Advance voting begins in Wanaka

An estimated 164,000 eligible voters placed their votes in ballot boxes last weekend well in advance of the national elections, including a steady flow of people in Wanaka. 

Due to concerns about COVID-19, the Electoral Commission decided to open voting for this year’s central government elections a full two weeks in advance of the general election date on October 17 and it anticipates more than 60 per cent of eligible voters will have voted before election day.

Three locations in Wanaka (the Lake Wanaka Centre, the Wanaka Primary School and Te Kura o Take Kārara school in Three Parks) opened last weekend. 

The Lake Wanaka Centre will be open all week from 10:00am-4:00pm daily through to Monday October 12. After that it will be open from 10:00am-6:00pm daily to Thursday October 15. The Lake Wanaka Centre’s last day of voting is Friday October 16 when it will be open from 10:00am-3:00pm. It will not be open on Election Day.

Both schools will be open for voting this weekend October 10-11; Wanaka Primary will be open Saturday 10:00am-6:00pm and Sunday 10:00am-4:00pm and Te Kura o Take Kārara will be open from 9:00am-6:00pm on both the Saturday and Sunday.

Both schools will reopen to voters on Election Day from 9:00am-7:00pm.

The Wanaka’s Presbytarian Community Church centre, on Tenby Street, will also provide voting booths on Election Day from 9:00am-7:00pm.

Kai changes hands

Kai Whakapai has a new owner. PHOTO: Wanaka App

Landmark Wanaka cafe Kai Whakapai has changed ownership.

Roger and Shonagh North, who owned the business for ten and a half years, sold to Nick Aubrey, who took over last Monday (September 28).

“We’re really proud of what we’ve achieved and how we’ve left it,” Roger told the Wanaka App. “The new guy is young and energetic and a good match for the business.”

Roger said he and his family will remain customers of Kai, which he described as a “a really happy, busy and unpretentious place”.

Dressage riders excel in Central Otago competition

Rachel Thomas competes on the dressage circuit riding her 11-year old mare Gurteen Velvet.

Four local riders with horses either training or based at Grace Farms enjoyed success at the Central Otago dressage competition in Cromwell last weekend (October 3-4).

Grace Farms manager and trainer Rachel Thomas said she couldn’t be more proud as all riders and mounts gave their best.

Bella Edwards (12) who is fairly new to the discipline of dressage rode two “super” tests on the Saturday to earn first place in both her Level 1 classes, Rachel said.

Jenny Kendall riding Vollrath Liaison won her first Level 5 competition, and was placed second in the musical test - the first she’s ever ridden.

Rachel also competed on her very experienced 11-year old grey mare Gurteens Velvet at Level 7 and was thrilled with her performance producing two perfect tests “without mistakes”. (There are nine levels in dressage competition with Level 9 being Grand Prix - the Olympic standard.)

Ashleigh Mclean riding Santiera also competed on the Sunday achieving a personal best dressage score and won her Level 5 competition. Jenny was placed second in the same event.

Grace Farms is an equestrian facility just off the Wanaka-Luggate highway. 

ECO Fund open for applications

Te Kākano Aotearoa Trust has previously received ECO funding. PHOTO: Supplied

The Otago Regional Council’s (ORC) ECO Fund, which supports community-driven projects that protect and enhance Otago’s environment, is open again for applications.

The ECO Fund provides $250,000 per year in contestable funding for community-focused groups with environmental projects in the areas of water, biodiversity, climate change and urban development. $125,000 of funding is available in this round.

ORC ECO Fund decision panel chair Michael Deaker encouraged interested groups to consider applying to the fund.

“The ECO Fund is ORC’s way of empowering communities throughout our region to take initiative in their own backyards. We’ve supported dozens of great projects in the last few years, and look forward to extending that list with this round of funding.”

One of the ECO Fund’s points of difference is that it funds administration work as well as shovel time, he said.

Potential applicants are encouraged to get in touch for advice and information on eligibility before lodging their application, by contacting [email protected]. Find more information here.

Applications are open until October 20.

RemoteTogetherNZ festival delayed

Organiser Trent Yeo. PHOTO: Supplied

Organisers of the ‘RemoteTogetherNZ’ festival have delayed the event until March 2021.

Festival organiser Trent Yeo says moving the event, originally scheduled for November, back a few months reflects feedback from interested participants.

“The response we’ve had shows how interested and motivated people are in learning and working together to build a new global work landscape. But with COVID curveballs, corporate travel restrictions, elections and Christmas looming, many people still feel like they’re in survival mode and we absolutely appreciate that. 

“The purpose of RemoteTogetherNZ is to help individuals and businesses to evolve by design, rather than default, so to succeed it’s important for us to listen to the feedback and give people more time so we can all move forward together. 

RemoteTogetherNZ will help participants connect with thought leaders, network with like minded leaders, master current best practices, and “thrive, not just survive” through the challenges of modern business.

Find more information here.