Higher and higher and lower and lower

So much fuss over Environment Day, which is cool to celebrate but it’s a bit like Christmas. Everyone makes a fuss of being good and giving but what about the rest of the year? Pretending to care about the earth for one day doesn’t change the fact that we should do something about it 365 days and not just one.

The development at any cost to the environment mentality is alive and well and Council has been involved in several key decisions. Without any public consultation it passed its South of Lichfield Masterplan, a key feature which is the buy back deal over the next few years of properties to Mr Dave Henderson (who interestingly enough was the only member of the public consulted and involved).

This plan moves to lower building height in the area because it considers the height limits are too generous. At the same time, Council has just decided to fundamentally change the future of New Brighton by allowing a massive increase in height limits to 30 meters in some parts. How ironic is that??.

I voted against the New Brighton plan change because I am deeply concerned about the impact on the local community and the local environment. Anyone who has been to the Gold Coast or Waikiki in Hawaii will know how tall buildings along a coastal area absolutely destroy the character of the local neighbourhoods. Besides, do we really have the population in Christchurch that wants to live in shoeboxes along the beach? I’ve heard the Ferrymead Tower apartments have been very slow to sell. As for the Master Plan for the South, despite the propaganda saying it is to encourage people to live in the inner city, there is no mention of affordability in the 100+ page document. And it is largely silent on Community and Social objectives although there is reference to $350 pw apartments units being a goal. Sounds pretty pricey to me!

DRINKING and Drinking and drinking.

I went to a public meeting organized by the Police to hear from the Community what the big issues are they want tackled. Interestingly enough the Police say that 80% of people being locked up are under some influence of alcohol. It was good to hear that the hype surrounding drugs being so bad and so evil is far from the reality when compared to the huge negative impact of booze. I have long argued that the drug laws in this country should be changed and that Christchurch should lead the way. Speaking at J-Day last month, I talked about the need for a revolution in our approach to criminalizing drug use. It is interesting to note that our sister city, Seattle, instructed the police to stop focusing so much on cannabis crimes and spend more time on violent crimes. This has been a very successful approach. Let’s face it, if you got your house broken into, would you rather have your burglary attended to and dealt with or someone locked up for smoking a joint?

Back to drinking, council has just ratified some new and extended alcohol ban bylaws. These bylaws mean no drinking in public in the Central City 24/7 and also place lesser restrictions in areas such as Sumner, New Brighton, Jellie Park, Northlands, Colombo Street. If you get caught, it’s a fine of up to $20,000 and a criminal conviction. So the next time you feel like having a drink in public be careful.