Santa Parade, Dunedin (4 Dec 2016)

Updated post
Wed, 14 Dec 2016 at 1:26 a.m.

Waiting for Father Christmas to turn up……

Slideshows
Images taken in George St and the Octagon on Sunday afternoon

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Mon, 5 Dec 2016
ODT: So you’d better be good …
In the most pointed reminder yet that parents only have three weeks to fill the space beneath the tree in their lounge, Mr Claus and his crew marched down George St yesterday in Dunedin’s 19th annual Santa Parade. Thousands lined George St, the Octagon and Princes St from Duke St to Moray Pl. Santa was joined by the usual suspects. […] It was believed to be the biggest turnout to the parade in recent years. A total of 80 floats took part. Cont/

Otago Daily Times: 4 Dec 2016 at 4:12 PM [poor colour handling]

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Related Posts and Comments:
3.12.16 Dunedin Santa Parade 4 December (tomorrow) at 3pm
7.12.15 Santa Parade, Dunedin (6 Dec 2015) ● [photo gallery]
1.12.15 Dunedin Santa Parade (6 Dec 2015)
8.12.14 Santa Parade, Dunedin (7 Dec 2014) ● [photo gallery]
24.12.13 Daaave’s $47 million Christmas present to Jinty. We’re paying.
1.12.13 Santa Parade, Dunedin (1 Dec 2013) ● [photo gallery]
24.12.12 A Christmas Tale
25.12.11 Christmas time
5.12.10 Santa’s sleigh broke down…

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Post and images by Elizabeth Kerr

This post is offered in the public interest.

Santa Parade, Dunedin (7 Dec 2014)

A People Day —images by Elizabeth Kerr
The flavour of the Santa Parade for those who couldn’t make it to George Street on Sunday. Following the eight sets of images (lowres only for website use, sampled from 540 frames) there is a link to last year’s photographs. The only disappointment yesterday was that Santa wore dark glasses….Big Mistake, and failed to pin his hat on securely for gusty conditions, it flew off at the best place to get photos, sigh.

Here be young and old, Mayor Cull, the ‘future generations’ stuck with paying for your amazing +$20 million per annum loss-making stadium, Christmas! If they can pay for it.

Congratulations to parade organiser Mark Laughton and the Dunedin Santa Parade Trust for another highly enjoyable and successful event.

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Set 1

Set 2

Set 3

Set 4

Set 5

Set 6

Set 7

Set 8

Octagon concert crowd

█ Santa Parade, Dunedin (1 Dec 2013)

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Dunedin Town Hall (sic) and Dunedin Centre reopen this week

“The entire complex is now known as the Dunedin Centre.”

● Dunedin Town Hall will always be known as Dunedin Town Hall, not a flower by another name !!!!

● Godsakes, ditch DVML as the venue operator !!!!

● UPDATE 24.4.13 – Major stuff up. DVML mismanages Town Hall seating plan for Anzac Day Revue. Those with prebooked seats will be treated as general admission. ODT

Related Post:
7.3.13 Town Hall, Dunedin Centre, Municipal Chambers #linked

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Dunedin City Council
Media Release

Busy Times Ahead for Revamped Dunedin Centre

This item was published on 22 Apr 2013.

The doors don’t open to the public until Thursday, but the redeveloped Dunedin Centre has already got bookings through until May 2015.

Some large events are already booked, including national and international conferences such as the Ingenium Conference and the 5th Global Botanic Gardens Congress. There are also concert bookings by the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Music New Zealand and the Southern Sinfonia, as well as bookings for school formals, graduations, weddings and private functions.

Invited guests will join Mayor of Dunedin Dave Cull in a low-key civic ceremony on Wednesday morning to celebrate the Dunedin Centre’s new lease of life. The first performance will be the Dunedin RSA Choir performance in the Town Hall on Anzac Day.

Mr Cull says, “The Dunedin Centre complex is very much an events centrepiece for our city and it’s great to see there are a number of bookings already.”

About $45 million has been spent over several years upgrading and renovating the existing Dunedin Centre/Town Hall and Municipal Chambers (work on the latter was completed in August 2011). The entire complex is now known as the Dunedin Centre.

Key elements of the overall upgrade include linkages between all buildings to enable people to move easily within what is now an integrated convention centre. There will be lift access to all Dunedin Centre and Town Hall floors, including the Town Hall ceiling, as well as major technology upgrades, new kitchen facilities, new conference/function spaces and new toilets. Another key feature of the redevelopment is a raft of sophisticated behind-the-scenes improvements, which mean the buildings now meet regulations in areas such as fire protection, health and safety, ventilation and access.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

DCC sells Athenaeum, 23 The Octagon

Image: ODT Files

Dunedin City Council – Media Release
Historic Athenaeum Building Sold

This item was published on 08 Apr 2013.

The Octagon Athenaeum has been sold in an agreement which provides an opportunity to meet community needs and protect the building’s historic features.

The Dunedin City Council agreed today to accept an offer from Lawrie Forbes, for a purchase price of $900,000. The offer is unconditional, with settlement on 1 May.

Mr Forbes has developed a number of historic buildings in Dunedin and was awarded the 2012 Dunedin City Council Supreme Award for Heritage Re-Use. Mr Forbes plans to earthquake strengthen the building using his company Zeal Steel and develop part of the building for an arts and culture use.

Mr Forbes also plans to place a restrictive covenant on the property title to ensure the heritage elements of the interior and exterior of the building are retained. The covenant is to be agreed between Mr Forbes and the [New Zealand] Historic Places Trust. If agreement cannot be reached on the wording of a suitable covenant within two years, this condition lapses.

Image: ODT Files

Following a December 2012 Council meeting, Colliers International were appointed as agents for the sale of the Athenaeum. A deadline treaty process began in January this year and four offers were received, ranging from $500,000 to $900,000.

Mayor of Dunedin Dave Cull says while Mr Forbes’ offer was the highest, the Council also took into account his plans to meet community needs by protecting the heritage of the building with a covenant and work closely with the arts and cultural sector.

“What makes Lawrie Forbes’ offer so attractive is the strategic alignment it has with the overall vision for the city. It is very much in line with the outcomes envisaged by the Central City Strategy, the Heritage Strategy and Arts and Culture Strategy which is being developed.”

In October 2007, the DCC bought the Athenaeum for $1,130,000, with the possibility of using the building in a large theatre development. The development did not proceed and so the decision was made to sell the property.

The purchase price will leave the DCC with an estimated debt of $100,565, which is unbudgeted and must be repaid in the current financial year. The total cost of owning the building (from 2007 to 2013), once the sale is completed, is $502,302.

On average the holding costs have been $74,000 a year and the sale means the DCC no longer has these ongoing costs, nor the risks associated with owning the property.

● Athenaeum Report (PDF, 4.0 MB)
● Athenaeum minutes extract (PDF, 115 KB)

Contact the Mayor of Dunedin on 477 4000.

DCC Link

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Town Hall, Dunedin Centre, Municipal Chambers #linked

Strengthened and up to code, pity about the debt – and DVML

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### ODT Online Thu, 7 Mar 2013
RSA choir to ‘open’ town hall on Anzac Day
By Debbie Porteous
After nearly three years and more than $45 million spent on restorations and improvements, Dunedin’s town hall and neighbouring Dunedin Centre are scheduled to reopen next month. And on April 25, a group with long links to the venue, the Dunedin RSA Choir, will be the first to perform there. Choir member David More said they were looking forward to returning to the town hall with their Anzac Day Revue. ”Norma”, the town hall organ, was protected and had fans removed and replaced, but was not otherwise touched during the project, which included work on the town hall, Glenroy auditorium and municipal chambers.

● Contractors would be busy getting the centre ready for handing over to council-owned venue management company Dunedin Venues Ltd by April 5.
● The centre will be officially reopened at a civic reception on April 24.

Read more

Dunedin Town Hall, Burton Bros (Te Papa Collections)

History and significance?
Read the Heritage New Zealand (HNZ) – Registration Reports:
Municipal Chambers – Category 1 (List No. 2197)
Dunedin Town Hall and Concert Chamber – Category 2 (List No. 2150)

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Related Posts and Comments:
6.2.12 Ownership and management of the Dunedin Town Hall complex…
2.11.12 Community halls of small-town New Zealand
15.3.11 Cr Dave Cull speech to Town Hall Meeting
21.1.11 DCC opens controversy on Town Hall upgrade, again!
21.7.10 DCC Media Release – Contract let for Town Hall upgrade
2.7.09 Town Hall: Glazed cube and square for Moray Place
1.7.09 Town Hall Dunedin Centre architecture for a What if? second

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

DCC Media Release – Octagon Trees

Dunedin City Council
Media Release

Octagon Trees Not At Death’s Door

A report received by the Dunedin City Council’s Community and Recreation Services from the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, indicate that the unhealthy plane trees in the Octagon show the presence of no primary pathogens and they are not, in fact, dead or dying. However, the trees appear to be susceptible to secondary pathogens, a weakness that may be due to their environment.

The report continues with suggestions for improving the health of the affected trees. While trees can heal and defend themselves against pathogens in an ideal environment, when planted in an urban situation, they need the soil environment to be actively maintained.

Suggestions in the report for future health of Dunedin’s street trees are based on three stages:

* Physical modifications such as removing surface plantings
* A change in maintenance practice – for example gentle or no pruning until they recover
* Therapeutic treatments such as addition of nutrients to the soil

The programme of work is yet to be finalised but will be non-chemical as there are no primary pathogens to kill.

DCC Community & Recreation Services Manager, Mick Reece, says, “This is good news albeit a bit of a wake up call for us. We now need to work out how to respond appropriately to achieve longevity for our city’s street trees while also considering the forward planning implications for having suitable replacement trees ready for planting in key areas and maybe with more urgency than previously anticipated.”

Mr Reece also commented that future urban design will have to investigate either which are the most suitable type of trees to be planted in these areas or, whether in fact trees are suitable for the Octagon at all. “We may also get to the situation where we are nursing some of these older affected trees for several years and they don’t improve and it may still be necessary to cut off the life support system.”

Contact DCC on 477 4000.

Last reviewed: 01 Apr 2010 3:58pm

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Post by Elizabeth Kerr

D Scene – Stadium countdown

### D Scene 24-2-10
What’s next for the Octagon? (front cover)
Radical plans to revamp the Octagon have been viewed by city councillors. #Bookmark

Plans may be shelved (page 3)
By Michelle Sutton
Plans for a radical revamp of Dunedin’s Octagon, described by Mayor Peter Chin as “visionary”, seem doomed to gather dust on a shelf.
{continues} #Bookmark

[Use of the word “Architect” is legally protected under the New Zealand Registered Architects Act (2005). On 21 August 2009 a query was put to the Chief Executive of the New Zealand Registered Architects Board (NZRAB) seeking to clarify if Fred van Brandenburg was a registered architect. The same day a reply was received that Mr Brandenburg was not registered and that NZRAB was beginning a procedure to get him registered. On 12 November 2009, subject to a further query, the NZRAB chief executive confirmed that Mr Brandenburg was now a New Zealand Registered Architect, registration number 2493. -Elizabeth Kerr]

3D may come to Dunedin cinema (page 3)
Hoyts are expected to announce Dunedin’s first 3D cinema theatre next month. Hoyts Octagon location manager Darryl McLeod cautioned there could be some difficulties. “There are no guarantees.”
{continues} #Bookmark

Mobile kitchen proving popular (page 5)
By Wilma McCorkindale
“Please can I have some more?” It was a common question from Otago University students lining up for fresh fruit and a cooked meal at the Otago Farmers Market new mobile kitchen launched during Orientation Week on Monday. Otago Farmers Market Trust chairman Paul Crack said it had been purpose-built to promote healthy eating and to show the public how to cook seasonal foods from the Otago Farmers Market.
{continues} #Bookmark

Register to read D Scene online at http://fairfaxmedia.newspaperdirect.com/

Vandalism message (page 5)
Dunedin city has been dubbed New Zealand’s capital of heritage vandalism by disgruntled city landlord Jeff Dickie. Dickie erected this sign [pictured] on one of his tenanted buildings in George St depicting his version of a new city slogan yesterday, claiming the city council had a lack of interest on the heritage value of some city buildings.
{continues} #Bookmark

[The Dunedin Heritage Fund is not “a city council fund”, as mentioned in the article. The Fund is a separate legal entity to that of “Dunedin City Council”, and has its own deed of constitution. The Fund is jointly administered by representatives of Council and New Zealand Historic Places Trust. For more information contact the Fund secretary Pam Jordan at Dunedin City Council. -Elizabeth Kerr, former NZHPT Otago Branch chair and representative on the DHF Committee]

Wards format still open (page 6)
By Wilma McCorkindale
The future format of Dunedin City Council wards remains undecided with a new March deadline given by the Local Government Commission. Local Government Commission chief executive Donald Riezebos said commissioners were striving to deliver representation reviews for a number of New Zealand centres.
{continues} #Bookmark

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Talk: Dunedin on Dunedin (page 8)
Your say: Letters to the editor
Stadium stance by Ross White, Dunedin
Investigation key by Peter Attwooll, Dunedin
Well answered by Gavin MacDonald, St Kilda
Pre-draft plan by Bill Jeffreys, Woodhaugh
#Bookmark

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Details: The finer points (pages 10-11)
Waste not: New processes for plant
There may be not a drop of water to drink, in spite of it being everywhere, at the Tahuna Wastewater Treatment Plant in Dunedin. But it’s getting purer by the day as the city council takes plunges into the second stage of its upgrade. Wilma McCorkindale reports.
{continues} #Bookmark

Counting down: Stadium countdown (pages 12-13)
Stadium bosses are on a count down. Michelle Sutton reports.
Five hundred and twenty two days to go until stadium D day – and counting. Well, stadium bosses are. Numbers from an old cricket scoreboard hanging in the Carisbrook Stadium Trust offices serves as a daily reminder to staff working towards the August 1, 2011, completion date, of how many days are left to go.
{continues} #Bookmark

Dunedin eyes 3D industry (page 18)
By Michelle Sutton
Dunedin is gearing up to become New Zealand’s 3D hub. 3D experts say the city is poised to cash in on the multimillion-dollar industry, which is gaining momentum and growing in NZ on the back of 3D hit Avatar. They say Dunedin’s film industry is picking up more 3D work, and is well positioned to become the country’s 3D hub, with the skills and experience to cover work in television, sports, animation and cinema.
{continues} #Bookmark

Post by Elizabeth Kerr

Octagon: When no grand plan exists

UPDATED

Some try to be opportunistic, not in a good way.

### ODT Online Thu, 12 Nov 2009
Car-free Octagon plan hits snag
By David Loughrey
Lower Octagon businesses pushing for the area to be closed to traffic during summer have been told to put more work into their idea if they want it to go ahead.
Read more

And these are the businesses that want to bring in a dress code. Ridiculous.

DCC needs to soldier on with an urban design study of public places in the CBD – especially with regard to the Octagon, which doesn’t show off the centre of town to best advantage. The place should be sparkling, edgy and immaculate, and that’s just the landscaping design.

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Businesses in the lower Octagon that promote and sell alcohol in this way won’t be seeing my patronage for a very long time.

### ODT Online Fri, 13 Nov 2009
Spat over bars’ drinks-discount deal
By Debbie Porteous
A spat between the authorities and lower Octagon bar owners has started over a promotion offering patrons a discounted taxi home if they buy six drinks in four hours. The authorities say the promotion, which covers the period between 7pm and 11pm on Thursdays, breaches the Sale of Liquor Act by encouraging patrons to drink excessive amounts of alcohol.
Read more

A reader’s concerns and the bars’ response

Post by Elizabeth Kerr