Cultural & Recreation Well-Being Issues and Options

► Inappropriate use of facilities - walkways - conflicts with motorbikes and cycles (where do they go?).

► Continued support for our Library.

► Athletics track - soils for protection sun/rain, particularly for all school children who use it.

► Te Manawa - concentrate on quality and community not cost and revenue generation.

► Feilding to Palmerston North walkway.

► Increase the encouragement provided to the creative minds of our city through provision of public space and opportunity to produce and display/perform. For example, there are so many barren walls around town that would greatly benefit from being painted as murals and why couldn’t every council meeting feature some performing artists.

► Cycle paths and lanes - develop a system to keep these clear of glass. Contract willing cyclists to do it if it too expensive to do it in other ways. Keep expanding cycle lanes and paths and features such as bike-first-phases at traffic lights.

► Support community initiated projects instead of making barriers to community input (Pit Park).

► Support for local events by way of poster advertising, accepting it (bill stickers).

► More poster points/bollards etc.

► Te Manawa - support, support, support - those wonderful educational programmes for kids. Cheaper please, so more schools can take part more often.

► Future of Linklater block - to be progressed as a recreational area.

► Support for migrants to Palmerston North.

► The further development of the Kahuterawa recreational area - Sledge Track, Back Track, Woodpeckers - with a larger car park.

► Active interest in and promotion/support of city heritage, especially preservation of significant industrial heritage buildings, e.g. Hoffman Kiln, Keith Street, Power Station etc.

► Trees and gardens not concrete and ashphalt.

► Human personal space.

► Arts Strategy in draft form and no $ in LTCCP to implement it.

► Kiwi Sanctuary in Turitea Water Reserve (economic and environmental too).

► The participation beyond the Manawatu of elite cultural groups, e.g. Renaissance Singers.

► Acknowledgement and participation by the city of Heritage Week - Celebrating 50 years of New Zealand Historic places Trust.

► Promote the great existing walkways we already have i.e. Bridle track and Summerhill area walkways.

► Coordination of events - make sure Massey University events included.

► Contracting out events co-ordination possible .

► We need a large recreational lake near the City.

► Make more of river (as New Plymouth has done with their waterfront, and Napier) - turn it into a virtue.

► Better rubbish dumping and collection facilities at/along recreational facilities.

► Better cycle paths especially, in the CBD area, e.g. Ferguson Street.

► What happened to the old Pit Park?

► We keen gardeners and respecters of Hort etc. research need a Palmerston North Garden Festival, with sponsor(s) like Rotary, with PNCC Parks/Reserves staff, with special flower qps like Rose Society, with garden supply firms, with Hort Research Massey/Ucol. Suggest time late September with IPC cherry blossom, marquees, sited Ongley Park. Start small, work up, and volunteers.

► Parking areas along the river for easy access - wheelchairs etc., picnics, kayakers. Need to be fenced parking areas.

► Esplanade - lighting features to make better use of this facility/space at night (e.g. Pukekura Park lights festival in New Plymouth).

► Access to public recreation facilities e.g. fencing off of hockey field (turfs).

► Cycle paths to Feilding, Ashhurst, the beach.

► Concerned about cycle lanes in the city - don’t like idea of them being in the middle of the road at an intersection.

► Visibility of parking/cyclists in city area.

► Backing out of car parks is difficult - can’t we park with rear of car into park so we can park with good visibility, to protect cyclists.

► Tramping hut.

► Northern Tararuas - connect to city’s outdoor Recreation Hub.

► Linking when your thinking!

► Esplanade Aviaries - more endangered species breeding

► “Round the river” walkway - Linton sewer bridge - new walks on other side of river.

► Recognise the arts and cultural expertise in the city instead of always going outside. Our own expertise know our own city very well, better than those outside.

► Forums much superior to captured reference groups - encourage broad grass roots participation. Public notes will be good - show that they are being listened to, to prevent apathy increase.

► Ahead of making Palmerston North a tourist mecca, make it a good place for our citizens to live in. They will be Palmerston North’s best ambassadors.

► Have a very limited fireworks season. Organised events/limited areas. 6 weeks of fireworks is not good.

► The Council need to employ an entrepreneurial Events Manager - Manager acknowledge local talents especially musical and dramatic.

► Co-ordination of events.

► Acknowledge UNESCO (United Nations Economic Society Cultural Organisation) international years!!

► A concise pamphlet describing events in Palmerston North/Manawatu - monthly, with catchphrase. Categories - Arts (theatre, etc.), Sports, other - website also. There is one, but its deadline is so far out that it is difficult to make it accurate. Relates back to having a PNCC officer.

► Dedicated Policy Officer (liaison) within Council.

► Policy that permits spectrum of community - commercial usage of cultural facilities.

► Too many agencies charged with promoting Manawatu and organising festivals etc., which makes coordination difficult and increases the costs of the individual events.

► Better links between the University and the city in arts, culture, sport. Support of events and facilities that are used/enjoyed by both community and students.

► Access to data for disabled - limitation to participation.

► Involve the diversity of cultures more in festival type events.

► That the PNCC join the New Zealand Historic Places trust as a corporate member - at present one of the few local bodies not a member.

► A sound shell for the city in the Square - it will be clean and tidy.

► Suggestion - phone operated recorded statement e.g. phone version of Square Circular.

► Acknowledge and appreciate the Library.

► What is Palmerston North.

► The policy makers need to recognise a supportive relationship with the Elected Members -we voted for the Elected Members not for the administration.

► Put shade trees in schools.

► Improve public access to tennis facilities.

► Public access to the facilities - fences prohibit use.

► We need to ensure that Te Manawa is supported.

► Linklater Block - develop.

► Bledisloe Park is how the Linklater Block could look in 20 years time. Vern Chettleborough would like to take councillors on a tour. Do the Councillors really know their city?

► Arts strategy implementation - no funding in LTCCP.

► Arts and Culture staff and Outdoor Recreation have been made redundant - big problem, big!

► Allocate funding for more public art in the city.

► Use Square Edge as the focus for all arts activities in the city.

► Adequately fund Square Edge so that it can become the vibrant cultural heart of the city.

► Acknowledge and be grateful for Council activity done well for residents, e.g. public gardens, care of trees.

► Control of cultural festivals and events to be retained by Palmerston North personnel.

► To fully adopt the Arts Strategy - and provide appropriate funding and support for implementation.

► Recognise culture/arts in regional branding.

► Support ancillary activities that promote/celebrate the many events held in the region, i.e. a national or international event given a community focus through community activities (PNCC driven).

► Appropriate (low) fees for sports fields, swimming pools etc. “User Pays” is not the best way. Encouraging kids into recreation (e.g. swim/athletics) keeps them out of trouble, fit and active (thin!).

► Promote/encourage adult recreation - keep them out of hospital etc.

► A strategic/coordinated approach to the provision of active recreation (including sport) to avoid ad hoc decisions - improve ‘better bang for the buck’ ratio.

► Co-ordination to ensure “current/upcoming events “well publicised via community media (radio, internet, papers).

► Value specialist/expertise in cultural/arts areas (not just commercial acumen/emphasis) for management/governance of cultural facilities.

► Support for those parts of the city that we can call our soul, our spirit, our heart. (I’m thinking of Te Manawa and the Library). Palmerston North people have indicated the importance of these facilities.

► The trees, the rivers.

► Council departments working across their boundaries to encourage active transport (supporting 10 min city thinking and flat city which is huge advantage).

► A safe water play area picnic area for children in Pit Park, Linklater Block.

► Maintain Caccia Birch at its very high standards.

► Commit to the programme to develop Arenas as agreed with Council.

► Extend the Walkway system.

► Recreation, Arts/Cultural facilities which are Council owned/run need to be available for all social, economic groups. So Recreation Ticket needs to be expanded to include these facilities and make a real difference in costs - and then it needs to be promoted much more widely.

► Too much emphasis on major or big events at the expense of the smaller ‘community focused’ events (ie. those that provide the on going mental/cultural health of the city).

► Continue to recognise the Globe Theatre as a major performing arts venue for our community.

► Use the Square to showcase our own artists - of all types.

► Democratise public art. Any art piece to be placed in public (especially at public expense) should undergo prior polling to assess public favour/disfavour. Only if 80% of citizens who write approval of it (on ’slip’ of paper and including their telephone no. as unique ID) should the art piece be placed in public. This would give the public a sense of inclusion in art, and engender enjoyment of it, and give people pride and a sense of place in Palmerston North. Precedents exist overseas. Details available.