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Southern View: June 12, 2025

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FOR LOCAL ADVERTISING<br />

Annabel Judd<br />

Ph: 021 457 469<br />

annabel.judd@starmedia.kiwi<br />

Quarry could get fenced dog area<br />

FOR LOCAL ADVERTISING<br />

COMPLAINTS about off-leash<br />

dogs could see a fenced dog area<br />

created at Halswell Quarry Park.<br />

A fenced dog exercise area,<br />

two walking paths and tree<br />

plantings are being planned as<br />

part of the Halswell Quarry Park<br />

improvement plan.<br />

City council acting head of<br />

parks Roslyn Kerr said the area<br />

is a popular community space<br />

and The has Star, seen January increase 23, <strong>2025</strong> in use<br />

with the urban growth in the<br />

surrounding areas.<br />

“There has been a significant<br />

increase in visitors to the<br />

Halswell Quarry Park dog<br />

exercise area, and we’ve had<br />

requests The Star, from<br />

January<br />

the community<br />

23, <strong>2025</strong><br />

to make some changes to the<br />

way dogs are managed in the<br />

area.<br />

“There are currently no fenced<br />

areas in the southwest where dog<br />

owners can exercise their dogs<br />

off leash, The Star, in<br />

January<br />

a dedicated<br />

23, <strong>2025</strong><br />

space<br />

that allows dogs to play in a<br />

controlled environment.”<br />

Kerr said public feedback from<br />

the Dog Control Policy and<br />

Bylaw hearings in March was a<br />

main factor behind the proposal.<br />

The Star, January 23, <strong>2025</strong><br />

“We have received complaints<br />

about dogs off leash in public<br />

where they shouldn’t be and<br />

there have been several dog<br />

related incidents reported in the<br />

Halswell Quarry area.<br />

“The proposed plan is to also<br />

make it clearer where the on/off<br />

leash areas are in the park.”<br />

The planned fenced area will<br />

be larger than the current section<br />

and will incorporate the lower<br />

field and a new area towards<br />

Kennedys Bush Road.<br />

The plan is also looking at<br />

allocating an area for native<br />

forest planting and creating<br />

two walking tracks – one<br />

inside the dog exercise area and<br />

DOG AREA: The proposed plan for a fenced area for dog<br />

users at Halswell Quarry Park, indicated in yellow, starnews.co.nz is open<br />

for feedback.<br />

PHOTOS: CCC<br />

an extension of the existing<br />

accessible track around the<br />

outside.<br />

Staff are investigating<br />

appropriate sites. In the<br />

meantime, people can provide<br />

feedback on what they would like<br />

to see at the dog park.<br />

Jenny Wright<br />

Ph: 021 220 3484<br />

jenny@starmedia.kiwi<br />

starnews.co.nz<br />

starnews.co.nz<br />

• Share your thoughts on<br />

proposed improvements<br />

to Halswell Quarry Park.<br />

The dog area plan is<br />

open for feedback starnews.co.nz<br />

until <strong>June</strong> 29 at<br />

letstalk.ccc.govt.nz/<br />

southwest-dogs<br />

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Volunteer honoured for getting club<br />

• By Geoff Sloan<br />

A BIG EFFORT to keep a small<br />

BMX club alive has seen Rick<br />

Houghton recognised for his<br />

dedication.<br />

The North Avon Christchurch<br />

BMX Club, based at Bexley Reserve<br />

off Pages Rd in Bexley, was<br />

left struggling after the February<br />

2011 earthquake devastated its<br />

facility.<br />

Life member Nigel Mahan<br />

led the charge to rebuild the<br />

wrecked facility from scratch<br />

until his untimely death in 2021.<br />

Following Mahan’s death,<br />

Houghton stepped up to lead<br />

the club’s revival, helping its 40<br />

members get back on track.<br />

“I didn’t want to see it end. I<br />

didn’t want the facility to revert<br />

back to a wasteland. And it just<br />

takes somebody to do it,” he said.<br />

For his efforts, Houghton was<br />

named volunteer of the year at<br />

Sport Canterbury’s Sport and<br />

Recreation Awards.<br />

“I was highly embarrassed. I<br />

really didn’t think I was going to<br />

win,” he said.<br />

Judges praised his “incredible<br />

dedication, generosity and tireless<br />

efforts,” saying his contribution<br />

has made a lasting impact<br />

on the BMX community.<br />

Houghton said the award was<br />

recognition for the often-overlooked<br />

sport of BMX, especially<br />

as he was up against volunteers<br />

from more high-profile sports<br />

like rugby, hockey, and bowls.<br />

IS IT A BIRD? IS IT A PLANE? No, it’s super volunteer of the year Rick Houghton in his trademark<br />

sweatshirt. “It’s nice and warm in winter, and at events it’s easy for people to spot me when<br />

they’re told to go and see Rick in the superman top.”<br />

Houghton was quick to point England, Houghton moved to<br />

out he is one of a six person Christchurch with his family in<br />

committee which oversee the 2005 to take a job with ENGCO<br />

facility.<br />

consulting engineers.<br />

“They put me up for volunteer A structural draftsman, he has<br />

of the year, but we all do it.” contributed to many of the city’s<br />

Originally from Leyland, post-quake rebuilds, including<br />

PHOTO: GEOFF SLOAN<br />

the Westpac Christchurch Central<br />

on Cashel St and developments<br />

along The Terrace.<br />

His involvement with the<br />

BMX club began almost by<br />

accident.<br />

“We live in Parklands, and my<br />

Our Great<br />

Volunteers<br />

CALL TO ACTION<br />

Do you know someone<br />

doing valuable volunteer<br />

work in the community?<br />

Send their details in 200<br />

words or less to geoff.<br />

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wife sent me down here with our<br />

two boys during a give-it-a-go<br />

day about nine years ago.”<br />

The boys quickly took to the<br />

sport, and Houghton, a keen<br />

mountain biker since his 20s,<br />

got tired of just watching.<br />

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ack on track<br />

“I thought, I can do this –<br />

there’s nothing difficult about it.”<br />

Now 53, he’s also the reigning<br />

men’s over-50 national pump<br />

track champion, a title he has<br />

held for the past two years. He<br />

will defend it again in Rotorua in<br />

September.<br />

Volunteering runs in the family.<br />

His wife, Jane, is chair of the<br />

Shirley Boys’ High School PTA,<br />

while sons Andrew and Thomas<br />

are both volunteer cadets with<br />

Hato Hone St John.<br />

“It’s just part of our life,”<br />

Houghton said.<br />

In 2023, the club completed a<br />

$650,000 sealed pump track next<br />

to its existing site. The 2500sq m<br />

all-weather facility, named the<br />

Nigel Mahan Pump Track, was<br />

gifted to the city council, which<br />

now maintains it.<br />

Houghton said the publicaccess<br />

pump track was popular,<br />

slowly helping to raise the club’s<br />

profile in the east.<br />

“It just feels like we can’t we<br />

can’t let this club go, because of<br />

all the work Nigel did.”<br />

Houghton said he draws<br />

inspiration from club founder<br />

and life member Roy Leaning,<br />

who is in his 70s and still rides<br />

from time to time.<br />

“He rolls off the gate and<br />

cruises around at his own pace,”<br />

he said.<br />

“When I first started racing at<br />

the club, Roy used to absolutely<br />

whip the pants off me.”<br />

Asked if he sees himself doing<br />

the same one day, Houghton<br />

smiled: “Hopefully, hopefully.”<br />

TIMEKEEPERS: Rick Houghton and his son and Andrew,<br />

15, hard at work during round 1 of the Winter Pump Track<br />

Series at the weekend.<br />

PHOTO: GEOFF SLOAN<br />

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EXTRA EFFORT: St Martins School pupils Aria Mollard, Sylvie Targett, Jordyn Derry, Colton<br />

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City2Surf fundraising still<br />

making waves for families<br />

IT HAS BEEN three months<br />

since the annual CORDE<br />

City2Surf, but the Home &<br />

Family Charitable Trust says the<br />

event’s impact is still being felt in<br />

the community.<br />

As the event’s official charity<br />

partner, Home & Family recently<br />

awarded St Martins School a certificate<br />

for raising $605 to support<br />

local children and families<br />

affected by family violence.<br />

The charity’s Te Hononga<br />

youth mentoring programme<br />

leader Simone Soares said it<br />

was thanks to supporters like St<br />

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Bike repair<br />

programme<br />

helps prisoners<br />

navigate<br />

cycles of life<br />

• By Gwenaëlle Chollet<br />

YOUTH OFFENDERS are<br />

learning life-long skills while<br />

providing transport for released<br />

prisoners and their families.<br />

The bike repair programme<br />

at Paparua Christchurch Men’s<br />

Prison youth unit has been<br />

running for more than 10 years.<br />

Volunteer bike mechanic “Bike<br />

Mike” Nixon has been involved<br />

since the early days, when a<br />

church initiative partnered with<br />

Pathway Trust to repair and<br />

supply bikes for recently released<br />

prisoners.<br />

When keeping up with the<br />

demand for bikes became a<br />

struggle, the programme was<br />

taken behind bars.<br />

Nixon said he enjoys working<br />

in the youth unit every second<br />

Friday with the “young fellas”,<br />

who are “quite keen”.<br />

“They’re going to finish their<br />

sentence, they’re going to go to<br />

work, they’re going to ride a bike<br />

… I’m passing this skill on that<br />

lasts a lifetime, that they can pass<br />

on to their own kids,” he said.<br />

Nixon works with groups of<br />

two to three 18-20-year-olds<br />

at a time. Some he has for six<br />

months, others for up to three<br />

years.<br />

He teaches them how to use<br />

tools, strip down the bikes,<br />

replace parts and service them.<br />

“We just work together<br />

building bikes,” he said.<br />

The budding mechanics also<br />

get to build their own bike,<br />

which “slowly gets better and<br />

better, because they know all the<br />

good bits and they start putting<br />

them on”.<br />

When they leave, it is with a<br />

top-quality bike.<br />

At the start of the programme,<br />

Nixon said, some youth don’t<br />

know which way to turn a<br />

spanner. By the end, they’re all<br />

quite good mechanics.<br />

One inmate said the<br />

programme taught him<br />

many useful skills, which<br />

could help him find work once<br />

released.<br />

“It’s good keeping busy,<br />

and good that the bikes go to<br />

someone that’ll use them,” he<br />

said.<br />

Nixon reckoned they refurbish<br />

up to 50 bikes a year, with<br />

mountain bikes a speciality.<br />

They also repair children’s and<br />

women’s bikes for families.<br />

Old bikes are donated and<br />

“scrounged” from places such<br />

as the Eco Store and Recycle A<br />

Dunga (RAD) and restored with<br />

new parts.<br />

“They just need love and care,<br />

and hey presto, you get a really<br />

nice bike,” Nixon said.<br />

Extra bikes go to Pathway<br />

Trust’s Navigate Initiative, which<br />

helps recently released prisoners<br />

reintegrate into society and find<br />

work and accommodation.<br />

Having a means of transport<br />

is crucial for finding and<br />

getting to work and for keeping<br />

appointments such as probation<br />

meetings.<br />

Pathway Trust’s website says<br />

“an efficient, cost-effective mode<br />

of transport can make all the difference<br />

in settling back into life<br />

on the outside.”<br />

Nixon is delighted that some<br />

former prisoners have even<br />

found work in bike shops.<br />

“We’ve had a couple of guys<br />

that loved it that much.”<br />

Wanting to continue the cycle<br />

of help, Nixon is looking for a<br />

new volunteer to help him run<br />

the programme and eventually<br />

take it over.<br />

Corn Cob Catastrophe: A Labrador’s Close Call<br />

As we all know, Labrador’s love their<br />

food! But what happens when some<br />

seemingly innocent scavenging turns into<br />

something more serious…<br />

One of our patients was brought into the<br />

clinic after he suddenly started vomiting. He<br />

had been crying and seemed painful on his<br />

tummy. Not his normal bouncy self at all.<br />

Being a Labrador we’re always suspicious<br />

about what they could have been eating<br />

but the owner could not think of anything<br />

unusual he may have eaten recently, but<br />

noted that he had chewed on a corn cob a<br />

couple of weeks previously.<br />

With another spectacular bout of vomiting<br />

The foreign body (piece of corn cob)<br />

is circled<br />

in the clinic we decided this case definitely<br />

warranted further investigation.<br />

He was sedated and abdominal x-rays were<br />

taken. They showed an unusual gas pattern<br />

in his small intestine and a suspicious<br />

looking foreign object that could be causing<br />

an obstruction. There was a possibility<br />

that it would slowly make its way through<br />

so we started 24 hours of supportive care<br />

including fluids and anti-nausea medication<br />

to see if he would improve. However, by the<br />

next day he was deteriorating so our team<br />

made the decision to go to surgery to see<br />

what we could find…<br />

During the operation, we discovered the<br />

foreign object lodged in the small intestine<br />

– more concerningly, a small section of<br />

the intestinal wall was beginning to die<br />

off meaning it needed to be resected.<br />

The damaged portion of intestine was<br />

removed and the two healthy ends rejoined<br />

in a delicate procedure known as an<br />

anastomosis.<br />

The offending object turned out to be a<br />

rotting piece of corn cob. It’s likely that this<br />

had been eaten two weeks previously and<br />

rattled around in the stomach for a while<br />

before finally moving into the intestine<br />

in the last 48-72 hours where it became<br />

lodged.<br />

He recovered well from the surgery but was<br />

continuing to vomit and had no interest<br />

in eating. With the weekend approaching<br />

we transferred him to the After Hours<br />

Clinic — our excellent local emergency<br />

facility — where he received round-theclock<br />

care. Gradually, he began to regain<br />

his energy and, more importantly for any<br />

self-respecting labrador, his appetite!<br />

Now fully recovered, he’s back home with<br />

his family — and hopefully steering clear of<br />

food scraps and compost bins.<br />

A Word of Caution: Corn cobs are a<br />

common cause of intestinal obstruction in<br />

dogs. They’re the perfect size to become<br />

lodged in the intestinal tract and cannot<br />

be digested. If you think your pet may<br />

have eaten something they shouldn’t have<br />

— especially something like a corn cob —<br />

don’t wait. Contact your vet immediately.<br />

We’re happy to report a happy ending in<br />

this case — thanks to timely surgery, a<br />

dedicated care team, and a very resilient<br />

dog. Best yet, his enthusiasm for coming<br />

into the clinic to get his fill of tasty treats<br />

has not been dampened by his experience!<br />

Another happy customer!<br />

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60 new bus shelters<br />

for ‘well-used stops’<br />

CLEAN UP: Renewal work on Addington Brook will improve<br />

biodiversity and water quality.<br />

PHOTO: CCC<br />

Brook renewal project<br />

making good progress<br />

STAGE TWO of the Addington<br />

Brook renewal programme in<br />

South Hagley Park is well under<br />

way, with half of the earthworks<br />

and all tree removals now<br />

completed.<br />

The project aims to naturalise<br />

the spring-fed brook to improve<br />

biodiversity and water quality,<br />

enhance park safety, and restore<br />

the brook’s drainage capacity.<br />

Stage one, completed last<br />

year, focused on flattening and<br />

stabilising the banks, which were<br />

then planted with native riparian<br />

vegetation to reduce erosion and<br />

filter contaminants.<br />

Stage two began in January<br />

and has seen significant progress,<br />

with earthworks ongoing and<br />

tree removals carried out both<br />

alongside and within the brook.<br />

About 500 new trees will be<br />

planted in the next few months, to<br />

allow for a range of tree species of<br />

various ages and heights along the<br />

waterway.<br />

Some of the removed timber<br />

will be repurposed for natural<br />

play features like balancing logs,<br />

stepping posts, and seating in<br />

future playground upgrades.<br />

Other portions will be used<br />

to enhance the brook’s habitat,<br />

providing shelter for eels and fish.<br />

As one of the most polluted<br />

waterways in Christchurch, the<br />

renewal of Addington Brook will<br />

have multiple benefits, including<br />

improved biodiversity, increased<br />

stormwater drainage capacity and<br />

enhanced landscaping and safety<br />

for park users.<br />

The current stage of the project<br />

is on track for completion by<br />

spring, with a future filtration<br />

initiative planned to further<br />

improve water quality.<br />

WAITING FOR the bus in the<br />

city’s east is set to become a bit<br />

easier this winter.<br />

The city council is putting<br />

in 60 new bus shelters using<br />

money from the Government’s<br />

Climate Emergency Response<br />

Fund.<br />

Said city council transport<br />

operations manager Stephen<br />

Wright: “We’ve targeted the<br />

most well-used stops, many<br />

around school routes in<br />

Christchurch east.<br />

“With more than 2000<br />

passengers expected to<br />

benefit every single day,<br />

the new shelters are going to<br />

make it more comfortable for<br />

people waiting for the bus,<br />

particularly in the biting winter<br />

months.”<br />

Fifty-five of the bus stops did<br />

not previously have shelters,<br />

while five are replacing older<br />

infrastructure.<br />

Wright said about 15 new<br />

shelters have already been<br />

installed.<br />

The work is expected to<br />

be finished by the end of<br />

September.<br />

“We’re also improving<br />

accessibility and bus waiting<br />

areas by putting in hardstand<br />

areas, tactile pavers, seating,<br />

new bus stops, and relocating<br />

the bus stop,” Wright said.<br />

WAITING:<br />

The city<br />

council is<br />

building<br />

60 new<br />

shelters.<br />

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CROSSWORD<br />

1 2 3 4 5 6 7<br />

8<br />

9 10<br />

404<br />

SUDOKU<br />

Every row, column and box should<br />

contain the digits 1 to 9.<br />

WordBuilder<br />

WORDBUILDER<br />

304<br />

6<br />

T K A<br />

E R C<br />

11 <strong>12</strong><br />

13 14 15<br />

words of three or more letters,<br />

How<br />

including<br />

many<br />

plurals,<br />

words<br />

can you<br />

of<br />

make<br />

three<br />

from<br />

or<br />

the<br />

more<br />

six<br />

letters, using each letter only once? No foreign<br />

words or words beginning with a capital are<br />

allowed. There's at least one six-letter word.<br />

once?<br />

TODAY<br />

Good 22 Very Good 33 Excellent 43<br />

letters, including plurals, can you make<br />

from the six letters, using each only<br />

No words beginning with a capital are<br />

allowed. There’s at least one six-letter<br />

Solution 303: ego, emu, erg, ergo, euro, gem, germ,<br />

goer, gore, gum, more, MORGUE, moue, mug, ogre,<br />

word. ore, our, roe, rogue, rouge, rue, rug, rum, urge.<br />

Good 22 Very Good 33 Excellent 43<br />

16 17 18 19<br />

20<br />

21 22 23<br />

24 25<br />

26 27<br />

Across<br />

1. Brusque (6)<br />

4. Affable (6)<br />

9. Opposed to (4)<br />

10. Teenager (10)<br />

11. Abscond (6)<br />

<strong>12</strong>. Occurred (8)<br />

13. Place of safety (9)<br />

15. Liability (4)<br />

16. Lucid (4)<br />

17. Moral strength or courage (9)<br />

21. Invention (8)<br />

22. Impetuously (6)<br />

24. Innovative, futuristic (5-5)<br />

25. Slightly open (4)<br />

26. Pantry (6)<br />

27. Take care of (6)<br />

Decoder<br />

Down<br />

1. Temporary loss of memory (7)<br />

2. Indian side dish (5)<br />

3. High area of flat ground (7)<br />

5. Excused (6)<br />

6. Stormy (9)<br />

7. Tolerant (7)<br />

8. Homeland (6,7)<br />

14. Shipping box (9)<br />

16. Wither (7)<br />

18. Harass (7)<br />

19. Imbecile (7)<br />

20. Laugh nervously (6)<br />

23. Tremble (5)<br />

Crossword<br />

Across: 1. Abrupt, 4. Genial,<br />

9. Anti, 10. Adolescent, 11.<br />

Escape, <strong>12</strong>. Happened,<br />

13. Sanctuary, 15. Debt,<br />

16. Sane, 17. Fortitude, 21.<br />

Creation, 22. Rashly, 24.<br />

Avant-garde, 25. Ajar, 26.<br />

Larder, 27. Attend.<br />

Down: 1. Amnesia, 2. Raita,<br />

3. Plateau, 5. Exempt,<br />

6. Inclement, 7. Lenient,<br />

8. Mother country, 14.<br />

Container, 16. Shrivel, 18.<br />

Torment, 19. Dullard, 20.<br />

Giggle, 23. Shake.<br />

WordBuilder<br />

ace, acre, act, arc, are, ark,<br />

art, ate, cake, car, care, caret,<br />

cart, carte, cat, cater, cert,<br />

crake, crate, creak, ear, eat,<br />

era, eta, kart, kea, race, rack,<br />

RACKET, rake, rat, rate, react,<br />

recta, ret, tack, TACKER,<br />

take, taker, tar, tare, tea, teak,<br />

tear, trace, track, trek.<br />

Sudoku<br />

DECODER<br />

Each number represents a different letter of the alphabet. Write the<br />

given letters into all squares with matching numbers. Now work out<br />

which letters are represented by the other numbers.<br />

All puzzles copyright<br />

T H E P U Z Z L E C O M P A N Y<br />

www.thepuzzlecompany.co.nz

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