
shorelife: The official email newsletter of North Shore City Council If shorelife does not display properly, please go to: http://www.inbox.net.nz/shorelife	November 8 , 2007

shorelife keeps you up to date with all that is happening in North Shore City


	Your Council: Underground representatives ... Your Neighbourhood: New Citizens ... What's On: Swim Safe ...

Your Council

“Deep inside the Torbay tunnel are (from left); Mayor Andrew Williams, Councillor Grant Gillan, contractor Marchcato director Adam Cato, Councillor Joy Brett and East Coast Bays Community Board member Sally Cargill.” Underground Excursion: It was ‘all aboard’ a mini railway for North Shore City’s new elected representatives yesterday when they inspected the $6.8m Torbay to Browns Bay sewer tunnel upgrade. Mayor Andrew Williams, councillors and community board members boarded small rail buggies to travel the length of the 750 metre tunnel project, which is designed to improve network capacity in the area. The tunnel and original 500mm diameter pipe are 45 years old and run beneath the headland between Waiake and Browns Bay beaches. The original pipe has been removed and significant work undertaken to enable the installation of a new 900mm pipe. Work began on site in November 2006 and is scheduled for completion in February 2008. More Information

New Council: The city has a new Mayor and council following the Local Government Election. Mr Andrew Williams has been elected Mayor and there are seven new councillors joining eight councillors who held their seats (meet your council here). A meeting of the new council shortly after the election resolved that the city no longer supports the proposed airport at Whenuapai; it wants to shorten the time frame for completion of another harbour crossing; and that there will be no support for funding of the Eden Park upgrade by North Shore ratepayers. More Information

Second Crossing: One of Mr William’s first actions as Mayor was to inspect the Auckland Harbour Bridge with the Transport Minister at the invitation of Transit New Zealand. After his visit Mr Williams said he had been assured that the bridge – in its present condition and with heavy-traffic restrictions – was safe for motorists. He then said he wanted a second harbour crossing fast tracked. Calling for talk to be replaced by action, Mr Williams said a ten year project was necessary to cater for transport requirements now and into the future. North Shore City Council is an equal partner in the Waitemata Harbour Crossing Study, with Transit, ARC, ARTA and Auckland City Council. An update of the project plan is available here.

Chelsea Decision: Decisions by North Shore City on Private Plan Change 16 to the District Plan in regards to the Chelsea Sugar Refinery land at Birkenhead have been made public. The Plan Change does not predicate closure of the refinery, but provides for a mix of new uses in the event of sugar refining ceasing. Although mainly residential, the change also allows for some community and business uses, while at the same time protecting the heritage buildings, wharf and unique coastal location. More Information

Your Neighbourhood

Mr Williams signs an autograph for Uttara Rallabandi while her mother Mrs Padma Rallabandi looks on Diverse City: North Shore City’s official population grew by more than 500 recently, following the latest citizenship ceremony held at the Bruce Mason Theatre this week. Mayor Andrew Williams led the celebration in which he welcomed 550 new New Zealand citizens to the North Shore. The city holds seven of these ceremonies each year where similar numbers swear allegiance to their new country of residence. Originating from 35 different nations around the world, the Shore’s newest citizens come from a diverse range of countries such as: Egypt, Iran, Nigeria, Slovakia and Venezuela to name just five. British, Chinese, Indian, Korean and South African migrants made up the largest numbers of new residents. More Information

Dogs Online: North Shore City has launched an innovative new feature which will allow residents who lose a dog to publish details to the Internet. While the programme will allow people to enter details and a photograph from home, the process will be managed by the council’s animal control officers and “actionline” staff to ensure accuracy and relevance of entries. People who find a stray dog will also be able to publish details to help put those who are searching for lost pets in touch with those who have found them. More Information

Heritage Week Fun: North Shore City's 2nd Heritage Week was a resounding success! From one end of the city to the other, people turned out to celebrate the richness of our communities, to learn about our diverse heritage, and to enjoy getting to know one another. The organisers congratulate and have thanked all those who gave their time and energy to organising events. Already planning is under way for a bigger and even better event next year. See pictures from Heritage Week here.

Art Awards: The North Shore City Art Awards were awarded for 2007 at the Mairangi Arts Centre. About 200 people attended the awards ceremony. The North Shore City Council Premier Award went to Miki Clark for a painting called Sausage Sizzle, in keeping with the “Celebrating New Zealand” theme of the contest. The entries will be on display until November 17. A report and examples of the art can been seen here.

Albany Highway: Plans have been announced for reconstruction of Albany Highway between Schnapper Rock Road and Albany Village to four lanes. The development will probably occur in two stages and associated with traffic growth. Consultation with residents and users of the highway is under way. Details have been published and opinions can be lodged online. More Information

Make the leap: As the Northern Busway project nears completion, North Shore residents are being encouraged to 'get ready to make the leap'. Watch out for billboards, newspaper ads, and a brochure in your letterbox that will explain the major improvements to North Shore bus services coming up in the new year. The Northern Busway will officially open on February 2, and we will be celebrating with a huge party for all North Shore residents and bus users. Station buildings will be complete by the end of November, while the next couple of months will be spent adding the finishing touches, training bus drivers to use the busway and testing all the systems to make sure everything is running smoothly for February. More Information

Toxic Waste: The next Hazmobile collection will take place on Saturday, December 8 at Oteha Valley Road, Albany. The HazMobile collection accepts any household material that may be harmful to your health or the environment including chemicals, batteries, gas cylinders, oil, solvents and paint strippers. More Information

What's on in North Shore City

Safeswim helps keep beaches safe for swimmers Safeswim: North Shore City Council’s annual Safeswim water quality monitoring programme begins on Wednesday 7 November. The programme is now into its ninth year and tests water quality at 33 sites around our city.The city’s pollution prevention co-ordinator, Rachel Zaloum, says samples will be taken on a weekly basis over summer until 23 April 2008. If results show water quality is not within national health guidelines, warning signs on red posts advising the public not to swim or undertake other contact water activities are temporarily put up at the main access points of affected sites. The message is clear: If you see red, don’t swim! Results will be available by phone from 0800 SAFESWIM (0800 72 33 79) and will be published regularly on http://www.northshorecity.govt.nz (keyword: safeswim).More details

Shore Sounds: Shore Sounds will soon be making artist and location announcements for the new series of free summer concerts taking place across the city in February and March 2008. The schedule for free summer shows next year will have a new look, featuring more contemporary style artists who have a broader audience appeal. Research has determined that we deliver more recognized artists as well as original emerging artists within the free summer concert programme. As a result there will be a shift in focus away from smaller community events to slightly larger and broader appeal artists and locations. Watch out both here and on the shoresounds.co.nz website in early December for announcements and information.

Moonlight Movies : Gather your old bean bag, fold out chairs and picnic blankets because this summer North Shore City is bringing you 23 completely free open air Moonlight Movies. These will screen across eight North Shore City parks and reserves, and will take place between January 31 and April 5, 2008. There will be films for everyone - from art-house and cult classics, to family-friendly movies and some classics. For more details about these films, their screen dates and locations, please keep an eye on the North Shore City Council website. A full schedule will be available online during the month of December 2007.

Did You Know? You will find a constantly updated schedule of events on the North Shore City from http://www.northshorecity.co.nz/ (keyword: what’s on) for seven days in advance.
Keep up to date with entertainment, sports, music, theatre and arts events. More Details

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