Latest news with #carparking
RNZ News
4 days ago
- Business
- RNZ News
Patient accommodation building in Dunedin 'beyond economical repair'
By Tim Scott , Otago Daily Times Oamaru House, Dunedin. Photo: Google Maps A Dunedin hospital patient accommodation building earmarked for demolition is in such a poor condition it is "beyond economical repair", Foodstuffs says. The supermarket giant said its planned demolition of Oamaru House, at 95 Hanover St, to add "much-needed" car parking at New World Centre City was a decision that had not been taken lightly. It announced last month it had lodged applications with the Dunedin City Council for building permits to demolish the building, as well as another structure at 121 Great King St. Operated by the Oamaru House Trust, the volunteer-run facility provides affordable accommodation for patients and their families, particularly those based rurally. Its lease is due to be terminated on 31 October. A Foodstuffs South Island spokesperson said it understood Oamaru House held a special place in the community and some people would be disappointed to see it go. As the landlord, it had a responsibility to ensure the spaces it managed were of a reasonable standard for people to live in, the spokesperson said. "A recent building survey unfortunately confirmed that Oamaru House was in particularly poor condition and was beyond economical repair. "That assessment, along with the fact that two floors have remained vacant for over a year, reinforced our decision not to renew leases and to proceed with plans for its removal. "We truly appreciate the community's connection to this site and hope people will understand why we had to make this difficult decision." The spokesperson did not confirm how many carparks the demolition of Oamaru House was expected to generate. Murray Radka, 77, of Alexandra, said he was "appalled" Foodstuffs planned to demolish the site for additional carparks. "What a huge difference it's going to make for thousands of sick people from out of Dunedin who are going to have to make other arrangements." Radka said he had travelled to Dunedin hospital for treatments, including for permanent lung issues, an aneurysm in a carotid artery, prostate cancer, and a rheumatoid arthritic condition - and more recently a hernia surgery. He was often not strong enough to walk long distances unassisted, so relied on his wife, who had mobility problems of her own. If Oamaru House did end up relocating, he could not think of any other site in the vicinity of Dunedin hospital that was as convenient as the current premises. Before he started staying there, Radka said he would book Airbnbs or other private accommodation. But these could be quite a way out of Dunedin and lacked the support services Oamaru House offered, he said. "You can't put a value on a facility like this, and to think that it will be replaced by a few carparks which I think are going to make very little difference to the operation of Foodstuffs." Oamaru House Trust chairman Tony Caldwell said while the decision was disappointing, Foodstuffs had treated the trust well and he did not begrudge them for it. The trust was given notice on 13 May. Unless a "very big benefactor" came along, the trust was not in a position to lease or buy another building, Caldwell said. "In all probability, if we'd found another building, it would have required a reasonably significant refit or fit out or improvements made to bring it up to standards, of which we didn't have the finances to be able to do that." - This story was first published by the Otago Daily Times
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Towns can keep free car parking but enforcement without revenue a 'challenge'
FREE car parking could be maintained in a string of towns following a review carried out on behalf of a county council. But the councillor responsible has highlighted the 'challenge' of enforcing parking restrictions without revenue from drivers paying for a space. Monmouthshrie County Council appointed a consultant to review its car parking policies with the authority currently providing free to use car parks in some towns and operating pay and display facilities in others. Paul Griffiths, the cabinet member responsible, was asked for an update on the review and any of its findings, especially in relation to Usk, by independent councillor for Usk and Llanbadoc Meirion Howells at the council's May meeting. Labour's Cllr Griffiths confirmed he has received the draft report and said he 'looks forward' to publishing it and said: 'What I can tell council is it makes no recommendation for change in any of those towns that currently have no charges, namely Usk, Caldicot, Magor and Raglan. 'Instead it recommends undetaking, on a town by town basis, engagement with businesses, residents and town councils to test the case for any further changes and I look forward to working with Usk and Llanbadoc to consider how these engagements may be conducted.' Cllr Howells welcomed the answer as 'very good news' and said he had conducted a survey, on behalf of the town council, to which 1,600 people responded and found 93 per cent in favour of retaining free parking. 'For a town of just over 2,600 people this level of response only goes to show the amount of concern,' said Cllr Howells who also asked how the council plans to improve enforcement of parking regulations and restrictions. Cllr Griffiths said parking enforcement and recruiting and retaining traffic wardens, known as enforcement officers, has been a challenge for the council but said action is being taken to address that. He said: 'All of us will be monitoring performance following from that action and Usk residents will note the challenge of funding enforcement when there is no revenue stream from parking charges.' Cllr Griffiths also reminded councillors there had been 'no increase in funding' when responsibility for parking enforcement transferred from police to local authorities 'in the recent past'.
News.com.au
23-05-2025
- Automotive
- News.com.au
Six car bays in Sydney's CBD have sold for millions of dollars
If you thought the cost of real estate in Australia could not get anymore unaffordable, a handful of car bays in Sydney's CBD have just sold for millions of dollars. Located within one of Sydney's most enviable addresses, six car bays at 2 Phillip St went under the hammer for an eye-watering $3.65m. The 85sq m concrete slab is located on the ground floor of The Quay, a 29-storey residential building just 150m from Circular Quay and within walking distance to the Opera House and new Quay Quarter. The prime parking bays costing a soul destroying $600,000 each for 14sq m of space were sold by Collier executives James Cowan and Cameron Colquhoun. The sale price was almost double a previous record for a car spot which sold for $304,700 in Bondi last year. In 2013, the City of Sydney restricted carparking in the city to encourage people to use public transport and reduce congestion. The restrictions led to limited parking and high costs in the city with off street parking costing drivers about $40 an hour.
BreakingNews.ie
22-05-2025
- Automotive
- BreakingNews.ie
Cork Council green light for Apple car-park expansion along with employing 6,000 by 2030
Cork City Council has given the green light to Apple for 285 extra car parking spaces at its European headquarters in Cork to help facilitate an additional 1,300 new employees for its campus in 2025. The Council has attached 22 conditions to the planning permission to Apple Operations International Ltd (AOIL) for the additional car-park spaces in one car-park with 159 spaces and the other with 126 spaces — on land banks it owns to the north of David McCarthy Rd on the northside of Cork city. Advertisement The permission follows consultants for AOIL, DBFL Consulting Engineers telling the council that the number of employees is expected to reach 5,350 across the entire Apple Campus at Hollyhill by mid-2025. DBFL state that there is a longer-term projection 'of 6,000 employees by 2030 subject to market conditions'. The grant of permission for the 285 car-spaces is in addition to the 2,572 parking spaces either on-site or under construction at the Hollyhill Campus. In a planning report lodged with the application, consultants, HW Planning stated that the proposal is appropriate to facilitate the continued successful operation of Apple Operations in Cork and to meet the growing needs of their operations across Ireland and Europe "in the absence of frequent public transport provision'. Advertisement They state that the additional car spaces are required despite the initiatives being implemented on campus to promote sustainable travel options and are required to ensure the continued success of this strategic employment hub. Outlining the background to the application in a Parking Justification Report, DBFL state that 'the additional spaces are requested to provide short-medium term resilience and mitigate anticipated delays to the planned public transport and road network improvements ahead of the opening of the Hollyhill 5 building in mid-2025'. The report states that "in the longer term, there may be scope to repurpose these spaces to higher-value uses that support the expansion of the Apple Campus – once the planned key upgrades to Cork's transport network are delivered'. Outlining the need for the additional car-spaces, the report Advertisement cites delays in various public transport initiatives. The report states that initially the Cork Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy (CMATS) 2040 envisaged the construction of the Cork Northern Distributor Multi Modal Road (CNDR) by 2027 which would provide orbital active travel and public transport connectivity to the campus. The report states: 'However, the likelihood is that the delays to the roll-out of the CNDR in particular, will necessitate short-medium term requirement of the proposed car-parking. On planned BusConnects, the report states that while the original BusConnects timeline envisaged roll-out of infrastructure and services beginning in 2024, roll-out is now scheduled to commence in 2025/2026. Advertisement The report states: 'The delays in the rollout of BusConnects has resulted in additional Apple Shuttle services being required to address ongoing issues in journey time reliability. The report further stated that CMATS also proposes six Park and Ride facilities, including at Dunkettle and Blarney/Stoneview, connected by high-quality public transport services to key destinations. It states that 'to date, none of these P+R proposals have been delivered despite the establishment of a dedicated Park and Ride office in the National Transport Authority". The report states that in line with Apple's wider commitments to climate action and sustainability objectives, it would seek to reduce the number of employees commuting to the Hollyhill Campus by car in the long-term, by reducing the number of spaces per employee over time.
Irish Times
21-05-2025
- Automotive
- Irish Times
Apple HQ in Cork secures additional parking for 1,300 new employees
Cork City Council has given the green light to Apple for an additional 285 car parking spaces at its European HQ to help facilitate an extra 1,300 new employees this year. Apple Operations International Ltd (AOIL) had sought the additional capacity with 159 spaces in one car-park and 126 in another – on landbanks it owns to the north of the David McCarthy road on the northside of Cork City. The council has attached 22 conditions to the planning. DBFL Consulting Engineers submitted that the number of employees is expected to reach 5,350 across the entire Apple campus at Hollyhill by mid-2025. There is also a longer-term projection of 6,000 employees by 2030 'subject to market conditions', it said. READ MORE The 285 approved spaces is in addition to 2,572 that are already either on-site or under construction at the campus. In a planning report lodged with the application, consultants HW Planning said the proposal was appropriate in order to facilitate the continued successful operation of Apple operations in Cork 'in the absence of frequent public transport provision'. Additional car parking was required, they said, despite initiatives being implemented on-campus to promote sustainable travel. Outlining the background to the application DBFL also said the move would provide short to medium term resilience and mitigate anticipated delays to planned public transport and road network improvements. 'In the longer term, there may be scope to repurpose these spaces to higher-value uses that support the expansion of the Apple Campus – once the planned key upgrades to Cork's transport network are delivered.' The report added that delays in the roll-out of Bus Connects had resulted in additional Apple Shuttle services being required. It noted that six park and ride facilities are planned – including at Dunkettle and Blarney/Stoneview – connected by high-quality public transport services to key destinations. 'To date, none of these P+R proposals have been delivered despite the establishment of a dedicated park and ride office in the National Transport Authority'.
