ROSA WOODS
Tajzhay Pouwhare, 18, and other students at Wanuiomata High School started a petition to rename Lower Hutt street names in te reo Māori. (File photo)
Harry Martin Lane was named just five days ago but already its future is in doubt, with Lower Hutt mana whenua calling the decision to reject a Māori street name “disrespectful and hurtful”. Last Wednesday, Wainuiomata Community Board narrowly voted 3-2 to name its newest street after the Lower Hutt’s suburb’s one and only mayor, Harry Martin, who passed away in 2017. However, the decision has immediately come under fire, with mana whenua calling for cultural training for board members that rejected the Māori street name put forward.
At WFDD, we pride ourselves on being a place where people come together to discuss ideas. You might not always agree with what you hear, but you can trust that it s based on facts. Our reporters work 24/7 to find and talk to the best available sources on every issue affecting our community. And now during the pandemic, we ve convened a series of Virtual Community Conversations, to further discussions on key issues. We want to hear from you. What s on your mind? What topics would you like us to cover in our Community Conversations series? Let s talk!
Monday, February 8th, 3pm
STUFF
Locals like the idea of a Māui statue on top of a new Naenae Pool. (First published December 2019)
The $68 million budget to rebuild Lower Hutt s earthquake-prone Naenae pool is a “limit” not a “target”, the council has been told. The pool was closed by Hutt City Council in April 2019 after engineering reports gave it an overall rating of less than 34 per cent of the New Building Standard. At the time, the council estimated the construction of a new pool would cost about $40m. In 2020, that figure was increased to $54m. Then, last week, the council released the latest projections, which put the cost of the project at up to $68m.