This week’s Tuesday adventure had me walking around and between 3 parks - Jubilee Park, Mornington Park and Unity Park.
It was a glorious mild sunny afternoon. While Admiral Byrd looked towards Antarctica, I looked towards home on the Otago Peninsula 😆
Last evening (Sunday), just before 8pm, our (short) street in #Ōtepoti Dunedin filled up with fire appliances. An electrical fault in our neighbours' house caused a fire. (What caused the electrical fault is being investigated). The family are all OK; the house is a complete mess, mostly smoke damage, but they can't move back until major reinstatement work has been done. The house is taped off for now, and they were able to stay with another neighbour last night. Now it's a motel for as long as it takes.
The Fire Service teams were absolutely fantastic.
Not so great - this morning at least half a dozen people / groups of people drove up our short, no exit, street - obviously just to have a look 😡😡.
Very intrusive, and really upsetting for our neighbours.
Think I’ve made my final decision for the Dunedin City Council by-election, which is being held after the untimely death of a councillor. There are 14 candidates but I can only bring myself to rank 2 of them. There aren’t many progressives standing! Some other candidates may be okay, but I’m wary.
A heads up to any other voters - Pamela Taylor sounds quite reasonable in her official blurb, but if you check online you will discover she has a long history as a conspiracy theorist, climate change denier etc.
Please vote local friends - we need more good people on council! It seems that Dunedin is a Labour and Greens stronghold in central government elections, but votes a surprising number of right- wingers onto council 🤷🏻♀️
I'm seething.
There's always something, I know. But this is a sneaky, petty thing. DCC backtracking on opening the Caversham tunnel to cyclists and pedestrians so soon after finally agreeing to progress it. They have been dragging the chain on it for so many years.
Submit by Wednesday 29 April, info here:
The Chain Hills tunnel is open and a wonderful success! The last 1-day count showed approx. 450 visitors. The Council has removed the Tunnels Trail project from the 9yr plan and the Trust has undertaken to work on the stages through to Green Island and onto Kaikorai Valley. But the DCC control access to the Caversham Tunnel.
In this week’s Tuesday adventure I did more exploring in the town belt. It’s so peaceful there - you can hear traffic in the distance but the main sound is birdsong 😍
I got very muddy and regretted not wearing boots, but I managed to avoid falling over 😆
We see you in Ōtepoti Dunedin 🚢 Norwegian Spirit
📍 Arrive 15 Apr at 09:00, Beach Street, Port Otago
👥 2,930 pax
🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 ️🛳️ Poor Environmental Grade
🟠🟠🟠ㅤㅤ ♻️ Fair Sewage
🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 💨 Poor Air Quality
This week’s Tuesday adventure had me wandering in the town belt again. So peaceful and beautiful. I met some pīwakawaka there 💚
With all of the weather news, I’m really appreciating this stunning autumn day ☀️
Good luck in the coming storm everyone.
I also wandered around Jubilee Park, which was created for Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee (50 years on the throne) in 1887, with an additional oak grove planted for her Diamond Jubilee in 1897. So, some of the trees are nearly 140 years old now 🌳
Interesting little poem on the cairn:
“Thro’ the coming years we trust
When we are voiceless in the dust
Dunedin’s children brave & strong
Will guard Victoria’s Grove from wrong.”
Ali Clarke 
Andrea Johnston 
KateT
Robyn
ōtepoti facts