Raglan Wharf new building -20 May 2012

Two tenants – Raglan Seafoods and the Raglan Coastguard – have now signed agreements for tenancies in the new Raglan Wharf building.  With construction due to be completed in July, this means that about half of the space is now tenanted.  The landlord, Waikato District Council is now working on leasing the remaining areas.

Construction on the $1.9m wharf building began in early January.  The target completion for builders Livingston Construction is July. The replacement 700 square metre building has nearly the same ‘overall footprint’ as the old building destroyed by fire two and a half years ago. But because of ‘common areas’, the new building has 635.5 sqm of space available for lease.

The WDC’s approved contract for the building’s construction is $1,943,200 while the total project cost, including design work and wharf repair work, is $2,893,570.

Media release: Whaingaroa Environmental Defence Incorporated, Secretary: John Lawson, 51 Cliff St, Raglan 07 825 7866 email johnrag@vodafone.co.nz

 On Tuesday morning several Raglan individuals and organisations will be submitting evidence to Waikato District Council’s (WDC) hearing on its Long Term Plan, questioning the soundness of its decision making. The evidence will note that Waikato has come eighth out of nine in a MYOB business survey of dissatisfaction with councils and that WDC officers seem to have been overstretched and unable to offer sound advice when making decisions.

Route 23 bus on Monday 21st - many standing for full trip

Raglan Community Board will be pointing out that legislation defines public transport as a core council service, but the proposed economic development unit isn’t. Whaingaroa Environmental Defence (WED) will follow on from that to point out that the Plan fails to mention Raglan’s notoriously overcrowded bus service. WED will be submitting that WDC has been paying GoBus over $200,000 a year more than the Education Ministry would pay for a similar service, yet doesn’t know the terms of the contract with GoBus, and seemingly has a budget to provide best part of $50,000 for a new bus stop, yet claims not to have $45 to put on a minibus on the occasions when passengers would otherwise be left behind. WED will also question whether similar problems will arise when rising oil prices push drivers into switching to buses and why only 1.6% of the transport budget goes to buses, when 5% of ratepayers don’t own cars.

Raglan Residents & Ratepayers Association will be submitting that Raglan’s targeted rates should not be increased by 12% this year, and even more when water meters are introduced next year. They will give evidence that this is far above increases in other WDC towns. WDC will also hear evidence that their officers have not had time to compile basic information on which such decisions should have been based. WDC does not know how much more Raglan is already paying in rates than the WDC average, though information suggests it is in excess of $700 per person per year. WDC has proposed a charge for metered water without knowing what it will cost the average Raglan water user.

WED will ask WDC why a plan to provide a footpath on a narrow winding road, much used by pedestrians, has seemingly been dropped. Evidence will be given that council officers are unable to reconcile their unpublished ‘floating budget’ plans for such works with figures shown in the Plan.

Other evidence submitted on Tuesday morning will question why WDC is doubling debt to promote growth, despite it not being a core council task, the need for more consultation and a Raglan Structure Plan and means of increasing recycling.

The hearings start at 9am at WDC’s Ngaruawahia office.

NZTA Chief Advisor, Safety Directions Lisa Rossiter says the speed of traffic around schools is a concern to parents, teachers and others in many rural communities, as school drop-offs and pick-ups often take place in high-speed traffic environments.

“Our aim is to create a road system in which crashes are survivable. To do that we really need to reduce speeds around our vulnerable youngsters and we also need to accept that people, including children, will make mistakes on the road. It’s up to all of us to share responsibility for making the system as safe as we can. Driving at lower speeds around schools when kids are coming and going is part of that.”

Ms Rossiter said NZTA investigations have shown that for many rural New Zealand schools the main traffic safety issue is the risk of crashes with vehicles turning into or out of the school grounds to drop-off or pick-up children.

She said the trial will examine whether safer speeds can be achieved and a safer environment created during these times using a range of permanent and variable school speed limits.

“By reducing speed limits at specified times before and after school, we’re aiming to reduce the risk of serious crashes involving turning traffic,” says Ms Rossiter.  “It should also provide a safer road environment for pedestrians or cyclists using the road outside the schools.”

Ms Rossiter said a similar approach had been employed successfully around many urban schools in New Zealand and the use of variable speed limits was increasingly common overseas.

The NZTA’s efforts to manage speeds outside schools is part of the agency’s commitment to the Government’s road safety strategy Safer Journeys.  Safer Journeys adopts the world leading  ‘Safe System’ approach to reducing unnecessary deaths and serious injuries from road crashes. The safe system approach aims to create an environment that is forgiving of human error so that people do not needlessly die or get seriously injured as the result of a simple mistake, such as misjudging the speed of an oncoming vehicle. It focuses on safer speeds, safer roads and roadsides, safer road use, and safer vehicles.

Ms Rossiter said five schools would initially take part in the trial, with the first step being the introduction of a permanent 80km/h speed limit at four of the trial schools.

This will be followed up with the installation of ‘variable message’ electronic signs at each of the five schools (similar to those currently being used outside schools in urban areas). The signs, funded for the trial by the Road Safety Trust, will display the variable speed limit for each school during their key pick up and drop off times.

The four other schools taking part in the trial (and each of their variable speed limits) are detailed below:

• Whenuakite School (SH25) near Whitianga will have a new permanent 80km/h speed limit with a variable 40km/h school zone speed limit.
• Paki Paki School (SH50A) near Hastings will have a new permanent 80km/h speed limit with a variable 60km/h speed limit.
• Opiki School (SH56) near Palmerston North will have a new permanent 80km/h with a variable 60km/h speed limit.
• Kai Iwi School (SH3) near Wanganui will have a new variable 70km/h speed limit (and no change to the permanent speed limit of 100 km/h).

The NZTA is aiming to have the variable speed limit signs in place and operating at all schools by the end of June. This is an excellent example of working together to make our roads safer, says Ms Rossiter. This type of project requires commitment from a wide range of groups, including the schools and communities involved, the Road Safety Trust, the NZ Police and organisations involved in planning, implementing and monitoring the changes. And most of all it requires support from the NZ public to slow down around schools.

To assess the effectiveness of the variable speed limits, monitoring of traffic speeds and driver behaviour will be undertaken during the trial.  The initial trial is expected to continue for up to two years.  During that time, the NZTA will continue investigations into identifying other schools to be added to the trial.

Rocky Rhodes at the Harbour View for Queens Birthday Weekend- Image supplied

Rocky Rhodes, Raglan, 1 June 2012
Fri 1 Jun, 9:00pm–1:00am 
Harbour View Hotel, 14 Bow St, Raglan
R18 $5.00 at the door