29 July 2022
Media: Multiple
Topic: Whakarewarewa Village road collapse
Enquiries
Enquiries and requests for interviews and updates have been received regarding the road collapse in Whakarewarewa Village yesterday (29 July 2022) where a woman was injured.
Media enquiries received from: TVNZ, NewsHub TV, Radio NZ, Stuff, Rotorua Daily Post, and a Sydney-based correspondent for European media
Response
Reporters were referred to the link on our website HERE for updates.
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Media: Local Democracy Reporter
Topic: RLC costs incurred in relation to judicial review
Enquiry
NOTE: this enquiry followed a question yesterday, relating to costs incurred to date by the council, following RLC’s statement yesterday about seeking costs in relation to the now withdrawn court action re Representation Review
Just checking in light of this:
Incl GST that cost is $148,350.
Therefore is it fair and correct to say the council intends to pursue costs of about that figure? ie "Rotorua Lakes Council will pursue almost $150,000 in costs..."etc?
Response
No.
Rotorua Lakes Council will pursue fair and reasonable costs and it will be up to the judge to determine what that level is.
You can attribute that to CE Geoff Williams if needed.
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Media: Rotorua Daily Post
Topic: Vehicle damage at Murray Linton Park
Enquiry
I've spoken to a few locals, another near Murray Linton Rose Garden with a similar issue, and they've said that they haven't heard back from council after making enquires. Can I ask why this is?
If locals are taking the time to submit issues in their area, why aren't things being done to prevent it from happening?
Why hasn't the council put in bollards or gates around grassed reserve areas to protect the land?
How much would installing bollards cost around the perimeter of targeted areas?
How much would installing rocks cost around the perimeter of the targeted areas?
Local residents have solutions: they are wanting to put in protective measures, such as fences or rocks / a form of barrier that would detract hooligans from their unbecoming behaviour. Two neighbours, as well as the first local to contact us re Kuirau even said that they would volunteer their time to help develop Kuirau to an ecologically restored swampland to attract native manu and provide a habitat for them.
There are solutions here, why isn't there any action to prevent this degradation?
Response
The following information and comment was provided:
As mentioned earlier, without knowing the names of the residents who have said they alerted Council to issues in the Murray Linton Rose Garden, and/or the dates those enquiries were made, it’s difficult for us to check and comment on the outcome. We have conducted a search of Requests for Service (RFS) for the Murray Linton Rose Garden and we have one RFS on record which came in on Wednesday this week. Staff inspected and found there was some damage which they will look to repair once we’ve had a few days of dry weather.
Additional requests may have come in via other channels and we do endeavour to respond to all requests for service in a timely manner.
In regards to your other questions, Sport, Recreation and Environment Manager Rob Pitkethley,has provided the following response:
“Rotorua Lakes Council manages approximately 330 reserves across the district.
“We do get some vehicle damage each winter that can usually be repaired with mowing and in some more badly damaged areas re-sowing of grass seeds is required.
“Damage can occur on any reserve and collectively, these reserves have many kilometres of boundary. To put bollards around them is expensive and also increases the maintenance cost when bollards are damaged. The installation of vehicle-proof bollards along a park edge costs in excess of $14,000 per 100m (ex GST).
“Using rocks to stop vehicles getting onto the grass is more expensive because of the size and amount of rocks needed to create an effective barrier that is difficult for vehicles to move out of the way.
“Limiting access also requires gates and ongoing management for when park maintenance or organised community use of the parks occur.
“Additionally, vehicle-proof bollards do not stop motorbikes which are sometimes responsible for the type of damage witnessed. Full fencing would be required to prevent motorbikes getting onto reserves but this would then also restrict legitimate users with prams and mobility assisting devices like wheelchairs and mobility scooters.
“We want our public parks and reserves to be as accessible as possible for legitimate users, so we try to avoid fencing where we can.
“As mentioned earlier this week, vehicle damage to reserves is an offence and we work with the Police on enforcement where evidence can be obtained to initiate the necessary actions. We do encourage residents to report this type of damage to council so we can investigate and make repairs as quickly as possible and if people see it happening they should contact the Police.”