Two - I also understand that the clock tower now may need some extensive earthquake strengthening to the tune of some $3 million. I am at a bit of a loss here to figure out how a reasonably new structure is at risk of falling down in an earthquake ... I saw it being erected and the design and materials to my mind far exceeded the requirements for such a structure, so that only leaves the geology, so what is the problem that would warrant such an expense?
L Gooch, Stratford
Saving rates starts at the top
As we face a rates rise, which admittedly is possibly not entirely the fault of this current council, but rather poor decision making and a case of putting things off for a future generation to pay the cost of, I notice the cuts impact the worse off of our residents, not the ones at the top of the chain.
In Stratford, swimmers, pensioner tenants and weekend AA users all face increased charges, while regionally we are all still paying for a stadium few of us want. Meanwhile, those councillors deciding how much more we must all pay have meetings at which they are served food - at ratepayers’ cost - unlike the majority of other people in the workforce who bring in their own meals to eat at work each day. They also, I note from the TRC policy on expenses, can claim mileage, the chair gets a car, and they even get money towards their internet. Perhaps cuts could be made here, and our pensioners and young swimmers could get some relief along with every ratepayer in the district.
D Smith
Signs make town look old
Travelling through Stratford recently, a trip I make often for family reasons, I noticed an increase in the amount of rubbish to be seen on the streets. Not the stuff blowing around on the ground courtesy of careless people who don’t bother to seek out the relatively plentiful bins, but rather the rubbish to be seen hanging on walls and windows - outdated signs. Advertising events already over, they make the town look worn and tired. On my last visit I counted at least five of them, advertising everything from a February Americarna event to an even older - 2023 - Shakespearean festival. Surely those signs could be taken down and recycled somehow? Leaving them up makes the town look as though it’s living in the past, with no future ahead of it.
S Lyle
Editors note: There is an upcoming Shakespearean festival next month, running from April 6-13.
Pavements are for walking
Stratford is blessed with some very wide roads, and equally wide footpaths. However, I am regularly taken aback by the sight of some early morning walkers who seem to think the footpath isn’t wide enough and choose instead to walk on the road. While my car is only a standard size, not a limo or some tanklike vehicle, and the road is indeed wide, I still find myself having to veer to the centre unexpectedly to avoid hitting these early risers / walkers, who choose to walk two or three abreast on the road. Surely this isn’t safe - for them from a car turning on to a road too quickly and not seeing them in the early light or fog, but also for us poor unsuspecting drivers, who veer to the side and may then hit a cyclist or another vehicle in the other lane. Please, dear walkers, your passion for fitness is to be commended - but stick to your lane, which in this case is the pavement.
M Watson
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