Cromwell Lions Club member Andy Andrews received an International President’s Certificate of Appreciation last week, in recognition of his 18 years' work stopping tonnes of recyclable material going to landfill.District governor Allan Fleury said Lions awards are given out every year, but for somebody to receive this award they had to go “above and beyond,” and Andy’s work had been unrecognised for 18 years.The award is the fourth highest that can be given to a Lion.It all started with collecting bottle tops from clubs all over the Southern district, raising thousands of dollars for Kidney Kids, and then moved onto sending eye glasses and personal protective equipment (PPE) gear to third world countries. “It has been such an honour to get an award like this and for every pair of glasses that I put in a bag, I knew it assisted someone less fortunate than myself,” he said.Spec Savers sends Andy 300 pairs of glasses a week, and two Cromwell wine bottling plants send him their bottle tops.  A team of volunteers then arrive at his home every week to start sorting them.In October they sent 1500 pairs of glasses to Tonga and 900 pairs went to Cambodia.   Now he’s involved in the club’s battery recycling project as well.Cromwell Lions Club members Neville Hucklebridge and Bill Thornbury were also both recognised for their 50 years of service to the organisation.Neville joined the club in October 1973, has been president twice, and received the Lloyd Morgan Life award in 2009, which was followed by the Melvin Jones award in 2021.Bill transferred to the Cromwell club from East Invercargill in 1997, where he also started his Lions journey in 1973, receiving the Lloyd Morgan Life award in 2003 and Melvin Jones award in 2007.Tony Cox received the Cockburn Quiet Achiever award, recognising someone who goes about their business behind the scenes without seeking the limelight.

The sun shone on locals for the first trial of the five kilometer parkrun course held in Alexandra on Saturday.Runners and walkers of all ages participated in the free event, a practice for the first official parkrun, coming up on May 11.Volunteers came from the Queenstown and Invercargill parkruns to support the team of locals behind the Alexandra event. Event director Sally Booth gave a briefing to attendees about the course, including the requirement to collect a finish tag and then have it scanned at the finish line if they wanted their result to be recorded. There is one more trial parkrun on Sunday April 28 at 1pm. Sally said everyone was welcome to come along and give it a go, including walkers, dogs on a lead and babies, or youngsters in prams too.  “There’s never anyone in last place as there is a tail walker and there is no time limit.”The volunteer tail walker at the first weekly community fun run. PHOTO: Supplied People can take part by volunteering as marshals, and the group of organisers plan a social coffee and a chat afterwards.Feedback from runners and walkers was that the event had a welcoming fun atmosphere and they would be back again. To register and find out more about the weekly run see the Otago Central Rail Trail parkrun webpage. Read more: Alexandra rail trail parkrun launching next month

After two years of planning, including submissions and deliberation, a decision on what some Central Otago residents can do with their land in Cromwell, Clyde and Alexandra has finally been made.The Central Otago District Council will move to notify Plan Change 19 this week during its monthly meeting, but the public will be excluded from the discussion.Plan Change 19 was first publicly notified in July 2022 and attracted 170 submissions. Hearings then began on April 26, 2023, and a decision was made by the panel at the end of March this year.Plan Change 19 has been driven by the direction set out in the Vincent and Cromwell Spatial Plans. The spatial plans were prepared by council to respond to demand for residential land and housing affordability concerns in the district, and to plan for the anticipated growth over the next 30 years.It sets out the way the district’s residential areas are zoned and managed, and involves rezoning new land for residential use, identifying some areas for future growth, aligning existing residential zoning with the proposed new zones, and includes new provisions for managing land use and subdivisions within the residential zones.The plan change aligns changes around density and allows for smaller sections in some areas and therefore more houses, and also new residential areas in the Cromwell and Vincent wards, around Alexandra, Clyde and Cromwell.According to the legislation, Plan Change 19 must be completed by July 2024, but appeals will be likely.

Willow trees will be the topic of conversation when the Manuherekia Catchment Group hosts a public workshop in Omakau on Wednesday.The drop-in session, taking place at the Omakau Rugby Clubrooms from 11am to 3pm, is open to everyone, whether they have a favourite willow they want to protect, or those they believe are problematic.Manuherekia Catchment Group general manager Clare Hadley said no matter what someone’s view was, it was one the group wanted to hear.Clare said a willow in the right place was a great thing, but a willow in the wrong place could be problematic.If you have a favourite willow tree, or one you think needs to go, the Manuherekia Catchment Group wants to hear from you during its workshop on Wednesday. PHOTO: SuppliedThe session, funded by the Ministry for the Environment, allows everyone to be part of the conversation on willow management, while also helping the group prioritise sites for action.“We want people to give us guidance on where willows should be removed or enhanced.”Examples include someone’s favourite swimming spot, made perfect by the surrounding willows that provide shelter, while problematic willows could include those that consume a lot of water, or provide cover for trout, which can create a negative environment for Galaxias anomalus.Participants do not need to bring anything with them, other than their enthusiasm and insights, Clare said.Maps will be on hand to showcase where willows are located in the Manuherekia Catchment.

Legal Aid, provided by the Ministry of Justice, offers government funded legal representation to those who meet the applicable financial thresholds and circumstances. Despite common misconceptions, Legal Aid is not free, rather it is considered a loan; those in receipt of Legal Aid may need to repay some or all of the fees under their grant of Legal Aid. In some situations, if you own a home, you may have to authorise a charge over your home as security for your Legal Aid, any debt owing under your grant of Legal Aid would likely need to be repaid upon the sale of that home.Legal Aid is available for an array of areas of law, including but not limited to, Civil Law, Criminal Law, Employment Law, and Family Law. Firms who offer Legal Aid may do so in one or more of these areas of law. Usually with Criminal Law, where you are facing a charge or charges carrying a maximum penalty of less than 10 years imprisonment, you would be assigned a lawyer upon the approval of your Application for Criminal Legal Aid, whereas with Family Law, you can approach a lawyer who provides Family Law Legal Aid and ask for them to be assigned on your matter(s).Legal Aid is a great resource that allows you to get the legal advice and representation you may require, whilst taking into account your financial and personal circumstances. At Checketts McKay Law we offer Legal Aid for Criminal and Family Law, so it always pays to ask whether you would qualify for Legal Aid, so we can best assist you. 

Central residents will have options for health services, six days a week soon, once HealthCentral is operating from their new building in Alexandra.The new health facility on the corner of Tarbert and Fox Sts is on track to be completed by the end of May, and primary tenant HealthCentral, will be providing services from the premises from July 8.  In a March newsletter HealthCentral said there would be open days coming up soon where the community could come and check out the new building before the first day.A ground floor, urgent care clinic will be able to accept “walk in” patients from 8am to 6pm daily. HealthCentral is aiming to remove barriers and improve access to urgent care in Central through this initiative.In addition to the general practice, a number of other tenants, including physiotherapy, mental health and wellbeing support, a pharmacy, dentist and a café are anticipated. Rooms for visiting specialists, consultants, counsellors and other health service providers are included in the building’s design.Local company Breen Construction is contracted to deliver the project for Queenstown investment group Mackersy Property. Breen site manager Jeff Golden said current activities on site this week and next were exterior paving, asphalting, landscaping, planting and washing down the building and moving all the fencing in off the street frontages. “Internal items happening are the completion of painting, completion of second fix electrical and plumbing . . . with the carpet tiles being laid at present [too].”Jeff said the job has gone really well.“It’s a big hats off to all our employees and the contractors that have been involved in the project along with the neighbouring properties that have had to put up with us over the last 18 odd months.”The new two-storey building, viewed from Tarbert St. PHOTO: The Central AppFor local health information, including the weekend on-call roster, check out The Central Apps’ Health button. Read more: New health building taking shape Read more: HealthCentral building reaches full height Read more: Foundation poured for new HealthCentral building

People across Central were digging deep on Friday for the 102nd annual Poppy Day street appeal.Poppy Day is the Returned and Services Association’s (RSA) main fundraising activity of the year, which welcomes a gold coin donation in return for a poppy ahead of Anzac Day.The campaign runs throughout April.Cromwell RSA president Denis Ryan and welfare officer Gordon Gates were among those who braved a chilly start to the day, to welcome donations at one of four street appeal stations in the town centre.They said despite tough economic times, people were still being very generous.“There’s been a few $20 notes,” Denis said.Gordon said it was “amazing” what denominations of money had gone into the collection bucket.Donations from Poppy Day helps the RSA improve the health and wellbeing outcomes for New Zealand’s veterans, of all ages.The RSA was established in 1916.Its aim was to take care of New Zealand’s veterans and their families when soldiers returned from Gallipoli.While today’s soldiers face different challenges, the support towards them and their families remain.Money from the street appeal goes towards assisting ex service personnel or their widows.While it won’t be known for another couple of weeks how much was raised from this year’s poppy appeal, the first event in 1922 netted £13,166, with poppies sold for one shilling each.On average, close to one million poppies are now sold throughout the appeal.To hear about upcoming Anzac Day activities from Alexandra-Clyde RSA president Kevin Harding listen to our latest edition of The Outlet podcast.For a full list of Anzac Day services visit The Central App’s What's On button.

Have I ever mentioned to you that my wife Linda is absolutely brilliant? If I have, I still won’t have mentioned it enough. She is the yin to my yang, the red dot to my purple dot, the order to my chaos. One of the many things at which she is brilliant is running the household accounts. I was a solo dad for eight years so can and did do this stuff, but never with the diligence, conscience, even pleasure with which she attends to what I see as a task. I remember coming home one winter’s afternoon to find she had gone through all our accounts on-line, changed power, internet and electricity supplier, saved us a truckload of money and got us Sky TV for free. I, on the other hand, couldn’t tell her what power, internet and insurance company we had been with before the purge.  If she dies before me, I’m screwed. Except I won’t be, because I guarantee there will be a carefully compiled and regularly updated list somewhere with all the stuff I need to know. All her diligence paid off this week. “Old man” she called as I was doing the dishes (see, I am of some use), “did you spend $260 on our Visa on medicinal cannabis oil?” Well no, I hadn’t. My marvellous wife had been scanning our Visa card record on-line, which she does every few days, and found a bunch of pending payments that we had nothing to do with. Someone somewhere had somehow got our card details and was racking up a high old time of it, with pending transactions of almost a thousand dollars to prove it.  How they got our details goodness only knows, but due to Linda’s diligence, a quick phone call to the bank put a stop to their party. I’m not sure what would have happened had she not been so alert, but I was even more grateful than usual that she keeps her eye on such things. It is really scary what can happen to your money, but there are ways you can help keep yourself safe. Netsafe have some really good advice and your bank will also have a page on-line with helpful tips. It’s a good idea to have a look at these before you need to, because unfortunately you just never know when that day will come.

The Government is giving owners of earthquake prone buildings four extra years to do any required strengthening work.That extension, along with a review into the regulations, was announced earlier this week, which has been welcomed by Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ).Among those who support the move is Central Otago Mayor Tim Cadogan, who is on the LGNZ Zone 6 committee.“I think the most important part is the pause to allow a full review,” he said.“Many of our community halls are used very infrequently and I wonder if the answer lies not in spending huge amounts of money on strengthening such buildings, the reality of which may be unaffordability causing demolition, but in individual responsibility.”He said if a building was clearly shown to be earthquake prone, people could potentially make their own assessment as to whether they chose to hire it or enter it, something he described as a “more practical and mature approach”, instead of putting our heritage at risk.LGNZ advocated for the decision the Government came to this week as part of a remit led by Manawatū District Council.Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk made the announcement on Thursday, including the fact work on the review would start immediately.“Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that gets in the way of doing business and getting things done.”He said without change, a significant number of buildings could sit empty, which would have a devastating impact on the economy in cities such as Wellington and provincial towns across New Zealand.“While there is already a review scheduled for 2027, the Government has decided to bring this forward to provide greater certainty and this work will begin immediately.”He said terms of reference will be agreed on next month.“The review will be extensive and consider the appropriate risk settings to protect safety while ensuring the rules are workable to support businesses, increase economic activity and create jobs.”The review will also look at the way overseas jurisdictions manage earthquake risk.

Plans are well underway for this year’s Alexandra Blossom Festival, after its annual general meeting (AGM) last week.Festival manager Martin McPherson said they have had an outstanding response already from vendors securing market sites, with 50 per cent of all food and beverage sites already sold.“The biggest fear is that people will miss out,” he said.Committee chair Sharleen Stirling-Lindsay welcomed and thanked returning committee members Rachael Lovering, Michelle Davies, Ian Gare, secretary Cathy Marsh, treasurer Tim Coughlan and Vincent Community Board representative Tony Hammington at the AGM.The 2023 Blossom Festival on September 22 followed one of the most successful blossom festivals on record in 2022, which was the 65th anniversary event.The committee was conscious of the fact 2023 attendance numbers would likely be down on the previous year given the significance of the 65th festival.  In a press release, the committee said as such, the budget was set assuming a more normalised level of attendance would be achieved in 2023.  This ensured entertainer/supplier costs were maintained at a sensible level to avoid the risk of any material cash deficits being incurred. The festival returned a surplus of $5360 for 2023 compared to $5867 in 2022. Last year’s Friday night Mardi Gras had to be cancelled last minute due to the weather in the run up to the event.  As such, early bird ticket sales were down on previous years. On a positive note, the weather came right on the day for Saturday in the Park, which resulted in strong on-the-day-sales and attendances at the event.While we estimate parade and attendance numbers to be 15 per cent down on the 2022 event, this was broadly in line with the committee’s forecast expectations, and given the poor weather in the run up to the event - and the fact Friday night’s events were cancelled -  the committee was extremely happy with the outcome of the event in the end, the press release noted.Treasurer Tim Coughlan said the impact the weather nearly played on the main Saturday in the Park event further reaffirmed how important its key sponsors were to the event, “and how important it is for the committee to have sufficient cash reserves set aside to deal with any unforeseen issues/cancellations.”Sharleen acknowledged the passing of Karen Peterson - the festival’s original Blossom Queen, “many of you would have had the privilege of meeting Karen when she returned to share her Blossom Festival stories with us in 2022, her passion and love for this festival and understanding of the positive impact it had and continues to have on our community was evident.  If you haven’t checked out her interview as she takes us down memory lane, I encourage you too, the float on fire story is a must hear,’’ she said. 

A Central Otago engineer has found a niche market producing barbecue wood pellets, using waste cherry wood from orchards.New Zealand has been producing biomass wood pellets for years as a by-product of the timber and forestry industries, but these are just used to heat homes and fuel industrial kilns.Jacob Freeman discovered there was a huge gap in the market for locally manufactured barbecue wood pellets, and will be one of the first in New Zealand to produce them.3 Kings Cherries Orchard manager Tim Paulin offered Jacob some space to help progress his ‘Southern Smoke’ business, and supply him the cherry wood. While the project is small, Tim said he was happy to work alongside Jacob. “The business shows potential and hopefully this will benefit both parties in the future.”In September 2023 Jacob ordered the chipper, hammer mill and pellet mill from China - personally funding the $25,000-$30,000, and has been experimenting with the cherry wood to make the perfect pellet.“I saw I could make a viable business and decided to take the plunge.”The machinery is capable of producing 300kg of pellets an hour - the great thing is, you can also use barbecue pellets in home fires, opening up the New Zealand market even further.Jacob Freeman (left) and 3 Kings Orchardist Tim Paulin with the chipper and hammer mill imported from China to make a new wood fruit by-product. PHOTO: The Central AppCherry wood is unique in enhancing the natural wood smoke flavour produced by the pellet barbecue, but many other fruit woods, along with natives such as manuka, red beech and rata were also popular.“I need a bit of diversity, so apricot and apple trees work well too, and I plan to mix some manuka in there as well at some stage.”Naturally, in a new business, there have been setbacks along the way - no instruction manual from China made life interesting, and despite the communication barrier with the overseas machinery company, Jacob was determined to push through the initial teething issues. “Cherry wood is quite hard, and I figured out it wasn’t being compressed enough by the current die that I was using. Compression is what generates the heat that forms the pellets by ‘melting’ the natural lignins in the wood.”The moisture content of the wood chip was also important - too high and the pellet ends up like a piece of popcorn, too low and they crumble.He’ll keep chipping away at his project until the perfect barbecue pellet is perfected, and then all going to plan, will launch his product on the market in the next few months.As well as the opportunity from 3 Kings, and being able to use abundant waste fruit wood onsite, Jacob also collaborated with a Cromwell developer turning an orchard into residential development, by harvesting 300 - 400 cherry trees that would’ve otherwise been sent to landfill.

Young dancers from Central and across the South Island came together last weekend for a four-day dance competition at the Lake Wānaka Centre. The inaugural ‘Tititea Performing Arts Competition’ included more than 110 dancers and 550 items, in what organisers described as “a celebration of dance”.The competition was organised by the Tititea Performing Arts Trust (TPAT), formed recently by four local women; Maxine Frazer, Leigh Cohen, Maria Hearle and Gillian White. TPAT wanted to organise an annual event to foster a welcoming, supportive and enjoyable culture for performers from all backgrounds, geographical areas and abilities. Founding trustee Maxine Frazer said the event set out to promote wellbeing and learning for young dancers. “Competitors were given detailed feedback, support, guidance and even impromptu mini workshops from our highly experienced adjudicator. This included technical guidance on dancing safely, advice on looking after your body, tips to reduce pre-performance nerves and encouragement to focus on finding joy in dance.“We were delighted to see dancers from across the South Island supporting and encouraging each other right throughout the competition.”Achievements were recognised across all age groups and categories, with the youngest dancer five years old.Young ballet performers wait backstage. PHOTO: Supplied Dancers from Central were Lucy Anderson (Alexandra), Madelyn McCallum (Clyde), Riley Cochrane (Tarras), Sophie Hunter (Cromwell), Sophie O’Dwyer (Bannockburn) and Violet Lindsay (Cromwell). Third place in the little champions category was Clyde’s Madelyn McCallum (pictured in the centre). PHOTO: SuppliedAlexandra’s Lucy Anderson on stage. PHOTO: Supplied Categories included ballet, contemporary, hip hop, jazz and self choreography. There were solo performances, along with duos and groups dancing together. Professional adjudicator Sarah Knox said that the standard of dancing had been high, and judging the final category, modern championships, was tricky. She said there was a superb atmosphere of collaboration, inclusiveness and support at the competition.Organisers were supported over the weekend by a large team of local volunteers and the backing of local sponsors.“It has been wonderful to see dance parents, enthusiasts, supporters and local businesses come together to help bring the event to life. We simply couldn’t have delivered this event without their generosity,” Maxine said.

Anzac Day preparations are well and truly underway across Central Otago.Planning the day’s events starts a year in advance, which for many branches involves work around advertising, communication, road closures and service groups.Speakers are also approached, along with pipe bands and RSA singers, among many others.Alexandra-Clyde Returned and Services Association (RSA) president Kevin Harding has been in his role for just two weeks, which has allowed him to lead the way towards any last-minute plans.He said his role as president came as a surprise, but with the support of a great committee, Anzac Day commemorations are coming along well.While two weeks does not sound long, his involvement with RSA and Anzac parades dates back to the mid 1970s.“I was part of the very first Cenotaph Guard as a territorial soldier. The parade back then consisted of mainly World War 1 and World War 2 veterans. Later it was Korea and Vietnam veterans.”Kevin said the parades also recognise those who completed compulsory military training, with many of them now aged 70 to 90.The ageing population means the 50 squadron air cadets, scouts and guides and schools are among those who help make up the numbers and will see the parades into the future.Anzac Day will take place on Thursday, April 25.To hear more from Kevin, listen to this week’s The Outlet podcast.For a full list of Anzac Day services visit The Central App’s What's On button.

New Zealand’s mixed curling pair from Naseby Anton Hood and Courtney Smith will be testing their skills against the world’s best in the World Mixed Doubles Curling Championships (WMDCC) in Sweden from tomorrow, April 20.The tournament also includes the World Seniors Championships where New Zealand has both men's and women's teams participating.Courtney and Anton, known as Team Smith Hood, played in this event in 2021 and finished 12th. They qualified for this year’s WMDCC at a qualification event held in December last year in Dumfries, Scotland.A nail-biting last game against Finland that went to the last stone, meant they secured two of their final three playoff games to gain entry to WMDCC.Pictured are (from left) Anton Hood, coach David Ramsay and Courtney Smith. PHOTO: Supplied The 20 WMDCC teams are divided into two groups, and there will be 18 sessions of round robin play followed by semifinals and finals.New Zealand is in group B with Australia, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, Korea, Netherlands, Scotland, Sweden and the United States. The pair face Canada, Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Sweden during the first few days of the tournament. View their schedule here.The first WMDCC was held in 2008, at Vierumaki in Finland.The seniors’ competition will see 25 men’s teams and 18 women’s teams competing for medals and the world title. The event is open entry and players must be aged 50 or over on July 1, 2023. The New Zealand senior teams are women: Joanna Olszewski, Elizabeth Matthews, Sandra Thomas, Merran Anderson, Pauline Farra and coach Dean Fotti and the men are: Peter Becker, Richard Morgan, Nelson Ede, Murray Pitts, David Greer, and coach John Sanders. View the senior men’s schedule here.View the senior women’s schedule here.The Kiwi women are in group C with Australia, Denmark, England, Scotland and the United States. The men are in group B with Germany, Ireland, Nigeria, Poland and Scotland.The tournaments are held in Oestersund, located in Jamtland, in the middle of Sweden. The city is home to over 50,000 people and is the region’s cultural and economic centre.Oestersund has hosted several world curling events including the World Junior Curling Championships in 1999, 2008 and 2012, the World Junior-B Championships in 2017, the World Mixed Doubles Championship and World Senior Championships in 2018 and most recently, the Le Gruyère AOP European Curling Championships 2022.The 2024 World Curling Championship season has marked a milestone for New Zealand teams. For the first time, the women's, men's and mixed doubles sides will all compete, and be able to earn 2026 Olympic qualification points.Anton is also the skip of the NZ men’s team, who failed to win a match at the World Curling Championships (WCC) in Switzerland earlier this month. It is the second consecutive WCC for the side. In 2022 they finished at the tail of the competition in 13th place,"We had higher expectations of ourselves . . . we have lots of learning and more opportunities to grow as a team. This highlights the work we must do to compete at this level consistently. It showed what we can achieve when we do play well and put ends together.”NZ men’s curling team and coaches, pictured are (from left) coach Carolyn McRorie, coach and reserved player Peter de Boer, Hunter Walker, Brett Sargon, Ben Smith and Anton Hood. Absent is coach Warren Dobson. PHOTO: seixeiro photographyDespite finishing 13th again, the NZ men have earned an Olympic qualification point, and although the chance of earning direct entry to Torino 2026 is low, like the NZ women they will have a pathway to the games via other qualification events.Follow Team Smith Hood on Facebook to keep up with their progressRead more: Men’s curlers leave retirement residence, World Champs nextRead more: Curlers into worlds, gain international media attention Read more: Top curlers extend winter for competition, training

Central Otago residents had the opportunity this week to talk with Otago regional councillors about the proposed rates increases and what that money would likely be spent on.Drop-in sessions were held in Alexandra, Wanaka and Queenstown, where estimates projected an average Central Otago home worth $700,000 would increase $72/year to $322 in 2024-25.The ORC also outlined its plans to potentially trial public transport using regional bus trails in several towns including Alexandra, Clyde and Cromwell. The Long-Term Plan (LTP) provides the public the opportunity to provide feedback on their willingness to support a public transport investment. Subject to the response council gets, ORC will then work with and seek feedback from the local council and communities on the design of the services. Design considerations will include the route, the location of stops, frequency of services and running times over the day/week. ORC also estimates $315 million needs to be spent on flood and drainage protection over the next 30 years; including $67 million during the first 10-years of the LTP. Areas proposed to receive this investment include Alexandra, the Leith (North Dunedin), lower, east and west Taieri, Tokomairiro, lower Clutha and lower Waitaki River areas. For many areas, there will be changes to flood protection, drainage, and river management rates, which will see the current targeted rates decline by more than $500 across around 2100 properties in most flood and drainage-defined areas.But, the general rate rise moves up between 10 per cent to -20% in the areas impacted; Alexandra, Leith, lower Clutha, lower, rast and eest Taieri and Tokomairiro. ORC proposes to implement a new region-wide (general) rate of 20% of the amount required for flood protection and 10% for all drainage schemes. Proposed targeted rates for river management will see decreases in Dunedin (-33.9%), Whakatipu (-28.2%) and Wanaka (-19.2%) but Central Otago, with large waterways, would increase 40.2% and Waitaki will go up 57.5%. The proposed average rates impact for households would see possible increases of 18.6% for 2024-25, 11.2% for 2025-26 and 9.4% for 2026-27.ORC’s chair Gretchen Robertson acknowledges ratepayers have a strong interest in the types of services we undertake and what is affordable.  “There are options up for discussion and we’re urging people in the community to make submissions now as the work programmes being discussed will have effects on them for the next 10 years ahead,” she said.Submissions, either online or by post, can be made until April 28.“With 10 rating changes being proposed that will likely affect some component of rating in your area, we need to know now whether you agree or disagree with these proposals,” Cr Robertson says. Central Otago will also have its own targeted rate for river management, such as willow removal and river maintenance, resulting in an increase of 40% in the amount collected from Central Otago for this activity. There will also be a new air pollution strategy. 

Teachers are concerned about the roll-out of curriculum and NCEA changes amid drastic staff cuts at the Ministry of Education.The Ministry of Education on Wednesday announced a proposal to cut 565 jobs, including nearly 90 regional and front-line roles directly supporting schools. RNZ understands 225 roles of the jobs are vacant.Post-Primary Teachers' Association president Chris Abercrombie told Morning Report the cuts were "absolutely" going to affect teachers and principals."No principals or teachers will lose their jobs in these cuts, that's really clear, but the work that they do is supported by the curriculum centre, by the regional offices, by those positions."Post-Primary Teachers' Association president Chris Abercrombie. Photo: RNZ / Angus DreaverThe Government plans to make changes to the English, maths and science curriculum and the NCEA level two and three refreshes were yet to be rolled out.Abercrombie said he was "really worried" about the ramifications of the cuts on those."Any changes like that . . . is going to need a workforce to do it."It's either going to be pushed back onto teachers, or contractors are going to be brought in, or the work is just not going to get done, or it's going to get done poorly."He also questioned cuts to jobs in regional offices, saying they were front-line roles that schools dealt with daily."These aren't some bureaucrats at the headquarters in Wellington, they're in offices in Invercargill, in Napier and New Plymouth, that's who these people are, and they're the ones who schools deal with every single day."Education Minister Erica Stanford was adamant the job loses at the ministry were part of a deliberate shift to move resources to the front-line.Among the cuts were those involved in the NCEA changes which been delayed pending a review, she told Morning Report."For the most part, the Curriculum Centre proposed changes are around the NCEA change programme . . . there are a few in the curriculum area."What I'm not going to do is hold on to resource that we could be directing to the front-line for a year or more that we don't need while we are reorganising."Education Minister Erica Stanford. Photo: RNZ / Angus DreaverDespite more than 200 jobs going at the curriculum centre, Stanford said there would actually be new jobs created in the regions to help teachers with the curriculum changes.She couldn't say when they would be created.

Twenty submissions have been received following a proposal by NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) to make a section of State Highway 6 free of parking.The section of road the proposal relates to is around the entrance to the Kiwi Water Park at Lowburn, near Cromwell.An NZTA spokesperson said of the submissions received, eight were in support of the no-stopping area, seven were neutral and five were opposed.Submissions closed on April 3.The next stage will involve consideration of all the submissions, a summary report and recommendations.The area that could become a no-stopping zone runs for 1.3km. IMAGE: Supplied“If there is enough support for this change, restrictions will be included in the relevant state highway bylaw and implemented prior to 30 June, 2024. If not, there will be no change.”The proposal affects a 1.3km section on both sides of SH6.In an earlier statement, NZTA noted the inflatables water park and people accessing Lake Dunstan have dedicated, safe parking on LINZ land nearby, which meant there was no need for on-highway parking. NZTA has confirmed the proposal was in response to a number of crashes in the area, so it was doing all it could to make it safer.“This is essential given SH6 has a 100km/h upper speed limit so anyone pulling onto the highway is risking a serious injury crash, or worse,” NZTA team lead safety engineers Roy Johnston said.

The Cromwell MenzShed was once housed in a dilapidated shed, but members are one step closer to their new purpose-built 300sqm facility on Bannockburn Rd.Recently securing $120,000 from the Otago Community Trust, combined with $200,000 from Central Lakes Trust in 2023, the group of almost 60 members also managed to raise $70,000 - $80,000 from the paid work it does in the community.But, they are still $400,000 short and the current site is “completely maxed out” and almost a health and safety issue, trustee and funding co-ordinator Russ Fowler said.It currently operated out of two 40-foot containers and rotated the morning tea breaks to fit everyone inside.The new shed will allow the organisation to expand its membership and increase the number of community projects its members can take on, from building wheelchair ramps to constructing mud kitchens for schools.The new building will have a meeting room, which could be hired by other groups, toilets and an office as well as a large workshop.“The MenzShed is integral to the community network . . . it creates an environment where topics such as personal wellbeing, and other men's health issues, can be safely discussed either one on one or as an organised group session,” he said.Cromwell Foodbank has a set of new shelves, carefully crafted by members of the Cromwell Menz Shed. PHOTO: SuppliedMade up of mostly retired tradesmen, along with others looking to learn new skills, the reason for the ever-growing membership was due to a lot of people retiring to Cromwell and needing an escape from ‘underfoot syndrome,’ Russ said. “Even though there is a lot of work going on in Cromwell, these people have done their time and want to give back to the community,” he said.Bigger and more ambitious projects are on the horizon - “they are all about looking for the next community project, and that’s what they get out of bed for every morning.”The ambitious $900,000 project has already been designed and signed off, and the group was working with the Central Otago District Council on the requirements for the consent.Then there will be more funding to apply for, projects to keep on with - helping both the community and individuals in need, and making a little bit more income for itself.

Central Otago Indoor Bowls Association (COIBA) is running a fun have a go day this Saturday in Alexandra and everyone is welcome. COIBA publicity officer Dave Moreton said indoor bowls was inexpensive and a fun social activity over winter.“Like any ball sport, the secret is in controlling direction and weight. Get those right consistently and you will master the game in a very short time.”The have a go session is on Saturday April 20 at 1pm, in the Dunstan High School Gymnasium on Enterprise St, Alexandra. It costs $5 and you need to bring a plate, or a raffle prize and wear flat soled shoes.Indoor bowls are smaller than outdoor bowls, meaning no strength is required to get your bowl to the end of the 6.7 metre long carpet mat surface. It’s an inclusive game with different bowling stance options, some bowlers kneel on one or two knees, some stand. On the trial day, existing bowlers of all types will be there to help those new to bowling.There are options to play socially, compete in COIBA championships and team events, and to also play in South Island and national competitions. Secondary school students can also play in the national secondary schools' competition.There are several local clubs playing in Central, including Alexandra, Bannockburn, Cromwell, Ranfurly and Roxburgh. Contact COIBA secretary Evelyn Bisset on: [email protected] to find local contact information.