Board adopts raindrop logo

Press, 2 July 1983, Page 2

Board adopts raindrop logo

Months of debate ended for the North Canterbury Catchment Board yesterday when it made a final decision about a logo. The adopted logo (above), in green and blue, symbolises a raindrop caught by the mountains which merge into the plains and snowcapped mountains. Some board members favoured another version of the logo, which depicted the mountains without snow, because of its simplicity in design. A move to adopt this logo was lost, 6-8, on a vote. Mr F. F. Wilding supported a snowcapped mountains design because it was a better representation of Canterbury. “Otherwise it could be the logo of any catchment board in the country,” he said. When the logo was first presented to the board about four months ago, reactions to it included such phrases as a “drunken Ku Klux Klansman” and a “pinhead.” The consultants, Eric White Associates, said at the time in a covering letter that the style was timeless and upreaching ‘‘giving the effect of hope and promise.” The board’s secretary, Mr B. J. Mairs, said that the logo would be used on board letterheads, vehicles, public notices, or anywhere that it would have impact. Extension loan The board will apply to the Local Authorities Loans Board for approval to raise a loan of $200,000 for office building extensions. The conditions of loan included a term of eight years at 13.5 per cent, Mr Mairs said. The loan requirement of $200,000 was considered on the basis of the architect’s estimate of $165,000, professional fees of $19,000, and a factor for cost escalation. The board had no office building reserve and expected receipts in the present financial year were not sufficient to finance the building extensions from revenue. “Finance by way of loan is the only viable alternative available to the board,” he said. The extension of the board’s building, to the western boundary of its site, would solve the shortage of office accommodation and allow 16 more staff members to be appointed over the next five years, said the deputy chief executive officer, Mr J. A. Macdonald, in a report to the board last month.