Cookie crumbles

Press, 4 July 1985, Page 21

Cookie crumbles

Under either a one-city or a twocity local government system there are several ways of slicing up the Christchurch cake. Some are listed below. The final proposal may or may not reflect any combination of these — and, of course, the final proposal may be to maintain the present system. A one-city system could see the disappearance of the present Waimairi area, the urban part being included with the present Christchurch city area, the rural with Paparua. Paparua, if it is left as is, could be boosted by complementing its largely rural area with Riccarton

as its business centre; or Riccarton could become part of an enlarged city. Alternatively, Riccarton could be included in the present Waimairi District under a two-city system, to give that district a defined business centre. In that case, Waimairi could also take the north-west Christchurch urban area and let its rural area go to Paparua. Heathcote could be absorbed either in part by the city and by Paparua or completely by the city. Alternatively, Heathcote could be combined with Lyttelton and Mount Herbert to make a peninsula authority. In this case the urban part of Heathcote could be

included in the city. If Heathcote is taken completely by the city, a smaller peninsula authority could be formed by combining Lyttelton and Mount Herbert with that part of the city on the peninsula beyond the Summit Road. If natural boundaries are used in determining the new city area(s) the obvious boundaries are Lyttelton Harbour or the Summit Road, the Waimakariri River, Pound Road behind the airport and the coast. These were the rough boundaries used by the Local Government Commission when it drew up a new city area in 1972.