Recovery in Your Community

Kia ora koutou,

CERA's latest announcement hasn't made life any easier for our Southshore friends; kia kaha. I hope when April arrives that you hear the results you need.

Many others are confronted with terminology that we've never had the need to know, until recently. My background in landscaping has meant I understand how contracts need to be managed, but it doesn't make me an engineer! I've learnt to live with liquefaction (and have found it to be a rather reasonable growing medium) but understanding the implications of living in an area that is prone to it? Luckily, I'm not afraid to admit when I don't know something and am quite adept at seeking advice from those who do.

Despite often being portrayed as the villain in the media, CERA are making a substantial effort to look after Community Wellbeing as well as sharing the information they have in a way that we can understand. Their website contains many invaluable sources of information. This program, aired on Maori TV, discusses the health issues we are all facing in our communities.

As we've all discovered living in the rainbow that is green-blue, green-yellow, orange and red, technical categories are a many faceted thing.

Land in the green zone has been divided into three technical categories. These categories describe how the land in expected to perform in future earthquakes.

The technical categories – TC1 (grey), TC2 (yellow) and TC3 (blue) describe the foundation systems most likely to be required in the corresponding areas on the maps. As this is an area wide classification site specific geotech work will be required to determine the actual foundations required for each house in TC3 areas. In some cases this will mean TC2 level foundations will be enough in TC3 areas based on actual ground tests. This approach is common throughout New Zealand.

It is important to note that property owners only need to replace their foundations if their house needs to be rebuilt, or requires repairs to the foundations. Otherwise, no further action is needed (until you undertake major renovations that affect your foundations).

A very useful booklet has been developed by CERA and other agencies entitled Technical Categories and Your Property , follow the link to download the .pdf

While some of us make progress with our homes it can still feel like the recovery focus is on the Central Business District and folk, quite rightly, have been asking "What about us? What's happening in New Brighton?".

I've some good news. I've the pleasure of announcing that a motion has been carried to create the new organisation:
Renew Brighton.

Our Vision:
New Brighton is celebrated as a thriving, vibrant, self reliant village.

Our Mission:
Renew Brighton will be the catalyst, platform and inspiration for community-led ideas and initiatives. We will encourage collaboration between community groups and act as a conduit for communications.

Founding Members
Nikki Griffin (Local Business Owner), Jolene Parker (Artist), Pascal Bouffandeau (Teacher), Corinne Bolstad (Recovery), Kent Roper (Architectural Designer), Louise Wedlake (Businesswoman and advocate for keeping QE2 in the East), Donald Pettitt (Social Worker) and Rebecca May (not-for-profit Manager).


Background
Following February 2011's devastating earthquake, the Recovery of Community (ROC) group formed in New Brighton. While it was established at its final meeting in August 2011 that there was the need for a community-driven recovery plan it was decided that ROC wasn't the group to lead this process. After considerable consultation within the community it was decided to create a new organisation: Renew Brighton, that would encourage inter-agency collaboration, act as the conduit for communication between the community and other recovery agencies and that, as an organisation, we will provide the cohesion needed to create a community-led recovery plan.


Our Goals:

To be instrumental in leading the development of a community led recovery and revitalisation plan for Greater Brighton.
To take part in the plan's implementation
To contribute to the ongoing development of our community.



It is Renew Brighton's intention to engage with the community, through both its leaders and through a well planned consultation period. We have already conducted considerable research in determining the need and efficiency of creating this organisation and have garnered the support of many, including our local Councillors and MP.

I was wondering about the word 'village'. Like many of you, I tend to think of 'town' as being the city of Christchurch and of (Greater) Brighton as being a separate village. I've never been sure whether or not villages are defined geographically or demographically so, with the internet at my fingertips, I googled it:

vil·lage/ˈvilij/

Noun:

A group of houses and associated buildings, larger than a hamlet and smaller than a town, situated in a rural area.
A self-contained district or community within a town or city, regarded as having features characteristic of village life.

That sounds like a very apt description of Greater Brighton, especially as the green belt that are the red zones of Bexley, and Burwood develop. Perhaps I could venture so far as to write the definition folk will find when they google Greater Brighton in the future:

Greater Brighton

A seaside village that reaches from Southshore Spit to Bottle Lake Forest and is bound by the aquatic areas of the Pacific Ocean, the Avon-Otakaro River and Travis Wetland.
A thriving, vibrant, self-reliant village by the sea.
A place where people live, work, play and shop.

And if it's inspiration you need, look no further than our iconic Pier. New Brighton has an incredible history of community led development, think of what the Pier and Foreshore Society achieved!

Ka kite ano,
Rebecca May