Letters to the editor: Does Tauranga really need an 'Eat Street'?

Sandra Johnson from The Dry Dock Cafe pictured on Wharf St. Photo/file

A no-brainer

Why do we sell soft drinks in plastic and aluminium containers when they are bought by the poor ... rot the teeth of our children, the containers are discarded in our landfill and gutters and we pay millions of our tax dollars for health-related issues like tooth decay and diabetes?

Well, I guess it makes a buck or two for the sellers.

So could we be a Kiwi national family banning the bad stuff and promoting a healthy recipe for a robust, healthy country? More fruit and vege shops, maybe. More market gardeners. More employment in the outdoors. More healthy cuisine outlets. (abridged)

Scott Dennison
Bellevue

Wharf St upgrade

So Tauranga City Council is to spend $2.9 million of ratepayers money upgrading that small section of Wharf St and has approved spending $190,000 for design. A landlord said he was delighted. Who wouldn't be?

I have since driven down Wharf St a few times. There is very little traffic, it is slow, no doubt very convenient for deliveries, etc. There is nothing particularly wrong with the present layout. No doubt it could be upgraded but is that really necessary?

My casual observation is that there are far too many eating places in The Strand/Wharf St and many of them are struggling to make money. The owners of such businesses work hard. They have a challenge to get things right as they cater to a fickle consumer together with all the compliance laws.

Council receives rent for the encroachment on the public areas by restaurants, etc.
If council is going to spend $2.9m on the Wharf St upgrade what extra rental will ratepayers receive from the occupiers for these leased areas?

We closed Spring St a long while back at significant inconvenience to traffic. How beneficial has that really been?

Bill Capamagian
Tauranga