Te Upoko o te Ika a Māui / Wellington

Stunning day for walking the Skyline Walkway. I couldn't figure out how to upload multiple photos so picked that one that shows the most of Wellington.

A man has been arrested after five central Wellington shops had windows smashed or damaged overnight.

Wholly Bagels owner Junwei Hu said the damage had been been done on purpose with "lots of force".

He said he had no idea why someone would break holes in the windows and push mushrooms through to the shop floor.

"There's quite a bit (of) mushrooms... I don't know how they did it, but like, it's inside everywhere. Maybe they squashed through the hole."

A dairy on Lambton Quay also had windows damaged.

Security footage at Lambton Mart showed the glass was shattered by a hammer, manager Mayank Patel said. Cards similar to bank cards had been dropped inside.

Patel said the hammer hit a letter 'o' on the Lotto logo at Lambton Mart, Patel said.

The same part of the Lotto logo at TJ Superette was targeted, as was the letter 'o' at Coco Wellington and in the word 'Hottest' on window of Mecca on Lambton Quay.

Te Papa will begin charging an entry fee for international visitors from September.

Entry to the museum will remain free for New Zealanders.

The entry fee will be $35 and will apply from 17 September to international visitors aged 16 years and older.

With nearly 600,000 international visitors in the 2023/2024 financial year, Te Papa is expected to earn an additional $5-$10 million per year from the move.

Johnston said visitors would self-identify their nationality.

"You'll walk into Te Papa and we'll say, 'Kia ora, how are you? Where have you come from today?' And if you say, 'Oh, I've come from Johnsonville', then we'll say, 'Great, head up the stairs, head into the museum, have a wonderful visit'.

"And if you say, 'Oh, I'm from France' or 'I'm from Germany', we'll say, 'Awesome, head up the stairs, you'll see the ticket desk right there, that's where you can buy your ticket'."

The skipper of a Coastguard boat who rescued two divers after they became separated from their boat in waters near Kāpiti, north of Wellington, says the scenario is the stuff of nautical nightmares.

The divers were dragged south in swift currents, but managed to swim to a nearby island and even had provisions to light a fire, alerting the Westpac Rescue Helicopter to their location.

Coastguard skipper Mark Davidson told Checkpoint police were alerted by the diver's partners - who were waiting on the diver's boat - that they had lost contact with the men about 5pm on Sunday.

Pretty grim result, but I think it's fair. I haven't felt the CBD is a particularly safe place to be for a long time, and the reason for that is some of the residents, who, to put it nicely, you can never quite predict what they will do next.

And, of course, there's the state of the infrastructure.

We want to hear from you!

The Regional Land Transport Plan (RLTP) is our blueprint for the Wellington Region's transport network. It aims to enable a connected region, with safe, accessible, and livable places.

The plan sets out targets and identifies regional priorities. It also sets out the transport activities we intend to invest in.

• Read the draft Regional Land Transport Plan Review document
• Make a submission (Submissions are open until 5pm, Monday 24th of June, 2024)

(Apologies for the soft paywall link.) Gist of it is that Ray Chung has now officially announced he'll be running against Tory Whanau for Mayor at the next local elections.

Housing minister Chris Bishop has announced his decision on the Wellington District Plan, approving a series of amendments to radically upzone most of Wellington, allowing tens of thousands of new townhouses and apartments that were previously illegal to build.

Decisions where Bishop sided with the council

• Adelaide Road will be part of the centre city zone
• The walkable catchment will be 15 minutes
• Smaller character precincts
• The Johnsonville train is a train [“mass rapid transit”]
• Ten-minute walking catchments around all train stations
• No setback requirements for townhouses
• Hay Street, Hania Street and Moir Streets will be zoned for high density

Decisions where Bishop sided with the independent hearings panel:

• Kilbirnie will be zoned for high density
• Every heritage removal is rejected

Other links:

• RMA Minister rejects Wellington council's bid to remove heritage protections from buildings -RNZ
• Wellington Mayor responds to Minister’s District Plan decision - WCC

When Eugene Dementyev heard a tap at his back door, he thought it was a cat - and was shocked to discover it was a kiwi.

Dementyev lives in the Wellington suburb of Broadmeadows and was watching a movie with his wife when they heard a sound at the door.

"We thought it was a cat, and it did look like a cat a little bit. But then we looked closer and it was a kiwi," he told Morning Report.

It's time to have your say on Wellington’s 10-year plan and budget.

Formal consultation on our 2024-34 Long-term Plan is open until midnight 12 May 2024. Providing feedback is an important way to have your say on the future of our city.

Find out about the key proposals below and make a submission at wcc.nz/ltp.

Key proposals / questions:

• How much should we spend on fixing the pipes?
• Do we introduce Council wheelie bins for rubbish and organics to reduce landfill waste?
• Do we sell our airport shares to help manage insurance and investment risk?
• The introduction of parking fees in suburban centre shopping precincts to better manage demand and be consistent with the rest of the city
• Closing the Khandallah Pool
• Closing the Arapaki Service Centre
• Selling the Wadestown Community Centre

Make an online submission: https://www.letstalk.wellington.govt.nz/submission-form/surveys/ltp-submission

Wellington City Council has ended negotiations with Reading Cinemas on a proposed deal aimed at reopening the cinema complex on Courtenay Place.

Senior Council staff reached a position where they did not believe they would be able to reach the best possible outcomes for Wellingtonians and the decision was made this week to not pursue the proposal further.

Wellingtonians are encouraged to plan ahead if they are travelling on Monday between 9.30am and 3pm, when bus and rail staff will be attending their respective union meetings.

"We encourage our passengers, particularly those who live in and around the Hutt Valley, to travel earlier in the morning or later in the day to avoid any disruptions to their usual services."

The Tramways Union meeting would not affect school services, or bus services run by other operators.

Images are at the bottom of the article - direct link

Council leaders in the Wellington region are looking at plans that could see their councils amalgamated.

At the Wellington Regional Leadership Committee meeting on Tuesday, mayors from Wairarapa, Hutt Valley, Kāpiti and Wellington will discuss the possibility of a regional deal.

A regional deal is a plan that allows an area or city to work with central government on long-term issues for the region.

Amalgamating councils is being pitched so that challenges around the structure of local government in the region can be addressed.

Under the early plans there would be one council for Wairarapa, one for Wellington, the Hutt Valley and Porirua and one for Kāpiti and potentially Horowhenua.

There would still be one regional council.

"Can we continue with nine local authorities across the region? Or is there some merit in starting to combine local authorities and get some economies of scale, get more joined up thinking around infrastructure connectivity?"

Examples of decisions today by for Minister Bishop’s consideration include:

· Increasing walking catchments to allow housing intensification – from Tawa in the north to Newtown in the south.

· Intensification of the Kilbirnie suburban centre to be first subject to community consultation.

· Classifying the Johnsonville railway line as ‘rapid transit’ – enabling housing developments of up to six storeys close to rail stations along the line’s route.

· Extending the central city zone south on Adelaide Rd toward Newtown and making bigger (15-minute) walking catchments, providing for more housing units.

· Reducing the city’s ‘character areas’ from 206 hectares to 85 hectares.

· Removing the heritage listings for the following buildings: Gordon Wilson Flats, the Miramar Gas Tank, Emeny House, Kahn House, Olympus Apartments, Wharenui Apartments, Robert Stout Building, Primitive Methodist Church, Johnsonville Masonic Hall, Star of the Sea Chapel.

A solo diner in the market for a hotpot has taken action against a restaurant after he learned he would have to pay the price of two customers if he wanted the dish.

While he accepted Red Hill did not decline to provide hotpot to him because he was single or that he was treated less favourably for that reason, he claimed the charging policy had the effect of treating him differently and was indirectly discriminatory.

But the restaurant denied its actions were discriminatory and said the policy applied to everyone and was not limited to customers with a particular marital status.

In its decision, which was made on the papers, the tribunal said the essence of the claim was about the minimum charge for a serving of hotpot and how large that serving should be.

"If anyone wants to order that quantity of hotpot for that price, there is no prohibition preventing any diner from doing so. Had Red Hill simply set out the price for hotpot, no exception could be taken."

The tribunal found any discrimination alleged was therefore merely theoretical and did not give rise to material disadvantage.

Two people are in hospital following an explosion in a central Wellington apartment building on Friday afternoon.

"When crews investigated they found there'd been an explosion in one of the apartments, and so we are now investigating the cause of that explosion."

Wellington City Councillors will next week agree the draft 2024-34 Long-term Plan Consultation Document for auditing prior to community consultation in April. This includes a proposed rates increase for the 2024/2025 year of 16.4% (after growth in the ratepayer base). This excludes the levy for the Moa Point Sludge Minimisation Facility, which will add a further 1.6%.

The key features of the deal are:

• WCC will buy the land from Reading for NZ$32m. This is based on the valuation we received that it is worth $31.9m. M
• Reading will lease the land back from WCC on a 21-year perpetually renewable lease.
• The annual rent paid by Reading will cover WCC’s borrowing and other costs so that it is fiscally neutral to ratepayers.
• Reading has the first right to buy back the land anytime within the first 15 years of the lease.
• WCC can sell the land to someone else any time after the first 10 years of the lease.
• The deal provides that WCC will only complete the agreement and pay the balance of funds to Reading once we have been satisfied that the new building design meets the civic outcomes we want and has resource consent.

two upgraded play areas open next week – the exciting new playspace at Frank Kitts Park, and the refreshed site at Botanic Garden ki Paekākā.

There will also be a karakia and official opening of the Botanic Garden ki Paekākā play area on Friday 1 March, followed by a weekend of whānau-friendly fun and activities.

The return of these two play spaces will be celebrated all weekend with entertainment and activities, plus a day of play in the city on Te Rā o Ngā Tamariki – Childrens’ Day on Sunday 3 March. Whānau are encouraged to try out one of the new play areas in the morning, then take a free cable car ride for tamariki to experience the other one after lunch. The day of play in the city on Sunday 3 March is a chance to try out the new playspaces and also take part in a range of fun Childrens’ Day activities on the waterfront. The new playspace and waka at Frank Kitts Park will be joined by a bike obstacle course, soccer and basketball games, kayaking, plus food, music and special performances for kids.

The new playspace at Botanic Garden ki Paekākā will have giant bubbles and chalk art, plus free cable car rides all day for tamariki aged 5-15.

Once you’ve worked up an appetite, take advantage of 2-for-1 kids pizza at the Cable Car Eatery or a free kids menu item with the purchase of a main menu item at Picnic Cafe.

Consultation on the 2024-34 Long-term Plan opens on 12 April and closes on 12 May. It is a key opportunity for Wellingtonians to have their say on the city’s 10-year plan and budget.

Major consultation items will be:

• Three-waters investment options, with a recommended option to provide $1.8 billion to Wellington Water for investment in three waters.
• Waste collection services – including options to introduce wheelie bins and organics collection, funded by a new targeted rate for waste (a flat fee for all households that can receive the service).
• Options for establishing a Perpetual Investment Fund by selling City Council ground leases and the Council’s shares in Wellington Airport, to address natural disaster and insurance risks.

The draft Long-term Plan will include changes to the capital programme, to allow as much investment as possible in three waters within Council financial parameters. This includes:

• Delaying starting construction of Kilbirnie Skate Park from 2024/25 to 2025/26.
• Closing Khandallah Pool and landscaping the site to restore the stream channel, improve flooding mitigation and create a new entranceway into Khandallah Park. -Not progressing the Hutt Road portion of the Thorndon Quay/Hutt Road transport improvements (part of the former Let’s Get Wellington Moving programme). The Aotea Quay roundabout and Thorndon Quay portions would continue.
• Rephasing work on the Golden Mile to deliver the Courtenay Place improvements first, and delay the Lambton Quay, Manners and Willis Street work.

Just a cheerful reminder that almost half the water we put into our system is lost along the way.

Also, I live at a rural property with rain water tanks, and we have a reasonably small tank for the size of our house. We haven't come close to running out of water this summer, while we have had to get a tanker other years. It's actually been a reasonable summer in terms of rainfall.

Other media:

• Housing intensification report criticised for ‘scoffing’ at economics (Dom Post)
• The actual report

This report was publicly released today. It was commissioned from Fieldforce4 by the Wellington City Council into Wellington Water, although the other local councils weren't directly involved. The report's been kept in secret for a month, but is being released after Local Government Minister Simeon Brown requested it.

It's important to note that its findings are disputed by Wellington Water which claims it's riddled with errors.

There's also some media commentary out from RNZ and from The Post (possibly paywalled for some).

Pretty chaotic at the station as everyone is trying to get on limited buses