Dargaville community leans toward iconic kumara

Robyn Downey
A Dargaville community survey has returned overwhelming support for the building of an iconic kumara.
The Kumara Power project is being driven by Hal Harding who believes an iconic kumara would give the Kaipara district a sense of identity.
Mr Harding said he had received hundreds of responses to a community survey on the project.
There had been 507 responses in support of the project, 42 against and 35 undecided.
Mr Harding said he had recently met with the Kaipara District Council to discuss the project.
"They were impressed by the results of the survey and they now want me to get a possible design for the project sorted out," Mr Harding said.
Mr Harding said he had already received about 25 design ideas from the community, including an interesting sketch from Peter Harris - Kaiwaka's Eutopia Cafe owner - of a Kumara Kathedral.
The sketch is of a large golden kumara with stained glass windows, spires, arched windows and doors and a large eagle-type bird wing-spanned over the front door.
Mr Harris's design included a stairway inside the construction to a mezzanine floor for higher observation purposes.
Mr Harding said some sectors of the Dargaville community were concerned that the construction - whatever the design - might be unsightly due to the fact that the kumara did not have great eye appeal.
"I know there are some people who are worried about what it will look like but I would like to see those people having more of a positive view of the idea because we need to promote the town and the kumara industry is definitely a growing one here," he said.
A kumara grower himself he said once a design had been finalised he would be taking it back to the council for its decision as to whether to support the idea.
The two most likely sites for construction would be State Highway 12 on the town side of the Northern Wairoa Bridge or on River Rd, just before the Kaihu Bridge which links Dargaville with Mangawhare.
Structural dimensions were still being finalised but it was expected to be about 10m high with a girth of about 5m and it would house the history of the kumara in the Kaipara and information about the area.
Mr Harding was toying with the possibility of it also becoming a refreshment stop for travellers.
The final design decision would be taken to engineers for plans and specifications to be drawn up so that a building consent application could be made.
"We will get a scale model done for the community to look at which will be displayed somewhere in town or presented at a town function," he said.
The structure is expected to be made out of hardened polystyrene, fibre glass or spray-on ferris concrete sprayed over some kind of framework.
Council chief executive Jack McKerchar has urged Mr Harding to keep the council advised of progress in gaining community support for it.