Auckland Mayor Phil Goff stands on High Street in Auckland's CBD which is about to go under a pedestrianisation project. Photo / Dean Purcell
High St is perfect as it is and Phil Goff's "revolutionary" idea to cut traffic is not helpful. For decades the High St retailers have rejected waves of suggestions from the council to block traffic from the street. We repeat: please leave the street as it is!
Our customers like short-term parking either side of the street, for picking up shopping and dropping off goods from and to the specialist shops in the area. It works perfectly.
As a retailer and ratepayer in High St for 35 years, I challenge anyone to come forward who has seen so many pedestrians that they can't stay on the pavement, I haven't. Think of all the big overseas cities we love: London, Paris etc all have traffic and small, busy, one-way streets. It makes a city work.
The specialist shops in High St need the bustle and variety this brings. Not to kill the street with silence.
Please note in the photograph of Phil Goff in Saturday's Herald I see five pedestrians. To my mind, O'Connell St died when a similar proposal was realised. To spend up to $22 million on changing something that works very well as it is, is utterly ludicrous.
The suburban malls will have it all their own way any time soon when the council, Auckland City and AT block all access to cars in the city.
Anah Dunsheath, Auckland.
If the All Blacks don't win the World Cup will Steve Hansen still get his knighthood?
Graham Fleetwood, Mellons Bay.
I write in support of Rex Hohaia's letter (Herald, July 27) questioning "snouts in the trough" regarding Fish & Game's objection to Sleepyhead's proposed development at Ohinewai.
Fish and Game is an organisation established by Government Statute with taxpayer funding. This statute allows it to charge the public fees for shooting and fishing. Its statutory role is to manage wildlife and fisheries, not poke its nose into everyone's business. Hunters rely on access to private land for their recreation. Fish and Game's non-statutory activities have already alienated many landowners with increasing numbers refusing Fish and Game members access. Many rural people are now suggesting it is time for the Government to review its charter and audit its activities. Neither government funding nor shooters' fees should be used for blatant political purposes on issues outside their statutory role.
J Cotman, Te Kauwhata.
Simon Wilson's piece and your editorial identified things that have gone wrong for Americans in Trump's America.
Nevertheless, the economic growth that was under way during Obama's terms has continued under Trump.
The May 2019 unemployment rate was 3.6 per cent, the lowest since 1969.
Unemployment for black Americans fell to 5.9 per cent, the lowest figure since the 1970s.
Wages have risen much faster than the low 1.8 per cent rate of inflation, which means real incomes are rising from the GDP economic growth rate of 3.1 per cent (Q1 2019) to a GDP per capita of $64,767.
This together with low interest rates, has seen the Dow Jones Index increase by 35 per cent since Trump became president.
Most Americans have more money in their pockets now than before Trump took office and have seen their compulsory worker 412k savings explode.
If Trump is re-elected, this will be why.
Alasdair Thompson, Newmarket.
The New Zealand Government has failed to follow the rest of the world to require a move to cleaner fuel for shipping, thereby creating local "confusion over move to cleaner fuel". The global agreement to tackle emissions pollution from burning filthy sulphur-rich fuel in seagoing vessels was set out nearly a decade ago. Since then almost all the world's shipping has adopted the standard.
More than 100 countries have signed up to it, including Australia and the three leading countries that register a large proportion of the world's shipping fleet. They all recognised the significant environmental benefits of doing so, and acted accordingly.
New Zealand remains as a filthy outlier by holding out on signing up to this agreement. This is embarrassing for a country that prides itself on its environmental leadership. Any contribution to the environment from the "Green" Minister Genter's laudable cycling efforts would be massively exceeded if she were to quickly apply her handbrake to continued burning of dirty ship fuels around this country.
Dr Andrew Jeffs, University of Auckland.
With reference to Emmerson's cartoon in Saturday's Herald, which poses the question "What's the most important thing in the world?" I'd have thought the obvious answer would be "Providing newly built housing for those who are homeless".
No wonder we have a housing shortage when every development proposal is met with such hot and hostile opposition.
Peter Lewis, Forrest Hill.
Closing in towards my mid 90s, I have one particular disappointment in life: that despite my enthusiasm and effort, I have been unable to influence much support for the full recognition for Sir Keith Park who in my opinion, rates as one of the greatest New Zealanders to live in recent times. I tried to lead the charge for him to at least have his portrait appear on one of our banknotes. No response. Surely his contribution to greatness rates as high, if not higher than any person currently holding this honour.
I thank Gary Bridger for reminding me in his letter that even the Brits campaigned for a statue of Sir Keith, to be placed on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square. Now here's a good comparison: Horatio Nelson and Keith Park. Is it too late to do something to gain recognition for this modest but great Kiwi? I hope not.
Frank Sanft, Remuera.
There comes a critical time in our lives when we must transition from one stage to the next, where we desperately need a transformational figure, a hero, an individual who can inspire us and ignite our imagination of how our lives could be, if we just seized the day. And like individuals, cities have these pivotal moments, as Simon Wilson so perfectly and eloquently captures in his "Things that should be on Phil Goff's to-do List". Auckland stands at a crucial moment in its life. When it must transition from a small provincial city, to a city of the imagination, an aspirational creative and audacious city of Asia Pacific and beyond.
And what do we get at this defining moment?" A dull, risk-averse man, a policy wonk. A mayor doing for Auckland what he did for the Labour Party. Essentially nothing of note, a place holder. What a shame. At least there will be one enduring physical legacy of his dull tenure and that will be the five-storey carpark between the city and harbour on Bledisloe Wharf. An abomination he could have worked to stop or at least have delayed until better options for our waterfront could be developed. Like our own Guggenheim moment: a globally unique multi-purpose sunken stadium cost-free to rate payers, a stunning amenity for generations.
Phil O'Reilly, Auckland Central.
I see the Minister for Regional Development has also developed some views on GM. Perhaps at the same time as he alters our genome he should rename himself. Boris or Donald seem to fit his view of the environment.
People like Jones seem united in the view that the current term of Parliament will be the last for everyone. The saying about making hay while the sun shines is only a spur to action if there is a scarcity of sunshine. The Europeans and much of Australia already know what permanent sunshine is like.
Bruce Rogan, Mangawhai.
Perhaps our Prime Minister is wiser than Fran O'Sullivan realises, having got rid of a CGT (rendered truly scary by Sir Michael Cullen), and attributed its demise to Winston — who is happy to take the credit. She could see the strong resistance to such a tax by all sectors of business, as became clear in the weeks before the decision. And a CGT would be used relentlessly as an election weapon by the Opposition, when already the ordinary public was losing its appetite for one because of the bright line test extension and foreign buyers' ban. So, pragmatic decision-making at the very least, hardly an embarrassing failure. Government, on behalf of society, has to choose its battles. By far the biggest one we face is climate change, and Māori rights (land, whānau ora) are looking to be recontested. These issues will require a large expenditure of political capital to address effectively, which no doubt Ardern is marshalling her resources for. Her style is not so much compromise as leadership through consensus. She knows that the most workable decisions result from listening to the full range of left, right, Māori, rural and urban thinking — our MMP Government. This is a woman with enormous social and political intelligence who listens, understands, and finds the right path, all things considered.
B Darragh, Auckland Central.
The woman was shaken by the incident.