Wednesday 27 January 2021
Kites soar high
Top ref returns
Page 7
Page 24
Local builders face national shortages Erin Bradnock Local builders, plumbers and electricians continue to face supply shortages across the country as supply lines are stretched by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Michael Bensemann at Nelson Builders says they’re experiencing delays on supplies that they would not normally see. “Supply of framing timber and standard materials is still okay. But when ordering a custom or
special-order, delays of 1-4 weeks are happening. In some instances, the client has to select from a limited range,” he says. Michael says builders are also facing price increases of materials in the two to seven per cent range.
“This will further impact building costs along with the delays in supply. To negate this, we are making material choices with our clients earlier in the build process, but ultimately, we are at the mercy of the supply chain.”
Steve Parkins at Plumbing Nelson has worked in the plumbing business for 35 years and has never experienced delays to this extent before.
SEE PAGE 2
Cannabis arcade locked down in garage Charles Anderson Steven Gray never thought he would be housing a dismantled cannabis museum in his garage. “But hey, you know, things happen.” His son Abe Gray has long been at the forefront of cannabis advocacy in New Zealand and, as part of that, in 2013 he founded the Whakamana: the Cannabis Museum of Aotearoa. It grew from being housed in a flat in Dunedin, to a larger space, then moved to Christchurch and then Wellington, where it sat until Covid-19 lockdown struck. That threw the project into limbo. With nowhere to house myriad items about the science, politics and sociology of cannabis, Abe fell back on his parents.
“Abe basically called up and said, ‘I need to store this stuff ’ and I said ‘yes’. But it’s not really my era. If it were pinball machines, then I would be down with it.” Steven says the museum started as a public education tool and then it gained momentum and became much more polished. “For being a totally shoestring effort, it was really impressive, and he got a lot of visitors, especially international visitors. They even had an exhibition within the museum that explored the connection between early arcade games and cannabis use. “The early video game industry story is very interesting,” says Steven. “But it turns out the creators were mostly stoners.”
SEE PAGE 2
Steven Gray with some of the vintage arcade games that formed part of an exhibition from his son’s cannabis museum. Photo: Charles Anderson.
Additional copies $1
100% LOCALLY OWNED AND OPERATED
www.nelsonweekly.co.nz