News in brief
Ligar Bay’s bach owners threatened with legal costs
The owners of Ligar Bay’s endangered baches have now been told by TDC that any attempt to instigate a judicial review of their leases will result in council seeking to recover full legal costs from any parties concerned.
In a letter dated 11 May 2011 and addressed to bach owner Bruce Ansley, TDC’s chief executive officer rejected the latest approach by bach owners who had engaged solicitor Warwick Heal to push their case and seek a judicial review. In a recent lengthy letter to council, Mr Heal outlined perceived legal flaws in the process of terminating the leases. In response, CEO Wyllie wrote back to Mr Ansley saying: “I do not agree with Mr Heal’s opinion. We believe any attempt to seek a judicial review would fail. Should any attempt be made to instigate legal proceedings of such a nature, the council would undoubtedly seek to recover its costs from any party proposing to bring such actions. The agreements will now come to their natural conclusion and I ask you to accept the reality of this situation.”
Accepting the reality of their situation is something bach owners are struggling with. Council insists they have until 31 March 2014 to vacate their baches and remove them. Bach occupiers Leslie and Garth Bray developed their garden and raised their family of three boys in their bach but now face the prospect of eviction, all as Garth copes with terminal cancer.
Leslie Bray says that the owners have been more than reconciliatory in wanting to work out a solution.
“One of the baches next to us (Keith Brown’s) is being demolished any day because the leaseholder died and none of the family wanted to take over the lease. Things are happening, and lifetime leases are all we require. There are lots of precedents for council granting lifetime leases; it’s the humane approach. Our council has even done it here with the Gatwards’ bach next door. I can’t see why they can’t do it for us.”
Support amongst Golden Bay people for the bach owners is growing. Pupu resident Chip Williams is one of those getting behind the bach owners.
“How can you argue against life tenure when there are families involved?” he said. “The council are being bully boys here. They need to take a reality check on this issue and listen to the community.”
Gerard Hindmarsh
Coast Care and corporates work together on Sandspit restoration
Coast Care and HealthPost staff from Collingwood recently pooled resources and energy toward restoring the Motupipi Sandspit, which was ravaged by fire 18 months ago.
Abel Butler, the general manager of HealthPost, said he was pleased with the effort.
“We buy a whole lot of trees and the entire staff goes out and spends the afternoon planting them. It beats the office and this is our third tree planting so far.”
Coast Care co-ordinator Rob Lewis organised the planting bee on the ravaged strip of sand on the western side of the golf course.
“It’s got the corporates coming along to support this coastal forest restoration project and helping to heal the sandspit,” said Rob. “Having a corporate partner is a relatively new model in New Zealand. Coast Care already partners with other agencies such as TDC and DOC, which are bringing resources and energy, and now the corporate sector is bringing in their energy as well.”
Commenting on the state of the spit after its extensive damage, he said, “The spit is coming along. There are lots of exotics and some natives growing back, and with a helping hand we can create more diversity. At the moment there are a lot of pines and weeds, but we planted 800 natives trees this time and 750 natives last year.
“It was a good effort; they are hard workers.”
Ina Holst
New books at the library
Non-Fiction
Taste of a Traveller by Brett McGregor. Tasty recipes by New Zealand’s first Masterchef.
The Quilters’ Guild Collection. Contemporary quilts, heritage inspirations.
Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts. Basic techniques in sewing, appliqué, embroidery, quilting, dyeing and printing. With CD.
The Mayan Prophecies 2012: The Message and the Vision by Gerald Benedict. Twenty-one ancient predictions.
The Dressmaker of Khair Khana by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon. Former ABC News reporter Gayle Tzemach Lemmon spent years on the ground reporting Kamila’s story, and the result is an unusually intimate and unsanitised look at the daily lives of women in Afghanistan.
Can’t stand up for Sitting Down by Jo Brand. “A larger-than-life” autobiography.
Fiction
Summer of Love by Katie Fforde. Sian moves to the country to begin a new, settled, life with Rory but she didn’t bargain on meeting explorer and heartbreaker Gus.
Liverpool Love Song by Anne Baker. A stirring tale of romance, poverty and ambition.
Bolt Action by Charlie Charters. A gritty thriller about a terrorist threat on an airliner - the pilots are dead, the cockpit door is locked.
The Dragon’s Path by Daniel Abraham. Fantasy. Book One of a new series The Dagger and the Coin.
The Conductor by Sarah Quigley. This New Zealand author, now based in Berlin, writes about an odd assortment of musicians who remain in Leningrad after Nazi troops march on the city in 1941, and during the winter begin to rehearse Shostakowich’s Leningrad Symphony.
Mystery by Jonathan Kellerman. A new Alex Delaware crime thriller.
Golden Bay musicians @ 2011 Smokefree Rockquest
Two Golden Bay bands were among the lineup of 24 acts battling it out last Saturday at the Nelson heat of 2011 Smokefree Rockquest.
The competitors, all high school students, had five minutes each on stage at the Trafalgar Centre to impress the two judges. On the evening only eight of the original 24 were called back for a second set. Among them were Golden Bay locals What Lies Here (formerly Holy Fingers) and all-girl band The Black Spots. The stage was huge, the crowd was wild, the atmosphere was electric.
What Lies Here (from Golden Bay High and Nayland College) performed a brand new song which earned them third place. Singer Willow Milligan gave an energetic stage performance jumping from the drum riser and leaping from the monitors. Impressive, considering he rehearsed it with the band for the first time the night before.
First place was taken by Garin College band The Peasants, who will go to the national finals in Hamilton, along with runners-up Alex, a two-piece band from Nelson College, who celebrated by “planking” on stage.
What a wicked day out. Thanks to the loyal crowd from Golden Bay who made it over to support their local bands, it meant a huge amount for the kids to see some familiar faces in the crowd.
Submitted by the bands’ PR firm
