Latest news with #WellingtonCity
RNZ News
6 days ago
- Health
- RNZ News
Cycleway tacks cause havoc among Wellington bike riders
Tacks on Wellington's cycleways have caused an upturn in puncture repairs over recent months. Photo: RNZ / Jazlyn Whales Increasing instances of tacks on Wellington cycleways have seen an uptick in tyre punctures and drawn a sharp reaction from the city council. A Wellington bike shop owner says more cyclists are coming to his store for puncture repairs, while Wellington City Council spokesperson Richard MacLean said "it would be nice if the people involved would just grow up and stop being dicks". MacLean said tacks were being thrown onto some cycle lanes "quite frequently" and where cyclists encountered tacks, they should contact the council to clean them up. "We're also aware that it'll be challenging to catch the culprits, but we urge anyone to get in touch, if they've got any information about who's involved." Bicycle Junction owner Dan Mikkelsen said recently 2-3 people came into the shop daily, due to the damage caused by the tacks. Social media posts in recent weeks complained of similar problems, which were also highlighted in January, when the city council urging the public to report any issues , which had occurred periodically in the city for years. "We've got a lot of our customers riding cargo bikes with 2-3 kids," Mikkelson said. "If you get a puncture or flat tyre, you can lose control and it's dangerous. "I don't think anyone's really considering what the consequences of it could be - it's not just a pestering nuisance, it's really unsafe." He said cases had risen in the past three months. "It's a real annoyance for people, a puncture on your way to work can really ruin your day." Mikkelsen said the tacks on the road would not stop people riding. Bicycle Junction owner Dan Mikkelson has seen a rise in tyre punctures in recent months. Photo: RNZ / Jazlyn Whales "It's pointless, we're going to keep cycling," he said. "Just quit it, it's dumb." RNZ staffer Andrew Robertson got a puncture from a tack Friday morning, while riding through Newtown. He said this had previously happened to him two months ago. Wellington's cycling community had begun to come up with its own solutions to remove the tacks off the road. "Somebody has a magnetic brush on the back of his bike that picks them up." Robertson stressed the importance of educating people that this was happening, but recognised it was difficult to monitor. "It would be great, if it didn't get to the point where someone got really hurt, before people realise how dangerous it is." RNZ reached out to the police for comment. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
25-05-2025
- General
- RNZ News
Begonia House reprieve celebrated by Friends of the Wellington Botanic Gardens
Mazz Scannell at a protest outside The Begonia House. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone The woman behind a successful bid to save Wellington's Begonia House from demolition says she's "absolutely thrilled" after Wellington City Councillors voted to save it . The popular 1960s greenhouse for exotic plants will now be upgraded, following Thursday's meeting that saw a reprieve for it and two other beloved community assets, the Karori events centre and Khandallah Pool. Friends of the Wellington Botanic Gardens president Mazz Scannell said she was overjoyed. "It's great result not only for people living in Wellington, but the people who visit Wellington and people who love Wellington. Good on the council for getting in behind it." Mazz Scannell, at a protest earlier this year. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone "I'm absolutely thrilled. It's a big compliment to everybody who helped - and there were many. Some people pounded the pavements and got signatures to those who hosted hoardings to donating so that we could afford to pay for the hoardings. "It was a real community effort and a big community - we got donations from all around the world. It's not just a Wellington thing with Begonia House, it's touched people far and wide. She said there were "two layers" within the army of volunteers who comprised the campaign. "There's probably about 50 people [who] really put themselves out there to make sure that people signed the petition and made submissions. But then there are thousands who talked about it with everybody that they met. I had feedback, especially from counsellors, going 'Oh my God, if I go to one more meeting where all they do is talk to me about the Begonia house'. I said, just vote for it, it's easy." "There were so many people who really were captured by the idea of saving it. because it's such an important thing to so many people, on so many levels." The Friends of the Wellington Botanic Garden is fundraising to buy suitable equipment for the interior of the tropical greenhouse. Photo: Wellington City Council A petition to save the greenhouse got 8730 valid signatures. The council had saved the greenhouse but the upgrade budget was minimal, Scannell said. "It's a do-minimum decision. So I'm working with local construction companies who say we're all part of this Wellington community and I've already had enormous support from them, which I'm very grateful for. So I'm hoping that we will have a better than do-minimum building for a do-minimum price." The Friends of the Wellington Botanic Garden was also now fundraising to buy suitable equipment for the interior of the tropical greenhouse. "We're now raising money so the inside can be the best it possibly can, as well," Scannell said. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Reuters
20-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
New Zealand's budget cuts punish public sector, business and workers
WELLINGTON, May 21 (Reuters) - At a trendy cafe in downtown Wellington, job seekers gather to share tips on how to find work in New Zealand's capital, where deep government spending cuts have led to thousands of public sector job losses and squeezed the city's economy. Rebecca Thomson, a communications specialist who started the informal support group after she couldn't find work as a government contractor during the cuts, says competition for positions is fierce. "We were told survive until 2025 and it will get better. Well, we're now in May 2025 and it doesn't feel better," said Thomson, who is currently doing paid freelance work. New Zealand's conservative coalition government releases its annual budget on Thursday and is expected to continue to push fiscal discipline with many ministries not expected to see budget increases. Spending cuts since December 2023 have been felt across the wider economy but perhaps most acutely in Wellington, a city of nearly 210,000 where the government has historically been a major employer. House prices in Wellington have plunged 6.8% over the past year, far exceeding the national decline of 1.1%. Population growth stagnated in 2024, contrasting with a 1.7% increase nationwide. Consumer and economic sentiment in the city remains lower than in many other regions, with businesses and residents expressing concern over the city's prospects. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon was elected in 2023, promising to cut "wasteful spending". His campaign for fiscal discipline preceded a significantly more high profile push by U.S. President Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk to make Washington more efficient, which has led to the loss of thousands of U.S. public sector jobs. "It's pretty clear that the impact on Wellington, from the government baseline spending cuts, and also the reduction in spending on contractors, has been quite negative," said Westpac New Zealand Chief Economist Kelly Eckhold. "You can see that in pretty much any indicator of activity or house prices going on in Wellington right now." According to data from the Public Service Commission, public sector employment fell 4.2% in the year leading up to December 2024. Additionally, the government slashed NZ$300 million ($177.63 million) or about a third of the budget allocated to hiring contractors in the year to June 30, 2024, further tightening the purse strings. Several infrastructure projects were cancelled, including much of Wellington's flagship public transport project. Baseline spending at the upcoming 2025 budget is expected to be smallest in a decade. While the government has foreshadowed an increase in infrastructure spending, the overall fiscal strategy remains tight and is unlikely to help Wellington's economy. Finance Minister Nicola Willis said in a speech earlier this month that a tight fiscal strategy was necessary to keep interest rates low and ensure New Zealand continues to be seen as a good place to invest. That fiscal prudence combined with New Zealand's relatively low government debt is seen as safeguarding the country's economic stability and keeping a favourable sovereign credit rating. However, opposition leader Chris Hipkins said the cuts have led to increased spending on unemployment benefits. "Now is exactly the time for government to make the investments we need in infrastructure, housing, health, and our environment so we are creating jobs and get New Zealand moving again," Hipkins argued in a pre-Budget speech. But while the cuts have led to public sector strikes, the latest polls indicate that the current coalition of the National Party, New Zealand First and ACT would retain power in an election. Economists say fiscal tightening is creating ripple effects across the economy. Ganesh Nana, former commissioner of the now-defunct Productivity Commission, and 14 other economists, wrote to the prime minister and finance minister in November, warning their approach risked "a long-lasting hollowing-out" of business. "When redundancies occur, affected individuals don't simply wait for the private sector to step in," Nana told Reuters. "They often seek opportunities abroad, leading to an immediate loss of capacity for the New Zealand economy." Shay Peters, chief executive for recruiter Robert Walters in New Zealand and Australia, said there was general nervousness in the contractor community for the next financial year, which starts July 1. "In Wellington, we're seeing institutionalised hospitality organisations shutting down," he said. "It's just pretty dire." Emily Turner, who has been working in various public service jobs for 25 years, finished her contract as a strategic communications manager at the Workforce Development Council in Wellington last June and thought she'd have work by Christmas. She is now living off her savings and has been unable to add anything to her retirement fund. Turner said she'd be keen to leave Wellington but with a mortgage and lower house prices, such a move is not an option. "I'm in a financial trap," she said. ($1 = 1.6889 New Zealand dollars)
RNZ News
19-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Wellington scheme using office blocks for affordable housing expanded
Photo: RNZ / REECE BAKER Housing developers and Wellington City Council say the Te Kāinga affordable housing scheme is well on the way to creating 1500 new apartments in Wellington's central city by 2033. Property developer Ian Cassels said the scheme was a crucial springboard to promote growth in the capital. Originally proposed in 2018 by then mayor, Justin Lester, Te Kāinga involved developers converting unused office buildings into residential apartments with the council then taking on a long term lease and acting as property manager. The scheme was designed to be "cost neutral" to ratepayers - with building owners paying to maintain the buildings - while a property management fee covered the council's cost of managing tenants. The success of the early stages of the initiative had recently seen the council expand the initial goal of 1000 new apartments to 1500 by 2033. Ian Cassels' development firm, The Wellington Company owned two of the three buildings currently operating within the scheme. "Unless we get people living in the city, the city has no other way to grow again easily. "If we put 30,000 people in Wellington in the next ten years - which is more than likely - you would obviate the need for light rail, a four billion dollar device to get you from here to the suburbs. Why not be just walking around the city? "It's the intensity [of housing] that matters to the country - which we're not getting - and Wellington is the place for it," Cassels told RNZ's Nine to Noon . Cassels said he was confident the city's unused office space could accommodate up to 30,000 additional residents "easily". "The city swells to a 108,000 people on a workday. A lot of them occupy high rise buildings. A lot of [those] are now are not occupied. There's going to be space." Cassels said buildings were selected for their central locations, good light and air and seismic integrity. He said his company would require a New Building Standard (NBS) of above 67 percent to purchase a building for conversion while all of the council's leases within the scheme required at least an 80 percent earthquake strength rating. Wellington City Council (WCC) manager of housing development Paul McCorry said the scheme was designed to help bolster the workforces of the city's burgeoning creative and start-up businesses. "It is aimed at people who are living and working in the city. Our council is resolved to have a priority criteria for people who are working in job creation industries in the city so people who are working in the arts, people who are working in start-ups, people who are working in hospitality," he said. McCorry said long term tenancy agreements would also offer a security not common in central city housing. "We might have a long term commitment with a landlord for up to 20 years and we really want somebody who moves into one of our buildings to be able to have that flexibility that - if they want to live there for 20 years too - they can. "It's about security of tenure for people. Giving them a good strong foundation so they can get on with the rest of their life and have a strong home behind them," he said. McCorry said a property management fee paid by the building owners meant the scheme could operate with no impact to rate payers. "We're committing to a long term lease which allows [building owners] to pass on a rent that is below market and we can actually pass that rent on to our tenants. "We have a small tenancy management team and [building owners] provide a management fee as well, which covers the cost of those employees which are looking after our tenants, and makes sure that the whole thing is cost neutral," McCorry said. The scheme could act as "proof of concept" - for other councils looking to boost urban living - at home and abroad, he said. "We've been contacted by other councils interested in the program because they see some of the successes we've been having. "Melbourne, as an example, had some research recently where they identified 86 buildings within their CBD that were suitable for conversion."
RNZ News
18-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Spreading a council scheme using office blocks for affordable housing
Photo: Supplied / Wellington City Council A Wellington developer is keen to promote a council affordable housing scheme that is cost neutral to ratepayers. Te Kāinga is a Wellington City Council scheme aimed at people on medium to lower incomes - and those with disabilities - who may otherwise find it difficult to access appropriate housing in the city. It involves partnering with building owners and developers to convert unused office buildings, with the council taking on the lease and acting as manager. The plan was first floated by then mayor Justin Lester in 2018, and since then it has delivered 290 apartments with a goal of reaching 1,000. Paul McCorry, Wellington City Council's Manager of Housing Development and Ian Cassels a director of the development firm The Wellington Company - that has been involved in the conversions - talk to Kathryn about the scheme.
