Ashburton Courier: April 16, 2020

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Page 2, Ashburton's The Courier, Thursday April 16, 2020 Local news at www.starnews.co.nz BUSINESS OWNERS Build customers, sales and profits with us ... Over 16,065 copies delivered to EVERYhome,farm, RD and lifestyle blocks in MidCanterbury news Linda Clarke Editor 308 7664 linda.clarke@ashburtoncourier.co.nz Reporters Mick Jensen mick.jensen@ashburtoncourier.co.nz Toni Williams toni.williams@alliedpress.co.nz advertising Jann Thompson Sales Manager 308 7664 027 587 6351 jann.thompson@ashburtoncourier.co.nz Roselle Fuaso Sales Account Manager 308 7664 021 197 8297 roselle@ashburtoncourier.co.nz Karen Gane Sales Account Manager 308 7664 021 510 804 karen.gane@ashburtoncourier.co.nz getintouch Editorial linda.clarke@ashburtoncourier.co.nz Advertising info@ashburtoncourier.co.nz Production murray.thompson@ashburtoncourier.co.nz Accounts accounts@alliedpress.co.nz Distribution/Deliveries leonie.marsden@ashburtoncourier.co.nz Office office@ashburtoncourier.co.nz 03 308 7664 199 Burnett Street,Ashburton www.ashburtoncourier.co.nz 2253088 Planned rate rise pruned Ashburton District Councillors have moved to cut aplanned rates rise to no more than 2.5 per cent because of financial hardship being caused in the district by the Covid19 lockdown. Council had planned a4.88 per cent rates increase but last week councillors spent more than an hour in robust debate about whether they should continue as planned for the future good of the district, or cut operating costs and borrow to keep services up with azero increase in rates. Mayor Neil Brown used his casting vote to vote against keeping the 4.88 per cent rise after councillors were locked at 55 voting on amotion by Rodger Letham to stay the course. Deputy mayor Liz McMillan then moved to have the rate rise set at no more than 2.5 per cent, which she reasoned was about the same as the rate of inflation. Wall home, US season cut short From Page 1 Walland the Yalerowers had beentraining12 timesa weekand wereall ready to go, but circumstances intervened. ‘‘Wejust have to livewith it’’. Wall, 20,said threecrazy daysfollowed, and it was obvious thingswere onlygoing to get worse. She contacted her parents and got on aflight home. She flewbackwith her boyfriend, also astudent in the USA,and selfisolated with him for two weeks in aseparate sleepout at her parents’ house. ‘‘I did manage to get a couple of rows in at Lake Hood after my selfisolation and before the lockdown started, but Idomiss not be abletoget on the water.’’ Wallsaid she was staying fit Mayor Neil Brown This was passed seven votes to three, with Mr Brown and councillors Carolyn Cameron and Angus McKay wanting their against votes noted. Those three had pressed for something close to azero rate rise and said tough times were ahead. Fees and charges will rise slightly next financial year, as per Veronica Wall (in sunglasses) in the stroke seat of aYale boat. by rowing indoors and by going on runs. She was ‘‘loving lifeatYale’’ and had been living on campus priortoher forced return home. Life was fullon, really busy, but fun and challenging. www.auricelectrical.co.nz budget decisions made for the 202021 financial year prior to Covid19. The smaller rate rise agreed upon will partly come from a reduction in interest costs ($400,000) and contributions to Experience Mid Canterbury (the agency presented to council in private before the meeting). Chief executive Hamish Riach will decide other savings points, councillors agreed. They had received areport from council’s finance boss Paul Brake, who said money could also be pruned from operating costs by not employing aGIS officer ($80,000), not giving council staff pay rises ($735,500), cutting $50,000 from the Welcoming Communities Programme and cutting $45,000 from other council agencies like the Ashburton Trust Event Centre, Safer Community, Ashburton Art Gallery and Sports Mid Canterbury. Councillors also voted to She wasnow studying online and hoped to complete her first year papers at the end of April. In that first year shehad studiedabroad range of subjects and was eyeing up a premedical degree. • Domestic electrical services • New house wiring • House rewiring &maintenance SUPPLIERS AND INSTALLERS OF LEADING BRANDS remove penalties for late payments of rates instalment four, due in May. Areport to councillors said council was already receiving comments from ratepayers stating the difficulty they will face in being able to meet rate commitments in the coming months. Cr Letham said council’s earlier budget had been modest and fair and council already had the ability to help those struggling to pay rates. The planned increase would add between $3 and $10 amonth for property owners. ‘‘I don’t believe that is too onerous and Ibelieve we can do more good for our community by having everything in place and ready to move rather than reducing rates.’’ Councillors Leen Braam, Lynette Lovett, Stuart Wilson and Diane Rawlinson voted with him in the first, failed recommendation. Final siren call for brigade stalwart Mac Alan McQuarters receiving his QSM in 2018. Alan ‘‘Mac’’ McQuarters, Queen’s Service Medal recipient for servicestothe community, patron of the Ashburton Fire Museum and Variety Theatre Ashburton, passedaway last week at age 90. Mr McQuartershad served the Ashburtoncommunity for morethan 60 years. He was amember of the AshburtonVolunteer Fire Brigade from1954 to 1979 and assisted the fire brigadeas station keeper for 22 years, as wellashelping to maintainthe brigade’s museum. He was awarded the United Fire Brigades' Association of New Zealand GoldStar and made alife member of the Ashburton Brigade. He was a member of the Ashburton Savage Club for over65years and helped establish the Plains Ashburton RotaryClub. He played in the Ashburton Silver Band for 30 yearsand was afoundation memberofthe Ashburton Operatic Society (renamedVariety Theatre Ashburton). Mr McQuarters was a dedicated member of asmall team instrumentalinthe building of the AshburtonTrust Event Centre. Membersofthe Ashburton VolunteerFire Brigadeand the Ashburton Fire Museumpaid tribute to Mr McQuarters in their own way; the morning following his death the station siren sounded to mark Alan’s final call,and the Ashburton Fire Museum posted on Facebook. Mr McQuarters’ lifewill be celebrated at amemorial service in the Ashburton Trust Event Centreatafuture date. Her second year was due to start againinSeptember and it would feature anumberof science subjects, although she was stillundecided which area of science or medicine she wanted to specifically focus on. Wallsaid she continuedto enjoy her rowing. Eights was the big focusfor Ivy League universities and a big change for her. ‘‘I’m sweepingand not sculling these days,and it’s not justmeinthe boatanymore, but I’ve adapted well.’’ Wallsaid there werenine international studentsinher boatsquadof12, including a rower fromWellington. The men’s teamalso featured anumber of internationals, including four Australians. • TV &Datawiring • Solar installation • HeatPumps Call todayfor an obligation free quote 0800 287 423 2269129
Local news at www.starnews.co.nz Ashburton's The Courier, Thursday April 16, 2020, Page 3 Green light for Tinwald NZTA says the Lagmhor Road/ Agnes Street intersection on State Highway 1atTinwald is the best place for traffic lights and will talk to landowners in the area soon; work could be under way next year on the project. Transport agency representatives met with Ashburton District councillors last week and gave them more detail about the project, which was one of two Mid Canterbury road safety works tagged for funds by government earlier this year. The other project is traffic lights at Walnut Avenue and the state highway designs for this are ready to go. But traffic solutions at Tinwald have been complicated and investigations go back at least five years. Some people believe traffic controls at Grahams Road would be safer. NZTA’s Michael Blyleven said both projects centred on issues motorists, pedestrians and cyclists had getting on or across the highway safely. The agency was completing establishment reports on both projects. These would be followed by detailed project See your doctor Kiwis over 60 need to keep seeing their GP during lockdown because their longterm health depends on it. That’s the message from health authorities and doctors, who say older New Zealanders need to keep on top of health issues. Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners College medical directorBryan Betty said Healthline had reported an upswing in chronic care issues because people were waiting too long to ask for medical help. “Delaying making an The intersection of Lagmhor Road and Agnes Street with State Highway 1atTinwald. delivery plans. Council would be consulted. Cr Stuart Wilson said it seemed completely wrong to install lights at Lagmhor Road, given there was arestaurant and service station and rail line close by. appointment with your GP is not good for anyone and delaying or ignoring minor issues can cause them to escalate and require more significant treatment, possibly in hospital. “This is not helpful for patients or the hospital during apandemic so it is paramount that patients seek advice early and a phone call to their GP is easy.” Local doctors and the Ministry of Health say it is business as usual at general practices, which are open and safe but are working differently during the lockdown. Call first. Mr Blyleven said lights there would still enable breaks in the highway traffic at peak times to allow access from side streets. It may increase traffic on other local streets, including McMurdo Street, leading to the lights. Plastic welding We repair all types of plastic products andequipment. •Water tanks •Calf feeders •FuelTanks •Car bumpers •Cab roofs Amore detailed design will be shown to councillors in May for their feedback. The Walnut AvenueSH1 traffic lights project should also get under way next year, if discussions with KiwiRail over land progress. Hopes pinned on domestic tourism By Mick Jensen It will be 12 months or more until international visitor numbers start to pick up, but tourist operators can expect more business to come through the domestic market over the coming months, says Mid Canterbury tourism boss Bruce Moffat. Mr Moffat is encouraging Kiwis to get out and to enjoy their own backyard and the rest of the country once movement restrictions are lifted to allow it. He said tourism was worth $192 million annually to the Mid Canterbury economy, with domestic spend accounting for $128m of that. It made good sense for this district and others to work more on attracting domestic visitors, he said. The Experience Mid Canterbury general manager said he expected very strict borders restrictions to be in force for the rest of 2020 and possibly beyond, but hoped the country Bruce Moffat could be open to international visitors by next summer. The loss of the international market would be felt heavily nationwide, but through collaborative partnerships domestic tourism would be also be promoted heavily in the coming weeks. ‘‘Tourism NZ have been given amandate by the Government to look actively at opportunities for the domestic market. ‘‘That has never happened before and it sends out a powerful message to operators.’’ Through acollaborative marketing approach with Christchurch Airport, Christchurch NZ, Hurunui district and other partners, Experience Mid Canterbury was aiming for ahigh end strategy to attract more visitors to this district. Marketing would start first at alocal level, which included Christchurch and Timaru. It would expand to aregional level and into areas like Nelson, Marlborough and West Coast, and then finally into the full domestic market. There would be challenges along the way, including for the likes of Air New Zealand, which was reducing its capabilities and would take one to three months to get its scheduling back in place once given the goahead. Mr Moffat said Methven iSite had its worst summer on record, partly due to online resources and also because it did not supply the retail products people wanted. He hoped revenue would pick up through the traditionally busy winter months and ski season on Mt Hutt. He said the Covid19 situation was being handled well here and the progress being made was being watched around the world. ‘‘In many ways it tells the rest of the world that we are dealing with it and that this will be be a safe country to visit further down the line.’’ At arecent council meeting Ashburton mayor Neil Brown said although the district may take ahiding from the impact of coronavirus, it had agriculture, milk, meat, arecent good harvest, seeds and manufacturing to help get through tough times. ‘‘Tourism may need ahand from agriculture for awhile. I encourage people to support local businesses and to shop local, eat local and holiday local.’’ This district was in abetter position to get through the current situation than many others, Mr Brown said. ARTHUR CATES LIMITED 26 McNALLYSTREET, RIVERSIDE INDUSTRIAL PARK,ASHBURTON TEL 308 5397 www.arthurcates.co.nz 2271516 Principal praises distance learning support package Mid CanterburyPrincipals’ Association spokesman Tim Kuipers is praising the Government’s support for distance learning in schools, saying it ‘‘covers alot of bases’’. He said the Government’s proactive approachaimedtoreach as many familiesaspossible and in particularthose with the least resources available to them. Education MinisterChris Hipkins hasrevealed a distance learning package that will increasethe number of students who have internet access and devices, deliver hard copy packsofmaterials for different year levels, fund two televisionchannels to broadcasteducationrelated content,provide more online resources for parents through the Learning from Home website, andalso fasttrackwaystoconnect Learning Support coordinators with families remotely. Whileitmay struggle to get resources to everyone, the approach was to be applauded, and also needed ‘‘to work from bothends’’, said Mr Kuipers, who is the principal at Ashburton ChristianSchool. Schools alsoneeded to continuesupporting families as bestthey could. All but twofamilies at his school had the means to continuelearning from home,hesaid. He was encouraging his teachers to continue to plan two weeks ahead. Mr Kuipers said some schools in Christchurchhad facedasimilarlockdown Tim Kuipers scenario and distance learning for anumberof weeksafter the Christchurch earthquakes and had learnt from that. ‘‘ThefamiliesIhave heardfrom are doing quite well on the wholeduring lockdown. ‘‘And Ibelieve thereare a numberofthings we will be able to take from these unprecedented timesthat will benefit education and teaching in the longterm in this country.’’ The benefits of online learning wouldbebetter understood and therewould be more flexible learning options. Technology was atool that would continue to enhanceteachingand many teachers already had the skills to be able to use it well, he said. Minister Hipkins has also indicatedthat parents need to preparetohave their children at home for longer than the fourweek lockdown period. He has indicated while at levelthree there would be more flexibility,itwill still take awhilefor most schools to reopen, and therewillbe aprogressive reopening of the school system. New GrantRounds 2020/2021 Up to $10,000 Feb, April, July, August Over $10,000 May, October See website forclosing dates and to makeanon-line application www.comtrust.org.nz To discuss any applications Phone: 03 687 7360 or 0800672287 Email: msccomtrust@xtra.co.nz 2251128
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Ashburton Courier: April 16, 2020

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