Market day too hot to handle

Attendance at outdoor community events is frequently stifled by weather — usually because it is too cold or wet.

But organisers of Saturday’s Green Island Business Association Market Day said attendance at this year’s event may have been marred, unusually, by the weather being too hot and still.

The mercury had reached the forecast high of 27degC by 11am and people at the community event were lathering themselves in sunscreen and sweating like the bloke working the sausage sizzle.

Organiser Lee Cheshire estimated up to 3500 people attended throughout the day, but believed more would have attended had it not been so hot.

"It’s very hard to say, although with this heat, it may keep some away."

It was better than the alternative, she said.

The association  raised about $4000 from the sale of stall sites to community organisations at the event.

She said the funds would go towards building a new $200,000 playground for 0-6 year-olds at the Green Island Memorial Garden.

Construction of the new playground was expected to begin in March next year and  take about six weeks to complete.

john.lewis@odt.co.nz