Mainstreet renaissance defended

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 14, Issue 676, 4 March 1997, Page 10

Mainstreet renaissance defended

• I am dismayed with some of the retrograde comments expressed through the Ruapehu Bulletin about the Mainstreet programme for the Ruapehu District. As a ratepayer in Raetihi, I can tell you that what I pay here are big-city rates — as I have experienced them in Wellington. As soon as I break my ankle on the footpath outside my little building in Raetihi I shall not go to ACC, but rather, sue the district council for damages. The attitude, reported by you from a Waimarino Community Board member who stated Mainstreet was "in fairy land', is thoughtless, ignorant and emotive. Such thinking can only lead to further stagnation in towns such as Raetihi and Taumarunui. Ohakune is to some extent immune from the local economy. It has flash floods of winter cash from city money but only in the "good times". The people who earn that money do not seem to stick around throughout the year; nor for that matter, year after year. The other towns in the district are the heartland where there is the stability and hard work which has founded the Waimarino as a distinct entity . These towns are populated, in my experience, with good people who work hard all year round for their continuance. May they long continue. The King Country and the Waimarino District have been part of my life for 50 years. I am glad that I bought (my) little building on Seddon Street, in Raetihi. Even my son thinks that the mountain belongs to him. That's a good attitude, because that is what we all share here — to live alongside one of the world' s great heritage parks. I have respect for the Ruapehu District Council and understand the difficulties of their work. However, when I read comments about Mainstreet being "in fairyland" I need to write that man out of the agenda. Does he repair his own fences when they fall down? Mainstreet programmes have been established throughout Europe and the USA for many decades. Notable examples have also sprung up throughout New Zealand. Wanganui and Napier are both towns worth visiting because of their adoption of a Mainstreet programme. This approach to identity, goes back further. After the Dark Ages and the Middle Ages in Europe, the Medici family of Florence, Italy (and other families before them) embellished their small town using art and architecture. Today, because of that attitude, the whole world is richer.

In my understanding, Lorenzo's period was a part of history called the Renaissance — a French word which means re-birth. I cannot think of a better word to describe what I think this district needs right now. A bit of courage, a few good ideas and an amalgamation of interests are all that' s needed to turn this district around. It' s easier if you are a Medici, because Lorenzo de Medici did not have district councillors, consultants, managers, publicists, committees or bean counters to get in his way. The Ruapehu District Mainstreet programme offers rebirth and therefore a future. Thinking that the Waimarino is completely dependent on the ski industry for a future is like buying into a casino. Sure, I have been there and done that. As a teenager, I bought shares in Ruapehu Alpine Lifts Ltd with my pocket money. I knew that I would never make a million (in fact, I knew there would never be a dividend). What I then wanted to do, was to be involved in helping a sport which I loved. So, it is with some authority that I write of the mistaken notion that the district is poorer because of two bad ski seasons. In my skiing life, there have been successive "bad" seasons, as well as several eruptions. I skied on ash in the 1950's. Anyone investing in this district with an eye only to a seasonal ski profit is deluded, or a simple profiteer. The only way to invest here is in the infrastructure which is represented by the Ruapehu District Council. Alongside this, if the council does not invest and support the current Mainstreet programme, then the council is turning its back on rebirth, tuming its back on renaissance. I have also read the letter to the editor by Maggie Rawiri, writing against the Mainstreet programme for Raetihi This woman I greatly respect. To her, I write this: Thank you for the kiti, which you made for me. I take it to friends to carry whatever gift I have for them. I am aware of being a Pakeha, born in New Zealand. I also know that I am included in the Whakapapa of an East Coast Maori family. That family took me in and looked after me as a young man when I needed it. I do not forget that. I would hope that the renaissance which I write about applies to both Maori and Pakeha and that we can retain a culture and a place in New Zealand, which is as unique as the district we share. If we can do this then we will all become unique upon this world.

Brian

Moss

EDITOR' S NOTE: This letter is abridged