November 13 4pm
The owner of an American Bulldog which attacked a miniature poodle in Sherwin Park, Te Awamutu has been convicted under the Dog Control Act for owning a dog that made an attack and ordered to pay $7000 in reparation to the poodle owner.
The poodle was seriously injured and needed $20,000 worth of emergency life-saving veterinary care.
Waipā District Council group manager district growth and regulatory services Wayne Allan said that it was unusual for council to proceed with prosecutions, particularly in cases where the offending dog had been euthanised. However, there was strong public interest in sending a clear signal that dog owners who fail to comply with classifications, ignore local bylaws and are unable to control their dogs causing serious injuries to other dogs or persons, should face consequences.
Celebrate
A community celebration to welcome home Waipā’s record number of Olympians and Paralympians is set to be the district’s largest-ever celebration of our champion athletes.
Following New Zealand’s most successful Olympic campaign, 20 Waipā athletes, along with their coaches and support crew, will be honoured at a civic ceremony and community event on Victoria Square, Cambridge on Friday, December 13.
November 13, 11.30am
Repairs to the historic Victoria Bridge in Cambridge could take several weeks, but the bridge is safe, sound and will remain open for the public, Waipā District Council says in a statement.
Victoria (High Level) Bridge earlier today. Photo: Mary Anne Gill.
Council staff and engineering consultants Beca inspected the bridge earlier today.
It was damaged last night after a car and a van collided on the Cambridge town side. The car went through the side barrier, landing on the reserve land underneath the bridge, while the van remained on the footpath.
The drivers were removed from their vehicles and taken to Waikato Hospital, one with moderate and one with minor injuries.
One 34-year-old Cambridge man was arrested and will appear in court today.
Police and emergency services secured the scene while a detour route was established to allow council staff to inspect the bridge for damage.
Fortunately, there was no structural harm, but the pedestrian barriers and timber rails were extensively damaged.
Contractors remained on the site overnight to ensure public safety, and the bridge was re-opened to traffic and pedestrians before daybreak, with temporary side barriers in place and safety monitoring.
Council staff returned to the bridge this morning to confirm the damage.
The barriers will need replacing, but the bridge itself is looking very sound, said group manager Service Delivery Dawn Inglis.
“We’re confident that it is still able to meet the needs of our community, and it was able to reopen in time so caused only minimal disruption to people.
“We will reinstate the barriers and railing to the original standard, but these will need to be sourced and manufactured.”
Inglis said council had no timeframes or price tag yet for the repair, but it will take at least several weeks. The cost is likely to be in the “tens of thousands”.
When the repairs to the barriers are being done, people should expect some temporary access restrictions, but council will time these to minimise disruption as best as possible.
The scene in Dominion Rd underneath the bridge where the car landed. Photo: Mary Anne Gill.
The damaged bridge, looking down. Photo: Mary Anne Gill
A construction worker and bystander peer over the side of the damaged bridge. Photo: Mary Anne Gill
November 13, 7.30am
Scene from the crash site last night. Photo: Supplied.
One person has been arrested following a two vehicle crash on the Victoria (High Level) Bridge in Cambridge about 9pm yesterday (Tuesday).
Police say emergency services responded to Victoria Street after a vehicle went off of a bridge and one person was located with minor injuries.
The driver had reportedly been chasing a second vehicle prior to the crash, Police have since spoken with both drivers.
Those involved are believed to be known to each other.
A 34-year-old Cambridge man is due to appear before the Hamilton District Court, today, on charges related to the incident including reckless driving.
Waipa District Council is warning pedestrians to take extra care on the northern side of the bridge. Barriers are in place. The road was closed earlier this morning to allow a bridge inspection to take place.
The van on the edge of the bridge last night. Photo: Supplied.
Painting and maintenance work on the $2.6 million Victoria ‘High Level’ Bridge project finished just over a year ago.
The hinged truss bridge over the Waikato River was prefabricated in 1906 by the American Bridge Company of New York.
The bridge, a Heritage New Zealand Category One structure, was shipped to New Zealand as a 330-tonne kitset and taken by train to Cambridge and Te Awamutu for erection on either side of the Waikato River.
It was the first example of construction using the process of cantilevering the two half arches from each bank.
The use of lattice steel in bridges was relatively common in the latter half of the 19th century. In New Zealand, it was used in railway bridges like the central North Island Hāpuawhenua and Taonui viaducts and the High Level Bridge. It was also used for the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
See: A game changer for Cambridge
November 6
Lamb dressed as zebra?
Archie and his lamb Thunder about to head to Hautapu School.
Ag days have been in full swing around Cambridge’s rural schools recently. Carla Fraser snapped this shot of her son Archie and his lamb Thunder about to head to Hautapu School to compete in their first event. Archie, six years old, raided the family dress-up box to dig out his zookeeper costume and a zebra onesie for Thunder, a romney cross texel. The pair came home with ribbons for 4th in leading and 6th in call, follow and run. They also competed at group day, hosted by Hautapu School, where they came 1st in leading and 4th in rearing, and were named reserve leading champions for the entire year 1-8 age group. Group day attracted competitors from Roto-o-Rangi, Karapiro, Hautapu, Kaipaki, Te Miro, Leamington and Goodwood schools.
Rates use
The $81 million collected by Waipā District Council from rates in the 2023-24 year – 47 per cent of the council’s total revenue – wastewater, stormwater and water activities accounted for 36 per cent, or $29 million. Just over a third – 34 per cent, or $27.5 million – was spent on community services and facilities including maintaining parks, reserves, playgrounds, libraries, halls and cemeteries. Roads and footpaths accounted for nearly $14 million. Planning and regulatory costs accounted for 6 per cent, while 8 per cent went on governance, including strategy, communications and governance support staff.
Dog complaints
Wandering and barking dogs continue to test Waipā’s animal control team. In the three months from July 1, the council fielded 1115 calls on behalf of the team with 580 of them relating to animal control issues, including reports of lost dogs and stock. Top complaints were the 220 about wandering dogs and 186 about excessive barking.
Top students
Zach Macaskill-Smith
Zach Macaskill-Smith and Gabrielle Hill have taken top academic honours at St Peter’s School, Cambridge.
Proxime accessit for the International Baccalaureate went to Tim Qian, who shared the Robb Family Trophy with NCEA proxime accessit Keana Woodfield.
The school’s head boy for next year is Alapati Tusa-Soagia and head girl is Madeleine Waddell.
Consents rise
Waipā building consents in the quarter starting July 1 were up eight percent to 236 on the same quarter last year but still well down on the 338 in 2022. August was the busiest month with 87. New dwelling numbers are also up in the three months by 11 percent to 92 but again lagging behind 2022’s 131.
Parking complaints
Over a third of the people who copped parking fines in Cambridge and Te Awamutu in the quarter starting July 1 have complained to Waipā council. Of the 361 parking infringements issued, 128 queried the fine. The majority were for overstaying in time limited parking spaces.
Court hearing
A resource consent granted by Waipā District Council for a six-unit compact housing development at 3 Kelly Rd in Cambridge is off to the Environment Court next week. The appellant is Ruth Hickey, the occupier and beneficiary of the estate next door to the proposed development.
Truck crash
A truck which crashed at 5.05am last Thursday into a side barrier on SH1 south of Cambridge near Hickey Road and the trucks’ weigh station caused rush hour delays while debris was cleared. The vehicle was the only one involved and no injuries were reported.
Business News out
The latest edition of Waikato Business News – published by Good Local Media who also produces community newspapers in Cambridge, Te Awamutu and King Country – is out this week. Leading the monthly publication is a story on Cambridge leech farmers Maria and Robert Lupton whose blood sucking leeches save lives all over New Zealand.
Armistice Day
Mayor Susan O’Regan with the wreath from Waipa last year.
An ‘Armistice Remembrance’ concert will be held in the Cambridge Town Hall on Saturday. The gold coin entry ‘Sentimental Journey’ event will see proceeds go towards the RSA Welfare Fund. A Remembrance Sunday ceremony will take place at the plaza outside the hall on Sunday, and there will be a smaller ceremony at the same place on Monday, starting 10 minutes before 11am on the 11th.
Correction
District councillors Lou Brown and Bruce Thomas declared a conflict of interest and did not vote on the Te Awamutu-Kihikihi Community Board decision to ask the council to push back on orders to add fluoride to the Cambridge water supply. John Wood voted against the recommendation, not Lou Brown as we reported last week. * This was corrected online
First for Waipā
Ebode Homes show home in Kotare Park, Cambridge.
A show home featuring structural insulated panels was launched in Cambridge last week. The house built by Ebode Homes – a partnership between Higgs Building and Tawa Architects – is in Kotare Park and its builders say it will use 70 per cent less energy than the standard New Zealand building code home.
Shaun Higgins (r) and Brooke Cholmondeley-Smith (l)at the launch of Ebode Homes
Online stats
An online story about an attempted robbery in Leamington led our website post stats for last month followed very closely by our ever popular News in brief. The cambridgenews.nz site continues to gain new users boosted by our strong news coverage – both breaking coverage and online versions from the newspaper.
Our front page story, with police calling for information about the identities of five juvenile suspects caught breaking into a Hamilton Rd superette, was our third best post. Fourth was the opening of the new technology hub at Cambridge Middle School and in fifth, proof people read our back stories, an obituary on Anne Jagose written by Viv Posselt and published in July 2022.
This was prompted by the introduction of a new website tab pulling together all our obituaries over the years. Home is still the most visited page followed by pdf versions of the newspaper, Good Local Media contact details and advertising rates.
Bird watch
Cambridge mum Sarita Betschart has published a book to encourage children to learn more about birds in New Zealand. “My parents Steve and Dale McClunie and my in-laws, Betscharts and Cowans, have done heaps of conservation work around the area over many years for the forest and birds, so I grew up with that love myself,” she told The News. “I’m passionate about educating kids well, and about being good stewards of the environment around us.”
Showroom all go
The Bunnings site in Cambridge will become a car yard for Ingham.
Resource consent has been granted to Ingham Group to build a new car showroom on the old Bunnings site in Cambridge on the corner of Queen and Lake streets. Ingham has eight brands – Hyundai, Isuzu, Kia, Suzuki, Mercedes-Benz, Renault, Honda and Mitsubishi – at 17 dealerships and earlier this year purchased Windsor Nissan.
Transport refresh
Hamilton Transport Centre
Regional bus users from Waipā and King Country now have access to upgraded facilities at Hamilton Transport Centre following a $6.6 million refresh funded by New Zealand Transport Agency and Hamilton City Council. The upgrades focused on increasing security, promoting a feeling of safety and creating better accessibility.
Official opening event for Hamilton Transport Centre
Winning students
Winning team, from left: George Poolman, Ben Woodgates, Seamus Lohrey, Zack Robertson with associate professor Margalit Toledano. Photo: Myles McInnes.
Two Waikato University public relations students with Waipā connections have won the Waikato Management School Public Relations Campaigns competition with their Puumanawa PR team. George Poolman from Te Awamutu and Zack Robertson of Cambridge joined team mates Seamus Lohrey and Ben Woodgates in pitching the idea of GoEco launching an accreditation scheme of farms’ sustainable practices.
Gill wins again
Former New Zealand golf representative James Gill, 39, has won the 54-hole Kau Sai Chau International Amateur Open tournament in Hong Kong for a record seventh year. Gill, who learned his golf at Cambridge and first represented his country while a member now lives and works in the region and beat Hong Kong’s top-ranked amateur Jeffrey Shen, 21, by four shots. See: Gill gunning for seventh title
Promotions … and relegation
High profile events at Lake Karāpiro were expected to take big funding hits when Waipā District Council’s District Promotions sub-committee met on Monday. The national Waka Ama Sprint champs, Maadi regatta and New Zealand dragon boat champs were among the big events affected but so too were district-wide Christmas activities.
Thirty applications requesting $275,594 were received for the council’s $75,000 and 27 were expected to get either full or partial funding. Waka Ama asked for $40,000 and the secondary schools rowing champs $10,000; both were expected to get $6000 each following a staff recommendation.
Twelve of the events recommended by staff to get funds are on Lake Karāpiro, eight in Cambridge, four in Te Awamutu, two in Kihikihi and the five others in Mystery Creek, Pirongia, Rukuhia, Arapuni and Ōhaupō. The list of successful applicants were not available when The News went to press.
Organ Day
Organ donation recipients across the country will come together for ‘Thank You Day’, on November 30. Organised by Organ Donation New Zealand, it is a day of appreciation dedicated to all those who make organ donation possible. Last year, with the support of their whānau, 64 deceased people donated organs following their death, leading to more than 200 people receiving lifesaving kidney, liver, lung, heart or pancreas transplants.
Keeping up with the news
Mia Mackay
We might have found our youngest reader or perhaps she just recognised herself in the photo. Mia Mackay, 22 months, featured in The News last month wearing Susan O’Regan’s mayoral chains. The youngster has become quite a regular in the paper, first appearing in December two years ago aged three days nestled in the arms of dad Phil watched on by Cambridge Community Board member mum Alana – understood to be the first elected Waipā member to give birth while in office. Elise Badger has done the same this year to again create history.
See: Mama ….. Mia
Alana, Mia and Phil Mackay.
