‘Welcome’ sign in dispute

Press, 8 February 1983, Page 6

‘Welcome’ sign in dispute

The “.Welcome to Waimairi County’’ sign near Christchurch should re*main and be updated, the Waimairi District Council’s finance, and by-laws committee'agreed last evening. Some councillors felt the sign on Memorial Avenue was unnecessary.- - and that one put up by the combined local authorities of Christchurch welcoming visitors to the city would be more appropriate. However, after some discussion, the committee recommended updating the sign,' and' putting ; oh. it the new; council logo.’ Waimairi ceased to be; a, county ’last year, and is now a, district: Cr Margaret Murray said she felt' the'AWaimairi' sign was superfluous. ‘

Cr P. M. Carter said he often wondered why the sign was there. Before money was spent, the council should consider whether to remove it. he said. The committee chairman. Cr ML P. Hobby, said that in the past it was considered correct to welcome people to Waimairi.

Cr R. W. Skjellerup said the 'sign' was good public relations. As an independent district, in the Christchurch •pietropoli tan, area...Waimairi should, 'continue ‘to 1 show . where it was. and the sign • ‘ was ah. appropriate means of : using; thaU ;- ■ / , ■ ’ It-might: be more sensible to combine with other local I _. authorities for - a “Welcome i - to' Christchurch"sign; he’ said.

Cr .Skjellerup said other overseas “cities within cities” used signs to indicate where ■ they were, and Waimairi should continue with its sign. /■ Cr Murray said the local authorities were, all part of metropolitan Christchurch. People came to Christchurch to look round, not to be concerned with the formalities of the local government structure. Cr W. T. Rice, who had moved removal of the sign, withdrew the proposal. He moved instead that the matter go back to the informa- . tlon sub-committee to look at the whole concept. This was then put and lost. Desert Road Improvements could not

be made to the Desert Road, near Waimairi Beach, without tremendous expense and fencing, said the district engineer. Mr A. J. W. Lamb. The land was not the council’s responsibility, he said.. . He was answering a query from Cr Chisholm about the road, where a young woman f died last week when the beach-buggy in which she was a back-seat passenger rolled over near the end of Aston Street., Mr Lamb said the council did not own the land. The Desert Road had a long history and had been a problem area. It had been used particularly for dumping. The area’could not be shut, off as an access was needed in case of fires. It was not a new- problem and an answer had not yet been found.