Town Belt complaints make no sense to me
I can't see the force of the motorists' complaints about the closure of sections of the Town Belt. In a city the size of Dunedin how much does avoiding those sections add to your journey time? Five minutes max?
Every time I've walked down Braid Ave in the past week there have been people of all ages playing outdoor table tennis, walking and cycling in beautiful surroundings.
I think it is excellent that at least part of this spectacular resource has been reserved for pedestrians, birds and animals, free of the noisy, smelly, dangerous and toxic-fume-emitting pieces of fast-moving metal that dominate many other parts of our city.
On the other hand
As a born and bred Dunedinite I was disappointed and alarmed to read that a cycle/pedestrian path is to be promoted through the much-loved Town Belt to the exclusion of cars.
I have lived away from Dunedin for many years but I always love to drive through this historic reserve when I return. This opportunity would be lost if vehicular traffic was prohibited and visits only on foot or cycles allowed.
It would prevent many people enjoying this wonderful asset.
Trial a waste
In response to letters, as a by-election candidate I unapologetically stand alongside the Automobile Association and the many against wasting ratepayer money, with no clear mandate from the people who pay.
The current case in point is the Dunedin City Council plan to ban cars from Queens Dr through the Town Belt, in favour of cyclists and walkers, starting with a "trial". Council staff claim a reserves management plan review gave them permission for this, when only a handful of submissions suggested closing vehicle access. In fact, people were never specifically asked if they wanted this road closed. If real consultation (with publicity) had happened, hundreds would have commented.
Instead, the idea was buried within a vague concept called a "horizontal cycle-pedestrian path". The war over cycleways has blighted Dunedin since 2012, and our roading network is both battleground and casualty.
If elected, I will focus on core services, such as South Dunedin waste and stormwater infrastructure. I will support those councillors courageously speaking out to try and win back public confidence.
I will oppose the dangerous folly of Smooth Hill landfill, advocate for South Dunedin's flooding solutions, and seek a far higher standard of evidence for any proposed spending. There's no such thing as "only 15k’'.
I am standing because Dunedin's needs should triumph over political ideology. I will not sign a Labour or Green Party pledge that other councillors do.
I will focus on the glaring need for maintenance on basic services and roads. South Dunedin people and others including in Somerville St, Andersons Bay, shouldn’t have to suffer sewage in their streets and homes. It's time for councillors to listen and act.
[Jo Galer has announced she will be a candidate in the upcoming Dunedin City Council by-election.]
Other roading news
Speaking of blocking off roads, I've been to New York City and with an 80-storey building under construction, the sidewalks were not blocked.
In Mosgiel they block my street for weeks to build a petrol station. It would be understandable if they were using the street, but no.
President Trump and the promotion of happiness
Jeremy Bentham, the English philosopher regarded as the founder of modern utilitarianism; a moral theory that judges actions and laws by if they promote the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people.
His mention in Today in History (11.2.26) aligned well with the same-page opinion piece by Duncan O’Connor on Donald Trump. It is obvious that Trump is not a follower of Bentham’s work. Our own, current neo-liberal economic system also fails the test of utilitarianism with its focus on the individual rather than society.
It is not self-interest that advances people where indifference to societal norms allows authority without respect, but respect for society aided by the freedom of the individual in a democratic setting.
Connors mentions Bob Woodward’s book Fear, about Donald Trump’s White House. A good read, plus Yuval Harari’s book Nexus noted in Tim Watkins’ opinion piece on our media. Harari’s Sapiens: A History of Humanity is a favourite. Thank you ODT for bringing these people to the fore.
Address Letters to the Editor to: Otago Daily Times, PO Box 517, 52-56 Lower Stuart St, Dunedin. Email: letters@odt.co.nz
