Dear Editor,
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I feel so sorry for our two Labour MPs, who I am sure went into Parliament with the very best of intentions to meet the needs of this region, but they are not making any progress that I can see with their Ministers. It is disastrous for this region.

With the bungling bureaucratic system, we work under today, it slows everything down so much, one wonders if Wellington is actually capable of making any decision.

We have a port to protect access to; we have kiwifruit development exploding; we have rubbishy roads that are plain dangerous; we have buildings to get underway but the fast track process used for affordable housing has been wiped; we are the most expensive place in NZ  to buy a home. Every citizen is entitled to aspire to own a home, or at least they were.

Our region is growing strongly and it behoves the Government, whichever party is in power, to play their part, and keep pace with the growth we have. We need to work together for the benefit of all of us.

Margaret 

Editor
Bay of Plenty Times.

Dear Editor, 

To think that my family Iived in CHCH for so many years and I was a councillor in local government for much of that time, I cannot comprehend what has happened again to our beautiful garden city.

For such evil orchestrated actions to have involved Dunedin and CHCH is such an evil, suffocating tragic event for people to endure. For so many to be shot dead in 2 mosques in the same city is something we all have to come to grips with. This can never happen again and we citizens have to ensure that it doesn’t. It does not matter which city we live in that memorable quote “When good men stay silent evil prevails”, it is over to we men and women to make sure gun laws are reformed- tightened; every child should be loved and educated to ensure a fulfilling life as a global citizen; the work that our Maori wardens do to help our young should be respected and helped; Immigration laws should be checked and tightened; our housing regulations must change so people can afford to live here; our homeless must be housed.

​We have overdue work to do.

Margaret Murray-Benge

The Elms - Tauranga City Council Public Forum 
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I stand before you to urge your support for the Mayor and the three Councillors (Cr Robson, Stewart and Brown) who asked you to honour the past and transfer 11 Mission Street to the Elms.
That was the original intention when that property was purchased by Tauranga Council in 2009.  It was quite explicitly understood at that time that 11 Mission Street would be transferred to the Elms, but the transfer was never actioned.

I have asked myself in light of this present debate why anyone should care what you decide.  But the answer is clear. The Elms is an historical living treasure that is unique to the whole of New Zealand, not just Tauranga.

Previous Mayors and Councillors have acknowledged this national treasure, and have supported its survival and maintenance and invested accordingly.  When Rev Brown settled here with his family even before the Treaty was signed, his family endured major traumas, but they never gave up on their vision to create a centre where everyone was welcomed in peace.  So began in harmony European culture being shared with local Maori.

The Elms is still a living museum loved by all those young and older, of every race and culture.
I know how much Western Bays’ Katikati boutique museum is treasured, and 11 Mission Street could be equally valued as a boutique museum.  It is a critical part of the Elms, linking to an historic military cemetery too.

So ownership should be transferred directly to the Elms.  Transferring it to a trust makes no sense at all. I therefore urge you to reconsider your previous decision and transfer the ownership directly to the Elms.

Future generations of New Zealanders will be grateful to you, and so too will be your ratepayers.  We are a young country and preserving our past treasures is our responsibility.

If there is a dispute as to who owes whom from the past, that is for the Government to resolve not the ratepayers of this city, as indeed successive Governments have been doing over the last three decades.  

It is totally inappropriate for ratepayers to take on the responsibility of providing compensation for the alleged sins of the past.  

For the sake of the memory of Rev Brown and his family, and for the sake of today’s ratepayers in Tauranga City, it is imperative that you Councillors use your common sense and transfer the ownership of 11 Mission Street to the Elms without delay.   

That was the intention in 2009: we should wait no longer.

​Margaret

Dear Editor,
Another crash on the Kaimais. From the top of SH29 there are too many intersections along this route that are dangerous and in desperate need of upgrading so people can access and exit this highway safely. For locals it can be frightening as heavy truck movements are increasing on this heavy truck route.

Soldiers road crash is the latest tragedy.  The intersection used to sit 7th on the priority list for improvement, but the Regional Transport committee dropped it to 40???, and decided on doing safety works, there still is   no safe left hand turn or Right-hand turn, and there is poor camber on the road before the bridge. Impatiently we wait for the Govt to say if and when it will provide funding for safety work so the NZTA and the community can work together to provide safer intersections along SH29. Widening the road will take longer but it is awful that Wellington politicians throw money around but won’t fund intersection safety work on this highway. How many accidents and deaths have to occur before Wellington decides to fund NZTA, so we can work together to provide safer intersections in this sub region.
​
Margaret Murray-Benge

Editor,
With the start of a new year comes hope for new opportunities for our families and communities.
My hope is that local government will see the reform of the Resource Management Act, which is stifling development, turning too many good staff into box ticking bureaucrats, pricing people out of home ownership, and butchering our democracy.  Central governments come up with new ideas, which too often local government has to implement, without fixing the fundamental problem, which is the outdated and costly RMA.

Speeding up decisions and reforming consenting processes is essential.  Even at regional level, the consenting process is appallingly slow and cumbersome. To take a year to approve putting just over a metre onto an existing culvert, needed for road safety reasons, is disgraceful, and leaves a community with a dangerous SH29 intersection, when the work was ready to go at the end of 2017.   This was a shameful performance by the Regional Council.

People want to live in the beautiful Bay, but need central government to work with local government to ensure the RMA is working effectively, because people want homes they can afford and highways safe and free from congestion.  Among other things, that means fixing SH2 from the Northern Access to an interchange at the Omokoroa junction and the much needed bypass around Katikati.
2019 is the year for action and reform.

​There is too much talking and not enough action.
Margaret Murray-Benge

Dear Editor,
December year ago, the road safety intersection upgrade of Belk Road/SH29 should have been completed as the fine planning, property purchase, community consultation was completed. It was the very best example of working together with the NZTA and the people.

But before the work could be started a consent was required from the Bay of Plenty Regional Council. For over a year the Regional Council stuffed around. They stuffed around just over a metre to be added to an existing culvert, in order to give a safer left-hand turn into Belk Road. What a shameful decision consenting process we have endured for a year. Then without telling the community NZTA has thrown in the towel on the pretext of cost and that the road will not be needed in the future. Not that anyone can give a timeline and, in the meantime, people will continue to risk their lives getting onto and exiting SH29.

How on earth can a community have confidence in a system that takes forever to make a decision. I refuse to accept such gross incompetence.it is just not good enough. The community deserves better.

Margaret Murray-Benge           

​We want a government that will promptly approve and action the  SH2 proper upgrade, including the Omokoroa interchange, the Northern Link, and the Katikati Bypass, and intersection upgrades on SH29 and SH2.

We are a growth sub region and local Government is playing its part but central government has a responsibility to provide decent state highways, and must keep pace with local government planning. Under this present government our infrastructure planning has just become an insult and a disgraceful example of neglect.

The Editor,

It is not often that one feels totally disillusioned with the system we have to work with, but totally disillusioned I am.

Why would the NZTA senior stop the desperately needed road safety upgrade being undertaken at the Belk Road /SH29 intersection? It is totally unacceptable.

Belk road intersection is extremely dangerous, so together with the community we were able to work with senior safety engineer Adam Francis who understood the safety predicament. He organised for the safety design work which included adding just over a metre of pipe to the existing culvert so a safer left-hand turn could be made into Belk Road. Property purchases were made and work was to be completed last December. Then the horrible time drag occurred because the regional council consenting whoever, took months and months and depressing months to give approval and the work then was to be done this October.

Last week I was told by NZTA senior employee he had decided not to do the upgrade. No consultation with the community, just ignored their needs and said they will look at other safety options. It is a scandal and disgraceful that the community has to put up with such bureaucratic bungling. Not good enough and we will not accept such nonsense.
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Cr Margaret Murray-Benge

I think I would start with something like Simon Bridges deserves our Thanks not our criticism. Not until Simon was appointed have we actually started to catch up after a very long time.
There are 2 types of roads, local that are looked after by our council and the arterials that Simon was responsible for. So the 4 laning of the eastern arterial has given us a very safe, easy route to the Port and city. He has also achieved the overpasses planning and funding at the intersection where the road links to SH29 before Bayfair,shifted the railway so the work could be achieved,  and the Welcome Bay underpass. As for SH2 and 29 he has been supportive and has pushed for change brilliantly. Your readers will see change but building roads with so many layers of decision making creats blockages that frustrate all of us. We shall see how good this new Minister is?  response to Paul Belcaster’s letter regarding the Tauranga traffic woes, I think he should be aware that Hon Simon Bridges, as transport Minister, is not responsible for the traffic problems of Tauranga. As Minister he is responsible for State Highways, not local roading matters. In spite of this, as Tauranga M.P., he has commenced the construction of the Maungatapu underpass which will greatly assist traffic flow for the Welcome Bay area of Tauranga.
One of the biggest problems regarding Tauranga traffic flows, particularly in rush hours, is State Highway 2 between Bethlehem and Katikati. Whilst in government Simon procured the funding for this to be 4 laned, with an improved access road to Omokoroa and the Katikati by pass. Additionally funding was approved for the continuation of the Hamilton expressway, 4 laned from Cambridge to the base of the Kaimais. Unfortunately the new Labour/NZ First/Green government will not commit to these projects and so they may not now proceed. A petition is currently circulating to try to pressure the Government to commit to these projects.
Simon has done a tremendous amount for the Tauranga/Western Bay area. For example the Tauranga Eastern link had been “on the drawing board” for over 25 years, it is now a reality and one of the finest roads in the country.  
Dave Bridgens, Bethlehem.