Travelling along Haven Rd an old structure sat in the corner of a construction site, a skeleton of the former building it was.
Now the old Mission to Seafarers building is front and centre having been moved closer to the road and put on solid foundations.
Owner Jose G Cano said he was happy to see ‘‘the beauty of the old buildings’’ coming back to Nelson.
‘‘It feels like all the old houses are taking over the ugly buildings, first there was our neighbour who repaired the beautiful cottage on the north side of us and now this one.’’
The old church was moved on Friday after weeks of preparation.
‘‘We were just waiting for the church to be in place, we had been restoring windows and preparing floorboards but we really couldn’t do much,’’ he said.
‘‘So now everything will go fast and you can see the line of all the buildings. It will be a nice feature of the road now.’’
Cano said the building was put ‘‘50 cms from the right place’’ but he was impressed with the finesse of the moving team.
(The Nelson Mail, Tuesday, May 31st, 2016)
Neighbours of a prime central city site planned to be sold for a housing development are rallying opposition before a council decision.
Nile St residents have been distributing flyers to homes and businesses against the sale of the Bett carpark near Cathedral Hill.
Some of the flyers show the impact of a four-storey building on the carpark site that would be allowed under the planned sale to a developer.
The full Nelson City Council meeting is expected to decide whether to go ahead with the sale on Thursday. Some residents say the proposed development will damage the character of the Cathedral Hill area known for its heritage housing. Others are alarmed at the lack of consultation and particularly that they have not been shown development concepts before the council votes on a sale.
The council owns the carpark and wants it to be developed as a Special Housing Area in line with its policy to encourage inner-city living. It sought expressions of interest in March.
SHAs are not subject to the usual public notification and consultation processes.
The proposed development plan allows a housing development of up to 15-metres high and a maximum of 20 dwellings.
Barbara Tanner, who lives in the adjoining Sussex Mews apartments, will speak to the council, along with other residents on Thursday.
(The Nelson Mail, Tuesday, May 31st, 2016)
Work on the controversial Stoke Community and Sports Facility at Greenmeadows will start a few weeks out from the local body elections, Nelson City Council staff have revealed.
With 17,500 residents including about 4500 retirees, Stoke is seen as a major political battleground for mayoral and council candidates.
A call for ideas for the area drew more than 800 submissions, more than for the city’s annual plan.
There was considerable public support for a multi-use facility in Stoke and the Greenmeadows centre became a major objective of Mayor Rachel Reese and the current council, but late questions arose over its siting beside the playing fields.
Reese’s mayoralty opponent, councillor Pete Rainey, made an 11th-hour bid for a re-think in July last year when the project was being signed off, saying it was wrong for the site.
By then it was too late and he failed to get any other councillors on board.
Since then Grey Power, the Nelson Residents Association and others have been calling for it to be built instead beside the Stoke Memorial Hall on the Marsden Recreation Reserve, with a smaller building on the current sports clubrooms site beside the tennis courts.
(The Nelson Mail, Tuesday, May 31st, 2016)
A familiar face dedicated to supporting the community has moved into the historic Melrose House. The cafe which is popular for special occasions had been on the market since the start of the year.
Previous owner Angela Kernohan said in January that she wasn’t in a hurry to sell the cafe and would wait for the right buyer.
Five months later the cafe has been sold with couple Jessica Bouchut and Jamie Higgins taking over.
‘‘I always wanted to own my own business ... it was definitely something that I wanted to do but it was just finding the right place and in a spot that I really loved,’’ Bouchut said.
Although the pair bought it together Bouchut said Higgins was more of a silent partner.
‘‘He’s super supportive, he’s awesome. He’s not actually involved in the business as such but he’s definitely a part of the whole Melrose vibe now,’’ she said.
Bouchut will look familiar to some Melrose regulars, she has been managing the business for three years. ‘‘It was quite a smooth transition in that respect, the customers all knew me so it was easy,’’ she said.
‘‘I’ve been seeing lots of new faces around with tourists so it’s been really good.’’ Bouchut is already tweaking things, starting with ‘‘supporting locals’’.
‘‘We’ve just taken on a new artist that has all her art up in the cafe, her name is Bec Brown,’’ she said.
Restorations will continue throughout winter.
(The Nelson Mail, Wednesday, June 1st, 2016)
Heritage trees on private property should be able to be removed without cost if they have potential to cause serious damage, says a Nelson arborist.
Nelson City Council will consider changes to regulations on Thursday surrounding the region’s heritage trees. Cadwallader Tree Consultancy arborist Brad Cadwallader suggested council extend the no cost consent for removal of protected trees where they could cause serious damage to a dwelling after he worked on a ‘‘rare case’’ where a heritage tree was located on a private property.
Cadwallader said arborists deemed the tree dangerous but fees and charges for resource consent activity meant the owner needed to fork out for the consent fee to have the tree removed.
‘‘I imagine there are very few instances where individuals would apply for resource consent,’’ he said.
There are about 120 heritage trees in the Nelson region and about 700 in Tasman region.
At the most recent planning and regulatory meeting Cadwallader said there should be no consent fee for the removal where it was causing serious structural damage and it was proven that there was no practical remedy available.
He also believed the consent fee should be $500, instead of the current $1300. He said the cost was to cover the work done by a council consultant who looked at the individual case, which if in a public place is fully covered if a protected tree needs to be removed.
However, council will recommend it continue to charge a resource consent fee for a heritage tree ‘‘to encourage property owners to take steps early on to prevent gradual damage to a dwelling by protecting both the tree and the structure’’.
The council said there were existing provisions to review the charges should circumstances warrant.
A final decision will be made at Thursday’s council meeting on whether it is appropriate to adopt the suggestions.
(The Nelson Mail, Wednesday, June 1st, 2016)
Nelson city councillors have thrown out a proposal to expand Special Housing Areas (SHA) to a high profile Tahunanui site.
Only two councillors supported the last minute amendment to include two lots at the corner of Tahunanui Drive, Rocks Rd and Bisley Ave intersection as a SHA development.
Special Housing Areas have been created under legislation to improve housing supply and affordability. They involve accords between councils and the Government to allow a fast-tracked housing process on suitable land.
The last-minute Tahunanui proposal at yesterday’s council meeting was for a maximum level of five storeys, a calculated height of 20 metres, which was changed to 15 metres during the meeting, and a minimum dwelling capacity of 12. The site is currently a car sales yard.
Tahunanui resident Jill Southon told councillors at the public forum the corner site addition to the area’s SHA developments on Beach Rd was a ‘‘nonconsultative process’’ which she strongly opposed. She said the area was zoned as suburban commercial land with a two-storey limit, and was concerned the sudden change meant a five-storey, 40-unit residential block would take its place.
(The Nelson Mail, Friday, June 3rd, 2016)
The fate of a proposal to sell a central city car park is unknown after councillors took the issue behind closed doors.
Nelson City councillors yesterday went into public exclusion discussions over the Special Housing Areas (SHA) development plan for the Bett car park on the corner of Trafalgar Square and Nile St.
Mayor Rachel Reese said this morning that the council hoped to release information on the proposal this afternoon. A resource application consent must be lodged by September 16, assuming the sale of the block is accepted.
Emotions ran high at the council meeting as members of the public expressed concerns over the future of the block if sold to developers.
Barbara Tanner of Sussex Mews was brought to tears as she told councillors how a high-rise development would impact her home and lifestyle. Using superimposed images she highlighted how a building that used the specified design controls would cast a shadow over her home – blocking Church Hill views and imposing on her privacy.
‘‘I could have a building up to 15 metres right up beside my house. This is twice the height of my building,’’ she said.
Larry Rueter of Nile St questioned the allocation for a high-rise SHA due to its location in the ‘‘heart of our town’’. Instead he hoped council would hold out for a grand design. ‘‘Let’s build something wonderful.’’
Elizabeth Dooley of Nelson Quakers said it was unlikely a development so close to the city would be an affordable housing option for low income earners. The council went into public excluded to consider the proposal. It received feedback from 36 people, with 12 in support. Five late submissions were given to council members.
(The Nelson Mail, Friday, June 3rd, 2016)
Exclusive negotiations to build 15 residential apartments on the Bett car park site are underway despite emotional objections from local residents.
The controversial sale and development process has begun - just one day after councillors put deliberations over the space behind closed doors.
Nelson City councillors went into public exclusion discussions on Thursday over the Special Housing Areas (SHA) development plan for the car park.
Emotions ran high at the meeting as members of the public expressed concerns over the future of the block if sold to developers.
Some citizens were concerned that the land would not be developed for affordable housing which was one of the reasons for the creation of the SHAs.
Barbara Tanner of Sussex Mews was brought to tears as she told councillors how a high-rise development would impact her home and lifestyle.
Despite objections the council pressed ahead announcing on Friday that Scott Syndicate Development Company would develop the site. However, sale negotiations between council and the company were still ongoing.
(The Nelson Mail, Saturday, June 4th, 2016)
The region’s cycle trails have been awarded more than $400,000 in funding to maintain its cycle trails.
The Tasman Great Taste Trail was awarded $391,691 and $49,818 was awarded to the Old Ghost Road to continue maintenance of the New Zealand Cycle Trail.
Nelson MP Nick Smith said he was ‘‘really pleased’’ that the Tasman Great Taste Trail had been funded. ‘‘It is an asset to our community. I am a regular user, recreation, fitness and family time, and rate it as one of the best cycle trails in country.’’
‘‘My favourite section is from Richmond to Mapua through Rabbit Island, with the unique ferry service across the Waimea Estuary.’’
Smith said the funding was good news at a ‘‘local level’’ and great for the quality of trails nationwide.
(The Nelson Mail, Monday, June 6th, 2016)
Nelson City Council has adopted its annual plan for the 2016/17 financial year.
The plan will come into force on July 1 with a rate increase of 2.8 per cent and a debt level of $131 million, $2 million under its longterm figure and 0.6 per cent lower than the long-term plan.
However, the adoption will add $70 to an average residential property’s rates.
All councillors, bar Tim Skinner agreed to the budgets and projects at the council meeting. Cr Skinner said restraints should have been made on spending.
Council will also progress with responsible a review of the marina and will look to activate vacant spaces to revitalise Trafalgar St.
(The Nelson Mail, Monday, June 6th, 2016)
“If you want happiness for an hour - take a nap.
If you want happiness for a day - go fishing.
If you want happiness for a year - inherit a fortune.
If you want happiness for a lifetime - help someone else.”
Chinese Proverb