Thursday October 13, 2011
Small-town economies not slipping away yet
MAD
on Manawatu
By ROB MILDON
380344AA
OPEN 6 DAYS OWNER OPERATED
BTG12091GO
DIG THIS: The closure of the Manawatu Gorge has put the squeeze on small communities nearby. The size of the diggers in action here gives an idea of the slip’s scale at it’s height. period, and that’s hard when you’re not getting information from the horse’s mouth. He said that business has been steady in some areas. Meanwhile, across town, The Viking’s Haul has found the sharper end of the stick. There’s been ‘‘a very noticeable downturn,’’ said owner Evan Natrass. ‘‘It’s definitely a lot slower. Sorting new stock is getting tedious when there’s no-one coming to take it away!’’ He said that he’d turned to online trading to pick up the slack. Mr Natrass expressed concern that a lot of traffic coming over Saddle Road is bypassing Woodville - simply following Oxford
NZTA regional state highways manager David McGonigal said that the nature of the Gorge made stabilisation work difficult. ‘‘We’re limited in our options because the hillside consists largely of fractured rock,’’ he said. Such work usually involves driving steel rods into the rockface, but here ‘‘[it] tends to splinter and disintegrate when it’s bored into.’’ NZTA figures show that, when it’s not choked with rock and soil, the Gorge road sees 6800 vehicles pass each day. Since 2002, emergency works in the Manawatu Gorge have cost $6 million. The current work has a budget of $1.3 million.
INSIDE Crime rates decline — Page 9
EXPORT MEAT WAREHOUSE
PREMIER
SAVELOYS
$5.99kg
CHICKEN BREASTS
$13.99kg BONELESS SKIN ON
WINZ CARD
Road as it comes down from the ranges and rejoining State Highway 2 on the far side of town. He added that some businesses had had to lay off staff. If the Gorge remained closed until Christmas and alternatives to the maintenance-heavy arterial route were considered, it could mean trouble for locals. ‘‘I’m worried that they’ll put in a big over-the-hill road and that’ll bypass Woodville.’’ Meanwhile, the Gorge road has finally been cleared, but safety concerns will keep it closed. Large quantities of material could still slip off the hillside, and the road itself has to be checked for structural damage.
I have lived here most of my life. I am currently studying teaching in Dunedin and I always come back to Palmy for my holidays. I love that its a great little town that has a fantastic atmosphere. I love that it’s small enough that everyone is so friendly. — Jennifer Davis, Palmerston North
QUALITY & FRESHNESS
40 PIECE BBQ PACK 8 x MEAT PATTIES 8 x HASH BROWNS 8 x TENDERISED STEAK 8 x SAUSAGES 8 x HAM STEAKS
40 PIECES
$24
FACEBOOK PALMERSTON NORTH EXPORT MEATS
PH 357 0021 w/e Sat 16th Oct
100% NEW ZEALAND PORK
SCOTCH FILLET STEAK $11.99kg PRE COOKED
SAUSAGES 50 for $16.99 REALISTIC PRICES
WINZ CARD
7881418AA
As the Manawatu Gorge clocks up its 50th day of being closed, and heavy traffic continues to thunder up and down the roundabout routes provided by the Pahiatua Track and Saddle Road, the residents of Woodville and Ashhurst are beginning to feel the economic bite. It’s not too bad at the moment, but with the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) projecting a further two months of closure, to ensure the safety of the Gorge road, things could get a bit touch and go. Ashhurst has got off lighter, thanks to Saddle Road travellers still passing through the town. ‘‘We’ve started to feel it now,’’ said Barry Jones, owner of the Allied petrol station on Napier Road. ‘‘If it goes on too much longer it will start having an effect. ‘‘We’ve been a little bit protected because of the local trade,’’ he continued, and predicted that the holiday season would be crunch time. ‘‘Over Christmas we get a lot of Wellington traffic heading north. They’ll start going the other way,’’ he said — the ‘‘other way’’ being over the Rimutakas and up through Wairarapa. ‘‘Fingers crossed!’’ Over the hill, how the economy’s going tends to depend on who you talk to. Peter Bonser, co-owner of Digbys of Woodville, said the tricky thing isn’t the economic slowdown. ‘‘We’ve noticed it, but not hugely,’’ he said. ‘‘The biggest problem we’ve had is the paucity of information: not being told what’s going on. We’re trying to make plans to get through the