ahead again.
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Hero
“I was born and raised in war. To be honest, those are not good memories.
I really like Iran, and I really miss it, but I couldn’t be myself there. Even though my family didn’t like my decision, I left Iran. I promised myself that I would do whatever I can for all communities, especially for the kids, so they do not have the same experience I had.
I studied software engineering in Iran and left in 2006. I went to Malaysia and stayed in Kuala Lumpur for seven years. I was admitted to Lincoln University to do my PhD here, but unfortunately, I couldn’t afford the expenses. I requested a scholarship, but they told me I had to be there for six months first. So, I stayed in Malaysia and did my PhD in network security. In December 2013, I came to New Zealand with a work visa.
It took me a while to connect with the Iranian community here. I volunteered with the Multicultural Council, SPCA, and community patrol, and I established the Christchurch Iranian Society in 2017. Before that, I started working on Radio Toranj, the only Farsi-language radio show in New Zealand.
One of the reasons I started organizing cultural events was to showcase Iranian culture. I wanted to show people that we have delicious food, colorful dresses, traditional customs, and our own instruments. My hope was to show people that we are not what you see in the media.
I am working to involve all the communities that celebrate Nowruz, the Persian New Year, in the Nowruz festival in March 2025. We want to share this celebration not only with our community but with the public as well. It’s better when it’s shared.
I remember the first time someone from Dunedin called me and asked, Hero, can you help? Something happened, and they keep declining Iranian visa applications. When I heard that, I felt insulted. We are still human, so how can they do that?
Through this journey, I’ve learned a lot. Every single day, people with different cases call me, and I try to share my knowledge and guide them as much as I can.
I have received several awards, including the Christchurch Civic Award and an Award of Recognition for my contributions to the community during the pandemic. In 2021, I established Canterbury Kia Ora Academy, a charitable trust. Through this charity, I can help other communities as well, not just the Iranian community.”
- Hero
View more stories, or nominate someone: @humansofchch
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