Heathcote praises park proposal

Press, 7 September 1984, Page 5

Heathcote praises park proposal

The Christchurch City Council will be congratulated by the Heathcote County Council on its proposal to acquire land in Curletts Road for a park.

The chairman of the Heathcote County Council, Mr 0. T. Alpers, told the works and reserves committee last evening that the council should also say that it agreed with the City Council’s published views on ideas of regional co-opera-tion on reserves of regional significance. Heathcote should also suggest that that matter be brought before the Canterbury United Council for consideration. “It ought to be that regional reserves are regional responsibilities,” Cr Alpers said. Westenra Tee The council will seek more information from a Westenra Terrace resident on how that street could be made a "woonerf,” or slow street, improving conditions for the residents. Mr J. M. Nimmo wrote to the council suggesting that it investigate making the terrace a slow street when kerbing and channelling in the street is redeveloped. Mr Nimmo said he had

spoken to some, but not all, residents in the street and there seemed to be support for the proposal, which would improve the appearance of the street and reduce the nuisance from cars - using the street as a racetrack. The County Engineer, Mr D. J. May, said that the street could be made a slow street by narrowing the entrance and installing planter boxes. He said that cars were using Westenra Terrace, Dyers Pass Road and Hackthome Road as a “triangular racetrack.” Cr Alpers said that he was a resident in MacMillan Avenue where several features such as dips in the road served to slow down potentially disturbing traffic.

“A few little features like that can help considerably,” he said.

New Plunket The south Colombo Plunket sub-branch will probably be asked by the council if it would consider building a clinic on to the Landsdown community centre and using existing facilities to supplement that, or whether it would prefer to stick to its original plan of building a new

building on a council reserve in Whaka Terrace. The sub-branch and representatives of the council met in July to discuss possible sites for the new building and last evening the council received a letter from the group saying it preferred the Whaka Terrace site. Cr T. P. Wills said it was a pity the sub-branch could not be persuaded , to use the existing centre and Mr May said that all that was lacking there was a clinic which could be used exclusively by the Plunket nurse.

The Plunket proposal had allowed for a kitchen, waiting room, clinic, and toilet facilities and it was only the clinic that was missing from the community centre. Cr J. G. Laurenson suggested that the matter be referred back to Plunket with the suggestion that its members reconsider the decision in the light of the council’s comments.

Mr May will look more closely at the two alternatives before the council replies to the proposal.