Swannanoa - Ohoka, Swannanoa

Need to borrow something?

Need to borrow something?

Whether you need a quick borrow of a line trimmer or a sewing machine - Ask on Neighbourly!

S
8 days ago

Pears 2kg bags doyenne du comice

Sue from Kaiapoi

freshly picked firm pears
great for bottling or dehydrating
sold at gate
larger amounts available please text 021 2222838
bramleys road turn off lineside road 2nd house on left

Price: $5

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8 days ago

Minimalist Design in Apartment Living

The Team from Ryman Healthcare

Ryman’s Charles Upham Retirement Village resident Di is a former fashion designer, artist and self-confessed shoe hoarder who travels, still paints and has stamped her eclectic minimalist style on her apartment.

She gives us her top 3 design tips on how she’s turned her space into a … View more
Ryman’s Charles Upham Retirement Village resident Di is a former fashion designer, artist and self-confessed shoe hoarder who travels, still paints and has stamped her eclectic minimalist style on her apartment.

She gives us her top 3 design tips on how she’s turned her space into a beautiful home.
Find out more

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11 days ago

Poll: Could we live without public bins?

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

Many public rubbish bins are being removed by councils due to the large costs of regularly emptying them. Do you think we can adapt and live without them?

Type 'Not For Print' if you wish your comments to be excluded from the We Say You Say column of your local paper.

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Could we live without public bins?
  • 11.6% Yes
    11.6% Complete
  • 87.9% No
    87.9% Complete
  • 0.6% Other - I'll share below
    0.6% Complete
2621 votes
S
12 days ago

Large pumpkins

Sue from Kaiapoi

large and meduim spray free pumpkins locally grown
sold at gate $5 for large or 2 smaller
Bramleys road turn off lineside road 2nd house on left

Price: $5

L
12 days ago

Spray-Free Garlic for Sale

Lilian from Eyrewell Forest

Limited Quantities
Elephant Garlic $8 a bulb (pictured)
Marbled Purple Stripe $5 a bulb (pictured)
Silverskin (pictured) $5 a bulb
Ajo Roja, Asian, Turban, Purple Stripe, Artichoke $5 a bulb
Bulbils also available. Limited Quantities. PM me. … View more
Limited Quantities
Elephant Garlic $8 a bulb (pictured)
Marbled Purple Stripe $5 a bulb (pictured)
Silverskin (pictured) $5 a bulb
Ajo Roja, Asian, Turban, Purple Stripe, Artichoke $5 a bulb
Bulbils also available. Limited Quantities. PM me. $7 for 10

Negotiable

S
12 days ago

Doyenne du comice pears

Sue from Kaiapoi

freshly picked firm pears
great for dehydrating and bottling
$3 per kg for orders over 2kg
pick up Bramleys Road off lineside road
text 021 2222838

Price: $3

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V
14 days ago

Lonicera nitida plants (Box Honeysuckle)

Vicki from Rangiora

Good sized plants. Looks like buxus when grown but grows at twice the speed. Tiny oval dark green leaves. Plant in full sun or semi shade. Ideal plant to shape into balls cones etc perfect for planting now $3.00 per plant

Price: $3

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S
14 days ago

Wanted clean jars jars for jam and relish

Sue from Kaiapoi

Anyone got loads of jars spare?
Happy to pick up or drop off at our gate
Bramleys Road 2nd house from corner

14 days ago

Make your own plant support

The Team from Resene ColorShop Rangiora

Create this stylish plant support using a few garden stakes and Resene Waterborne Woodsman penetrating oil stain. Find out how to create your own with these easy instructions.

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14 days ago

Rural Broadband needs YOU!

The Team from NZ Compare

Ready to make a difference? Join the Commerce Commission’s Measuring Broadband NZ Programme and help improve rural broadband. Volunteer now!

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15 days ago

Looking for leftover yarn

Georgina from Rangiora

My sister is knitting small blankets to donate to the SPCA for cats. She has some physical challenges and can only knit with really large needles and needs chunky yarn. Does anyone have any left over balls of chunky yarn they are willing to part with? (Pic for attention)

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15 days ago

Flood-prone Canterbury rivers in the spotlight

Nicole Mathewson Reporter from The Press

By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter

Lessons learned from devastating floods in May 2021 are helping shape planning for Canterbury’s rivers.

Environment Canterbury (ECan) is proposing to invest $25 million a year, over the next 10 years, to boost flood protection as part of its draft … View more
By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter

Lessons learned from devastating floods in May 2021 are helping shape planning for Canterbury’s rivers.

Environment Canterbury (ECan) is proposing to invest $25 million a year, over the next 10 years, to boost flood protection as part of its draft 2024-34 long-term plan (LTP).

While flooding caused by Cyclone Gabrielle in Hawke's Bay last year attracted headlines, Canterbury has had its own damaging floods in recent years.

In 2019, the Rangitata River bridge was closed for several days following a flood, while the May 2021 flood caused widespread disruption, prompting a rethink of how ECan manages its river systems.

"A Cyclone Gabrielle event hasn’t happened, as far as we know, in Canterbury’s history, but one-in-200 year events seem to be happening more and more,’’ said councillor Ian Mackenzie, who chairs the council’s catchment resilience committee.

"Nobody is immune to being impacted by flood events."

The 2021 flood event showed the old river and drainage rating model was no longer fit for purpose, as rivers need to be looked at as a whole river system, he said.

To ensure the financial burden is spread across the region, the council is seeking to introduce a mix of district-wide and region-wide rating.

Without the council’s flood protection, land drainage and erosion control schemes, staff estimated there would be about "$9 billion per year of combined damages and lost earning potential would be felt".

Canterbury has about half of New Zealand’s river assets, with the regional council having oversight of 58 river schemes.

Flood protection work is urgently needed in the Waimakariri district, the council’s operations general manager, Leigh Griffiths, said.

Changes to the landscape caused by the growing urban environment and the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes meant "the level of flood protection is lower than would be expected", she said.

About $700,000 a year is spent on maintenance in the Ashley-Rakahuri River, with the council proposing to increase that to $800,000 per year and to initiate an eight-year, $15m upgrade programme as part of the LTP.

The work, for which the council will seek central Government funding, is likely to be similar to work planned in the Selwyn district.

Christchurch, Kaiapoi and part of the Selwyn district are protected by two levels of flood protection on the Waimakariri River, which has capacity for a one-in-500 year event.

It costs about $5m a year, with $1m coming from a targeted rate of $12 per ratepayer, per year.

The balance is funded by income from grazing and forestry on council-owned land between the stopbanks.

The capacity in some South Canterbury rivers means they "are expected to overtop their stopbanks" in a one-in-50 year flood event, while Ashburton is protected for a one-in-200 year event.

The proposed Selwyn district flood prevention work will be funded by a district-wide targeted rate and will include clearing out channels and flow paths, weed control and planting, and building resilience.

Exotic weeds, including poplars and willows, and loose shingle poses the biggest challenges, Mackenzie said.

"Bridges are more likely to survive if they’re not being treated as a battering ram [in a flood].

"Exotic weeds are one of the biggest problems.

"If we stopped doing what we do these exotic weeds would choke rivers and push them out to the berms."

■ LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

15 days ago

Flood-prone Canterbury rivers in the spotlight

Nicole Mathewson Reporter from The Press

By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter

Lessons learned from devastating floods in May 2021 are helping shape planning for Canterbury’s rivers.

Environment Canterbury (ECan) is proposing to invest $25 million a year, over the next 10 years, to boost flood protection as part of its draft … View more
By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter

Lessons learned from devastating floods in May 2021 are helping shape planning for Canterbury’s rivers.

Environment Canterbury (ECan) is proposing to invest $25 million a year, over the next 10 years, to boost flood protection as part of its draft 2024-34 long-term plan (LTP).

While flooding caused by Cyclone Gabrielle in Hawke's Bay last year attracted headlines, Canterbury has had its own damaging floods in recent years.

In 2019, the Rangitata River bridge was closed for several days following a flood, while the May 2021 flood caused widespread disruption, prompting a rethink of how ECan manages its river systems.

"A Cyclone Gabrielle event hasn’t happened, as far as we know, in Canterbury’s history, but one-in-200 year events seem to be happening more and more,’’ said councillor Ian Mackenzie, who chairs the council’s catchment resilience committee.

"Nobody is immune to being impacted by flood events."

The 2021 flood event showed the old river and drainage rating model was no longer fit for purpose, as rivers need to be looked at as a whole river system, he said.

To ensure the financial burden is spread across the region, the council is seeking to introduce a mix of district-wide and region-wide rating.

Without the council’s flood protection, land drainage and erosion control schemes, staff estimated there would be about "$9 billion per year of combined damages and lost earning potential would be felt".

Canterbury has about half of New Zealand’s river assets, with the regional council having oversight of 58 river schemes.

Flood protection work is urgently needed in the Waimakariri district, the council’s operations general manager, Leigh Griffiths, said.

Changes to the landscape caused by the growing urban environment and the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes meant "the level of flood protection is lower than would be expected", she said.

About $700,000 a year is spent on maintenance in the Ashley-Rakahuri River, with the council proposing to increase that to $800,000 per year and to initiate an eight-year, $15m upgrade programme as part of the LTP.

The work, for which the council will seek central Government funding, is likely to be similar to work planned in the Selwyn district.

Christchurch, Kaiapoi and part of the Selwyn district are protected by two levels of flood protection on the Waimakariri River, which has capacity for a one-in-500 year event.

It costs about $5m a year, with $1m coming from a targeted rate of $12 per ratepayer, per year.

The balance is funded by income from grazing and forestry on council-owned land between the stopbanks.

The capacity in some South Canterbury rivers means they "are expected to overtop their stopbanks" in a one-in-50 year flood event, while Ashburton is protected for a one-in-200 year event.

The proposed Selwyn district flood prevention work will be funded by a district-wide targeted rate and will include clearing out channels and flow paths, weed control and planting, and building resilience.

Exotic weeds, including poplars and willows, and loose shingle poses the biggest challenges, Mackenzie said.

"Bridges are more likely to survive if they’re not being treated as a battering ram [in a flood].

"Exotic weeds are one of the biggest problems.

"If we stopped doing what we do these exotic weeds would choke rivers and push them out to the berms."

■ LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

15 days ago

Kiwis are finding best deals possible

The Team from NZ Compare

Discover how Kiwis are ditching the 'lazy loyalty tax' and saving money with this tool! Learn more in Stuff's article about finding better deals and paying less.

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15 days ago

Supporting Rangiora students to reach their potential

Nicole Mathewson Reporter from The Press

By local democracy reporter David Hill:

In guiding students to reach their full potential, Rangiora High School’s new associate principal likes the "gently relentless" approach.

Remihana Emery moved over from Kaiapoi High School to take on the role of associate principal at the … View more
By local democracy reporter David Hill:

In guiding students to reach their full potential, Rangiora High School’s new associate principal likes the "gently relentless" approach.

Remihana Emery moved over from Kaiapoi High School to take on the role of associate principal at the start of this year, following the retirement of the school's first associate principal Paul Donnelly.

He said he was driven by his whakaaro — mentality and beliefs — in helping young people find their potential.

His approach has been influenced by former Kaiapoi guidance counsellor Rob Courtney, who has also made the move to Rangiora.

"Rob uses the phrase ‘gently relentless’, which means you keep chipping away and doing it in a way that is mana enhancing to everybody as much as possible.

"Sometimes it is a fear of failure holding them back, and for some adults that anxiety still exists.

"It saddens me because you know the potential those kids have. They are our biggest investment."

The role of associate principal was created in 2018 and is "very fluid", Emery said.

"It is about doing the work behind the scenes so [principal] Bruce [Kearney] can connect with the community and other schools."

Board of Trustees presiding member Simon Green said the associate principal role was created when the school looked to move on after being managed by a commissioner.

"The board and principal (at the time) realised just how complex and time-intensive school leadership had become for a large school of 1600 students."

The school roll has since grown to 1750.

Emery said his career has been "a roller coaster ride".

After leaving school he worked in construction for 15 years, but his life took a different direction after joining a church in Kaiapoi 2004.

Emery and his wife Michelle became youth group leaders and it led to him attending a meeting at Kaiapoi High School as a support person.

Courtney invited him to volunteer at the school as a mentor and later "he came to me and said ‘we need you here full time’".

Known to his students as Matua Remi (Uncle Remi), he left his job and enrolled at university at the age of 32.

Emery was a teacher at Kaiapoi High School for 10 years teaching maths and te reo.

He became a dean as a third year teacher and was then deputy principal for three years.

"I’m fortunate to have had opportunities presented to me to fast track my career."

He made his mark at Kaiapoi as the lead singer of the teachers’ band, The Viking Thunders, which won the teachers equivalent of Rockquest, and was a kapa haka tutor.

"It is an avenue to let off some steam and it is a good way to connect with the kids.

"I have already busted out a few songs at school assemblies at Rangiora and I got the students to give me a beat for ‘We will rock you’."

■ LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

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