Letters: Bring back the bike bell

A reader asks, why not wood for 'ego' council projects? Photo/File

We live in the age of "noise", these days it haunts us, every second of the day and night.
Car and motorcycle exhausts are the worst, many countries have strict limits on the amount of noise an exhaust may emit. Obviously we do not share that blessing, though I fail to see why.

The other frustration, strangely enough, is the lack of noise.

As frequent dog walkers in the beautiful "doggy" part of the Redwoods, we share it with cyclists.

As a child cyclist we had bells, all bikes had bells - I believe it was compulsory - so that pedestrians (with whom we share large tracts in and around cities in New Zealand) may know a bike is coming - otherwise silently - behind them.

May it be a good thing to consider bringing back?

Jim Adams
Rotorua

Wood could be used

So we now have another councillor with an ego project. This time it is Karen Hunt wanting to make Rotorua the art centre of the country.

Our council promised us, if elected, to reduce debt and make sure that Rotorua, as a city close to forestry, would use wood in the first instance as a principal choice in as many new developments as possible.

Since that time we have bought a metal Christmas tree - maybe conifers are hard to find around here.

What was to be a metal sculpture at the new Hemo Rd roundabout is now to be a carbon fibre one.

Why not wood?

Councillor Hunt says "we have the places for significant sculptures" no mention yet of costs or whether we are in dire need of them.

If we are to go ahead with this ego project, may I suggest we place these sculptures around Te Manawa, which is difficult enough to negotiate as it is, but pedestrians and traffic may be able to read all about the various art displays.

Maybe some shade sails could be introduced. We could make access even more inviting by restricting the flow of traffic in the Hinemoa/Tutanekai Sts area.

We could then rename it Te Manawa City Focus.

I would like to suggest that with the council seeming hell bent on privatisation is it possible to privatise council?

(Abridged)
Mike Long
Rotorua

Council services outsourced

The reason for the council outsourcing the running of the Aquatic Centre is to provide a more efficient and cost-effective service.

Is this an admission of failure by the council, an admission that it hasn't the ability to run efficient and cost-efficient services?

Maybe this inability explains part of the reason for our huge and growing debt.

Paddi Hodgkiss
Rotorua