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    Waitaki Mayor Mel Tavendale, right, and deputy mayor Rebecca Ryan debate the district's rate rise...

    Waitaki District Council to hike rates by 22%

    Residents in Waitaki are facing a 22% hike in their rates following a council vote yesterday.

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    Councillors vote for 22% rates hike

    Waitaki Mayor Mel Tavendale, right, and deputy mayor Rebecca Ryan debate the district's rate rise...

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    Councillors vote for 22% rates hike

    Waitaki ratepayers are staring down the barrel of a 22% rates hike after councillors eventually ‘‘reluctantly’’ agreed on a percentage.

    New info centre tells of mine’s influence

    Palmerston man Donald McGregor is leading the newly established OceanaGold Macraes Operation...

    New info centre tells of mine’s influence

    Gold mining is the “heart and soul” of East Otago, the director of a new information centre in Palmerston says.

    Woman stole $47,000 from grandmother

    Oamaru District Court. PHOTO: ODT FILES

    Woman stole $47,000 from grandmother

    An Oamaru woman stole more than $47,000 from her grandmother, leaving her victim with no money to pay her rest-home fees.

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    Railcar ‘Phoenix’ rises again

    Crowds gather around The Phoenix railcar at Quarry Siding in Oamaru on Saturday. PHOTO: CHARLEY...

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    Railcar ‘Phoenix’ rises again

    Harry Andrew and his team of volunteers saw their latest pride and joy, the restored Phoenix railcar, carry its first passengers in decades at the weekend.

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    Grave fears for cemetery unless coastal erosion is tackled urgently

    Hampden Cemetery. PHOTO: ODT FILES

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    Grave fears for cemetery unless coastal erosion is tackled urgently

    Bones could be washed out to sea at Hampden Cemetery ‘‘in the next year or two’’ unless urgent action is taken on coastal erosion, the community board’s deputy chairman has warned.

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    Debt concerns voiced on amalgamation

    Mel Tavendale. PHOTO: ODT FILES

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    Debt concerns voiced on amalgamation

    Debt and assets will play a major role in the ‘‘complex picture’’ around councils’ amalgamating, Waitaki District Mayor Mel Tavendale says.

    New tourism director returning home for role

    Newly appointed Tourism Waitaki tourism director Hamish Saxton is excited to return to the region...

    New tourism director returning home for role

    Waitaki’s newly appointed tourism director is coming home.

    ‘Phoenix’ to rise again

    PHOTO: STEPHEN JAQUIERY

    ‘Phoenix’ to rise again

    Oamaru Steam and Rail general manager Harry Andrew has been busy in the society’s workshop along with his hardworking team making final preparations for the launch of The Phoenix railcar tomorrow.

    Sheltered spot many would flock to

    PHOTO: STEPHEN JAQUIERY

    Sheltered spot many would flock to

    Where would ewe rather be on a freezing morning?

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    Abandon proposed rates hike, Federated Farmers says

    The rates consultation public meeting earlier this month. Photo: CHARLEY-KAI JOHN

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    Abandon proposed rates hike, Federated Farmers says

    Federated Farmers has called for Waitaiki councillors to abandon a proposed rates hike which it says will disproportionately impact ‘‘the economic engine’’.

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    ‘Critical’ merger talks in progress

    Mel Tavendale. PHOTO: ODT FILES

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    ‘Critical’ merger talks in progress

    Waitaki’s mayor has confirmed she has discussed amalgamation with Otago’s mayors and some Canterbury counterparts, with plans to visit as far north as Ashburton next week.

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    First penguins arrive at new habitat

    PHOTOS: SUPPLIED

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    First penguins arrive at new habitat

    The first arrivals have moved into a new penguin habitat created out of part of a carpark at Oamaru’s waterfront.

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    Visitors from US praise Geopark

    From left: Waitaki Whitestone Geopark geologist Sasha Morriss, Smithsonian Institution fossil...

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    Visitors from US praise Geopark

    Waitaki’s ‘‘world class’’ fossil collection has been praised by visitors from the Smithsonian Institution.

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    Record 552 submissions on council’s annual plan received

    The rates consultation meeting at the Opera House earlier this month. PHOTO: CHARLEY-KAI JOHN

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    Record 552 submissions on council’s annual plan received

    A record number of submissions have been made on Waitaki District Council’s annual plan this year as significant rates rises are considered.

    Mermaid to assist in tower climb

    Weston Fire Brigade Senior Firefighter Joshua Lee with a mermaid statue he designed to sell as...

    Mermaid to assist in tower climb

    A Weston firefighter is taking this year’s Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge a step further.

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    Historic, restored Junction Hotel for sale

    The Junction Hotel in Oamaru is on the market. PHOTOS: SUPPLIED

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    Historic, restored Junction Hotel for sale

    Oamaru’s 150-year-old Junction Hotel is on the market.

    Fight continues to save visitor centre

    Oamaru and Waitaki Visitor Information Centre manager Carolyn Lewis (centre) and visitor...

    Fight continues to save visitor centre

    The manager of the Oamaru and Waitaki Visitor Information Centre came armed with 147 letters of support when asking councillors to reinstate funding for the shuttered facility this week.

    Teacher still setting the pace at 83

    Photo: Stephen Jaquiery

    Teacher still setting the pace at 83

    Waitaki Girls' High School mathematics teacher Jeanette Aker is still running every day after returning home from competing in the London Marathon. 

    Sportsman in court over plastic sword

    The judge said the man was driven by “emotional dysregulation and alcohol” on the night and...

    Sportsman in court over plastic sword

    A prominent Otago sportsman was arrested after allegedly carrying an offensive weapon and behaving threateningly on Oamaru’s main street.
    Read more

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    Editors' Picks

    • The Topp Twins (Lynda, left, and Jools) perform at the Dunedin Town Hall ahead of the Fifa Women...

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      Dame Jools’ ‘humour, generosity, talent’ will be missed

    • Diane McIlwraith (left) and Laura Foley are the new co-owners of The Good Earth Cafe in North...

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      Mystery surrounds restaurant for sale in city

    • Jojo Fifita trains with the Queensland team ahead of his State of Origin debut tomorrow night....

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      Origin star with Otago links

    • Historic buildings in Naseby's main street. PHOTOS: SANTIAGO BONHOMME

      Sense of belonging grows

    •  Auckland FC’s Cameron Howieson holds the A-League Championship trophy aloft after his side beat...

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      ‘Amazing’: southern link to northern triumph

    • Bluff Oyster and Food Festival chairman John Edminstin had several reasons to smile at the...

      Spirits high but doubt clouds future of Bluff oyster festival

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