Continuing carrot saga — special council meeting

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 2, Issue 9, 31 July 1984, Page 1

Continuing carrot saga — special

council meeting

MONDAY, 30 JULY Tonight's special meeting of the Ohakune Borough Council promises to pull a sizeable crowd as councillors debate once again the siting of the big carrot. The 8pm meeting was called following last Monday's meeting of the standing committee, which received a petition objecting to council plans to plant the 7.5 metre mock-up on the prominent triangle site. The whirlwind petition gained the signatures of over 500 townsfolk in four days backing the petitioners' quest to have the triangle's native shrubbery left unsullied. Presenting the petition last week one of the organisers, Dave Johns, told councillors the vast majority of people were in favour of the carrot: but the council had a 'moral responsibility'

to the service groups which developed the triangle site 15 years ago, he said. One of the petitioners' prime concerns was that the carefully nurtured native shrubs on the site would be wrecked first by planting the carrot and later by sightseers opting for a closer look. Despite the council's earlier assurances that the plants would not be disturbed petitioners remained unconvinced. And despite the views of some councillors that the fibreglass figure would add to the area petitioners were less than enthusiastic. "We don't see the carrot is going to enhance that area whatsoever," Dave Johns said. He felt it would also add to the existing accident problem iri the area. Motorists would bestaring at the carrot in disbelief and 'cleaning up' other traffic. And with the plartned deviation of SH49A, the situation would worsen as the carrot would be right on the apex of the new intersection, he said. A better site for the carrot would be Rochfort Park, he said, and asked that the matter be opened to public debate. Mayor Bill Taylor outlined reasons for the choice of the

triangle site. The decision was made in good faith, and not entered into lightly by councillors, he said. The main concerns were the good roading and lighting in that area and the fact that it could be readily policed — the carrot would be an obvious target for graffiti and vandalism, he said. The sole consideration of last week's meeting should be to avoid dividing the community, he said. "I can think of nothing more calculated to make the borough a laughing stock than to be wrangling over the siting of a 7.5 metre carrot." The council could not afford to fly in the face of public suppport for the petition, Mr Taylor said, and for that reason he withdrew his support from the triangle area. Other councillors to demur over their earlier support were Crs Horne and Wiggins. The petition's signatories were borough ratepayers, and the council had to take notice of that, Cr Wiggins said. Cr Horne said she would

bow to public opinion and support the move to have the carrot sited back at Rochfort Park. President of the Growers' Association, and the man at the centre of the dispute Cr Peter Hammond was not happy about the petition. "People have taken it on as a pet hobby horse," he said. But if the majority of people were against the triangle site he would have to concede, he said. He thought there was still "a very small minority" of people opposed to siting the carrot in the triangle. Spinoffs from siting the

carrot there would be considerable for other areas of the community, and he thought people should think again. He was joined by Crs Hays, Sue and Brannigan in standing by the council's earlier decision that the triangle was the best place for the carrot. Cr Ellen Gould felt the council would be setting a precedent. At present the carrot was seen as having some historical significance, as the market gardeners had long been the biggest employer group in the area. They had

been very important to the area's development Cr Brannigan said. But Cr Gould felt the council would be unable to deny the future claims of other sectors of the community. She envisaged Railways and the ski industry laying similar claims. The standing committee finally chose to have Cr Hammond go back to the Growers' Association to reconsider the siting of the carrot and refer the matter back to tonight's special meeting of the full council.