Why Wanganui is 'jewel of Pacific'

GUEST EDITORIAL

We are all really lucky to call Wanganui our home. When I was living in the UK I was often asked where I came from in New Zealand, and I was always proud to say Wanganui. Like many of my peers, I never thought I would return to live here after leaving the city for university. It's amazing how, in 15 years, things change.

I coined a phrase for my English mates and referred to Wanganui as the "Jewel of the Pacific". Sort of like a sexy marketing phrase. I even remember coming up with a top 20 attractions list to tell people about while I was travelling around Europe. When you sit down and think about it, there aren't many towns or cities in the world with the sort of attractions we are lucky to have. There is the art gallery, The Waimarie, Durie Hill Tower, botanical gardens, the Whanganui River, to name just a few.

Through working at Markhams Chartered Accountants, I know Wanganui is a great city to own and operate a business. You just need to take a drive down Heads Rd to work out there are some big businesses providing the people of Wanganui with employment. The innovation of some of the businesses is amazing.

Wanganui is always going to struggle to keep its younger generation straight out of school, as they will want to go to university, live in a bigger city or travel overseas. That is all part of growing up.

We just have to remind them that, when they are ready to settle down, how about coming home to the "Jewel of the Pacific"?

With the current ageing population, there are opportunities for young people who have a skill to get ahead in Wanganui. The older generation have built up their businesses and, in most cases, they are very strong and successful, but at some stage they will have to hand it over to new blood.

To put it bluntly, the old buggers will need someone to sell it to in the future. Most people returning to New Zealand from their OE look straight past Wanganui. I personally think they are missing out. The housing is cheap and the community facilities are amazing, and - best of all - most things are within a 15-minute drive.

Wanganui has to be one of the most family-friendly cities in New Zealand if not the world. Our facilities for the size of our city are amazing. The Splash Centre and Kowhai Park have to be at the top of the family attractions list.

Anyone with kids who passes through the district always has to stop at Kowhai Park. My son recently went on the Lions Club Tot Town Train and thought it was amazing.

What really puts the Jewel in Wanganui is the people. It's great to be able to walk down the road and say hello and have the other person acknowledge you and say hello back. Try that in London or even Auckland on your next visit. In general, we are a friendly, caring bunch. As a city, we don't deserve the bad press we sometimes get. There are a lot of other positive things happening which are never reported.

We are all privileged to be able to call Wanganui, "The Jewel of the Pacific", home.

James Bowen is an associate at Markhams Wanganui