The Star: July 07, 2016

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12 Thursday July 7 2016 follow us on facebook.com/riseupchristchurch The Star Viewpoint Convention Centre Precinct decision met with approval I WAS very pleased last week to be able to deliver some extremely positive news to Christchurch residents about the future of the Convention Centre Precinct. In a nutshell, months of design and planning work has put us in a good position to open Christchurch’s new Convention Centre in late 2019. This news has been met with widespread approval from local government and the business community, all of whom know how important the conventions market is for the region, and New Zealand. Having successfully completed the early design and master planning stages for the precinct, Otakaro Ltd has released an indicative design for the Convention Centre. As the Crown-owned company set up to deliver central city anchor projects on the Government’s behalf, Otakaro will now seek contractors to finalise the design and then construct the facility. Ōtākaro Ltd will also work with parties interested in opportunities to develop the wider Precinct, which has considerable space for accommodation, car parking and other potential uses. Work on the site will begin immediately, first with rerouting of telecommunications and other early enabling works, and within the next two weeks preparations will begin for the Colombo St to Oxford Tce section of Gloucester St to close by the end of July. Engagement with potential early works contractors will begin immediately, to allow substantial earthworks to begin in October. A FREE TRIP TO FIJI with every Onyx Home! Gerry Brownlee A PERFECT FIT! A purpose-designed plan to suit your lifestyle - for LESS than a standard plan! Having certainty around this project is important for the city’s forward planning, and I thank everyone for their patience as we took the necessary time to make this decision on the path ahead. The Government remains absolutely committed to a Convention Centre Precinct that is world-class, and offers quality accommodation, hospitality and retail to support the convention facilities. For more information on the Convention Centre announcement visit www. otakaroltd.co.nz/news Gerry Brownlee is Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Community boards Fendalton- Waimairi Community Board deputy chairman David Cartwright writes about the role a community board plays in society and his time in local body politics over the past three years. AS WE approach the local body elections, I find myself having many interesting and sometimes challenging conversations with friends, colleagues, and people in the community regarding the process and purpose of community boards. As with anything, the opinions and level of understanding around the role of community boards covers the entire spectrum from those who see just another pointless layer of bureaucracy, to those who are very supportive and really value the community level advocacy and decision-making the boards can provide. Often the strongest supporters are those who have had some kind of contact with the board, perhaps through being involved with a deputation, receiving a grant for a community event, or communicating with board members regarding improvements to local facilities or infrastructure. DECISION-MAKING: Car park demands at Jellie Park are being addressed. NEW SHOW HOME OPEN 1 Oak Drive, Flemington, Lincoln Open Fri-Sun 11am-4pm Examples of client custom designs No sales fees, no franchise fees and no top heavy overheads added to your cost file. The management team of Onyx Homes are quite simply some of the best and most experienced people in the industry. It’s through this experience that Onyx Homes wants to bring to their customers a better standard of home that is often less than the standard-plan-built homes of their competitors. Onyx believe that everyone is unique, so why settle for a standard-plan-home when you can have a purpose-designed plan to suit exactly your lifestyle and for less than a standard plan? A perfect fit! This is testament to our customers who have been amazed at the savings with Onyx, but also hadn’t realised their budget would allow for a such quality spec and design. Onyx Homes is the only company in the market that disclose their cost file to prove and ensure best price and quality. CHRISTCHURCH PH: 03 928 1505 | EMAIL: info@onyxhomes.co.nz Request a FREE brochure at: www.onyxhomes.co.nz
The Star follow us on facebook.com/riseupchristchurch Thursday July 7 2016 13 Email us your views on anything Christchurch editor@starmedia.kiwi or comment on https://www.facebook.com/riseupchristchurch/ have a role to play At the heart of it, the success and relevance of a community board can be measured on its ability to communicate with and advocate for their community – that is our purpose. As I come to the end of my second term on the Fendalton- Waimairi Community Board, the range of issues and events we are involved in continues to excite and motivate me. The small things really do make a difference when it comes to improving wellbeing, safety, and engagement at a community level. Some of the highlights of this term has been delivering the new Burnside Park fitness track, progressing the replacement Bishopdale Library, addressing car parking demands at Jellie Park, and granting funds to the talented youth of our ward to attend local and international sporting and cultural events. Recently the board has heard deputations on the intersection of Gardiners and Harewood Rds and looked at various short and long-term solutions to address the ever increasing traffic on our roads. Other deputations have covered issues such as the drying up of our rivers and streams, increasing quarrying and land use issues, and the removal of problem trees on health or safety grounds. Of course, not all issues can be solved at a community board level, but board members can elevate any issue with council staff, request additional information, and work to find an agreeable outcome. All of this means one of the most important attributes of an effective board member is the ability to really listen and communicate with residents, other board members, city councillors and city council staff. So when you come to complete your voting papers in October, take the time to find out more about the candidates, think about the issues that matter to you and your neighbours, and take a pro-active approach to deciding who will be your voice in the community. HAVE YOUR SAY: What are the issues your community board should be focusing on? Share your views with us. Email andrew.king@ starmedia.kiwi OVER THE last months I have been hearing from people all over Christchurch that there is more crime in their neighbourhoods and less local police to be seen on their streets. So, when the police statistics were released last month the comparison between 2015 and 2016 confirmed what I have been hearing loud and clear on the ground. More cars have been stolen and more houses have been broken into. Burglaries jumped from 524 in 2015 to 708 in 2016 – that’s an increase of 35 per cent. Across the country the increase has been just 11 per cent – so we need to ask why Canterbury is tracking at our three times the national rate? This is not a winning scoreboard in any Cantabarian’s book! Add to this the increase in stolen vehicles of 24 per cent and it’s pretty clear that crime is increasing. That’s why it’s so disappointing to see that Canterbury has had a 21 per cent cut in foot patrols over the last year. As people are beginning to spread out again and the CBD is slowly coming to life, crime is on the increase. I would have thought we would be seeing more police out and about Crime increasing not fewer. Especially when other parts of the country have seen an increase in foot patrols. Bobbies on the beat make a difference – I have seen first-hand the success the intensive neighbourhood policing in Riccarton has made. Key to this success was a local policeman known to the local community. There’s no doubt in mind that the Canterbury Police, ably led by Canterbury District Commander Superintendent John Price, is doing all it can to stem this tide. But there is only so much they can do with no additional commitment from Government to support their efforts. There was some money for police in the 2016 Budget but it does not mean extra boots on the ground. The new money is earmarked for deserved pay increases but does not mean more crime-fighters out on our streets catching criminals. Greg O’Conner, president of the Police Association, noted at budget time that Operational Commanders will be disappointed that there will be no significant new operational funding to enable them to deliver essential policing services. What is needed is a proper commitment to Canterbury and not the business as usual mind-set of the National Government. Just as with health, EQC, housing, transport and education, policing needs to be seen in the context of the last five and a half years in Canterbury. Megan Woods is Labour’s Canterbury spokeswoman
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The Star: July 07, 2016

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