Quitting a Tenancy

When a Tenancy ends it can be difficult , whether initiated by the Tenant or the Landlord. The Landlord inspects the property, addresses the bond involved & finds a new tenant. A Tenant has to find another home, organise furniture removal, change address at NZ Post , clean the property thoroughly, remove all possessions, pay final rent, leave & return all the keys , in order to get his bond back. A need is good communication between the Tenant and the Landlord.

If the Tenant is not caring for the property properly & the Landlord  believes the tenant is capable of cleaning the property up/able to fix damage the tenant has caused , Landlord may write to advise they have 14 consecutive days to make good poor care/ damage. Landlords : a sample “notice to remedy” & a lot more information is available on www.tenancy.govt.nz (Tenancy Services).  If the tenant does not attend to the problem, the Landlord may have the Tenancy Tribunal provide an order to make the Tenant do the work. 

If the work is still not done or the problem is very serious, the Tribunal can order an end to the tenancy. The Landlord cannot evict the tenant himself. Following an order by the Tenancy Tribunal to evict the tenant, the police will attend the eviction. … Continue Reading

Junior netball

The Southern Steel vis MIS. Photo courtesy Cory Coburn.

The Wairarapa junior netball competition has seen a greatly reduced entry from our southern areas this year. Out of a potential 9 teams made up from children across five Southern Wairarapa schools, the final figures saw only enough to tip the scales at a meagre four.

The reduction in numbers was largely attributed to a change in location and scheduling, which meant last years Saturday morning timeslot was ditched in favour of weekday games up at the Colombo Courts in Masterton. 

These changes sadly meant that a lot of rural families were unable to physically make it in time for the games. 

Those that were able to play were spread across 4 teams: A year 3-4 team (Southern Swans) who play on Monday night and three year 5-8 teams; The Steel, Sting and Storm, who play on Tuesday nights.

Following two weeks of grading games, which consisted of playing in a shorter format twice each night, Southern Steel and Southern Sting have landed in grade 2 and Southern Storm in grade 4. The youngest of our teams of course not in graded competition. 

Whilst the change in scheduling has introduced new challenges to the teams; playing in arguably colder conditions with reduced visibility whilst shooting into bright floodlights, all the teams have adapted well to the changes. 

Of note is the Southern Steel who are again proving to be the team to be reckoned with, convincingly winning all grading matches and the two round-robin games thus far.

We may be less in number this year, but we aren’t lacking for spirit. The teams are putting their all into each game, gaining skill and confidence as they go. We look forward to what the rest of the season has to offer. 

Councillor Notes

With the press of a button Councillor Pam Colenso begins the chloronation of Martinborough’s water supply.

After just over a month of having to boil water, I had the pleasure (or some would say the dubious pleasure) of pushing the button to start the temporary chlorination of the town’s water supply on Monday 13^th May.  It is hard to imagine (and yes, I can say it is true) that in a little building in the middle of a farm, we have all this hi-tech equipment that monitors and distributes the chlorine to our water supply.  It is just amazing.

I know it has been a very challenging time for everyone; businesses, residents, visitors, wineries, council staff and contractors, as the network of pipes were flushed to remove as much of the manganese as possible. Thank you all for your patience and understanding over this period.

I would like to congratulate, Rob Brown, Emily Abbot and Zoe Sinclair in conquering the Firefighters Sky Tower challenge in Auckland.  This trio of very able fire fighters completed in personal best times and certainly did their fellow fire fighters and the community proud.  Well done to you all and the money you raised along the way, will certainly help both the Leukaemia and Blood Cancer research in New Zealand.

We also have a new business in town, upstairs above Le Coiffeur, Sue Gower is providing a full range of pampering, grooming and relaxing treatments.  Sue is a fully qualified beauty therapist with over 15 years’ experience, many of you will know her from her time at Brackenridge.  Sue, we wish you all the very best with your new venture.

It is a very busy time for both councillors and council staff as we hear our Annual Plan submitters and grant applications, there are approximately 180 of these and over the next three days many will make personal submissions to support their written ones. Thank you to all who have taken the time to complete the questionnaire in the Consultation document, or provided a written submission, without your input it would be harder to know the feelings of our community.

Enjoy Queens Birthday weekend, it is a time for family, getting some of those jobs done around home and generally relaxing.  Take are and be safe.

Pam Colenso pam.colenso@swdc.govt.nz 0274414892

Cherry picking

45 South orchard in Central Otago is New Zealand’s biggest cherry orchard covering 350 hectares of cherry trees. The picking season lasts for eight weeks commencing in mid December during which time eighty tonnes of cherries are picked a day. 1,800 tonnes a season. 
To extend the season as much as possible seven different varieties are grown. These are maintained by a permanent staff of forty with pickers swelling this to four hundred during the picking season. 
Only ten percent of the cherries are sold in New Zealand. The bulk are air freighted through Queenstown airport to China , Korea, Vietnam, Thailand and the USA. Fruit is landed in Shanghai forty eight hours after being picked from the trees.