Beach court delayed by sand shortage
By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:
A sandy sports court being installed outside the EA Networks Centre in Ashburton has been delayed due to a lack of sand.
The $30,000 project was scheduled to be completed by the end of June but it will now be carried over into the next financial year.
Council people and facilities group manager Sarah Mosley said contractors couldn't source the appropriate sand.
“A special beach-soft sand is required and that isn’t normally held by local quarries, hence the need to delay as the contractors have indicated this isn’t currently available to them.
“The project is working through the design and scoping stage, and will require boxing and a timber edge as well as some excavation.”
The court will be suitable for “beach sports” and be available for casual community use with bookings possible if the need arises, Mosley said.
To deter the sand court from becoming a community cat litterbox, there are plans for it to be covered when it's not in use, she said.
EA Networks Centre's new manager Richard Wood said the delay had a silver lining with it benefitting the investigation and planning for installing a new 18-hole mini golf course next to the sand court next year.
The up to $400,000 course – paid for from reserve contributions –will not be manned.
Balls and clubs will likely be available to rent from the EA Networks Centre but the public can bring their own ball and putter.
The court is not suitable for pétanque.
The Ashburton Petanque Club, which has been based at the MSA Bowling Club grounds, is on the lookout for a new home after the MSA's decision to sell the site.
Mosley said the council had spoken to the club last year and they had outlined its requirements would be for 15-20 piste – up to about 1200m2, and it hadn’t been included or requested in the 30-year master plan process.
⚠️ 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 ❤️
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!
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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61.8% Summer
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36.6% Winter
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1.6% Other - I'll share below
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