Residents in Christchurch suburb plead with council to 'be on the right side of history'
A slice of ratepayer-owned land in a rapidly growing Christchurch suburb will be sold off for social and affordable housing, despite community pleas for the council to keep it.
Christchurch City Council bought land on Quaifes Rd in Halswell to build a stormwater treatment facility. At the time, the council was forced to buy more land than it needed because the owner did not want to sell only a portion of the property.
The council always planned to sell the surplus land (3.67 hectares) to help recoup costs, but the Waipuna Halswell-Hornby-Riccarton community board wants a third retained for a park or community facility that could be needed in the future.
The council sided with staff, who said the land was not needed for a park or community facility because Halswell’s future was already well catered for within its growth plans.
Council head of facilities, property and planning Bruce Rendall said there were already 77 parks within a 2-kilometre radius of the site and more sports parks were planned for Templeton.
Poll: Should the government levy industries that contribute to financial hardship?
As reported in the Post, there’s a $30 million funding gap in financial mentoring. This has led to services closing and mentors stepping in unpaid just to keep helping people in need 🪙💰🪙
One proposed solution? Small levies on industries that profit from financial hardship — like banks, casinos, and similar companies.
So we want to hear what you think:
Should the government ask these industries to contribute?
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59.5% Yes, supporting people is important!
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26.2% No, individuals should take responsibility
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14.4% ... It is complicated
Addictive Eaters Anonymous
After ten years of depression, my life had hit rock bottom
I remember being ‘different’ around food for most of my life. This included things such as being the person who had two cream buns at morning tea when everyone else had one; eating icing sugar by the spoonful directly from the packet; and being the family member who went into the kitchen after dinner to eat the leftovers. There are numerous other examples – too many to list. I could overeat anything. If I couldn’t get my preferred favourites (e.g. chocolate), I’d be eating the vegetables.
Poll: Do you have a go-to adverse-weather checklist for your family? ☔⚠️
As reported in the Press, the same low-pressure system that lashed the North Island over the weekend is now making its way south, bringing heavy rain and strong winds with it. It’s a soggy start to the week for many of us.
With more wild weather on the cards, we’re curious: do you have a go-to adverse-weather checklist for your family? Or are you more of a “grab the torches and hope for the best” household?
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47.2% Yes - we like to be prepared
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41.7% Nah
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11.1% This is on my to-do list!
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