Police seeking witnesses after car sends cyclist friends flying
A street party with live music in Nelson’s New St might be on the cards this summer, if there is enough community support for it.
Arts Council Nelson committee member Axel de Maupeou said the idea was to close the street to traffic for a day or night and host a party with live music, in collaboration with local bars.
He said that to organise the inaugural event later this year, volunteers and community support were needed to get it off the ground.
De Maupeou said New St bars Rhythm and Brown and DeVille had come up with the idea to host a street party a while ago, but it didn’t come to fruition because it was too timeconsuming for the business owners to get all the right consents and liquor licences.
He said the arts council, with its Tune In Hui gatherings which functioned as a support network for regional musicians, had the aim of supporting anyone interested in creating a music scene in Nelson city and Tasman district.
‘‘How we can transform this area of Nelson woman Arna Wilson was cycling along Rutherford St when she noticed a car coming up beside her.
‘‘S..., that’s bloody close,’’ she said to her friend, Allistair Messan, who was biking behind her.
Wilson, 22, said she had just finished her sentence when the car sped up and hit her bike. ‘‘I went straight over the handlebar, fell on my head and snapped my shoulder.’’ the city, turn it upside down and make it a destination for audiences to come to and enjoy some really good art?
‘‘It’s a street with a lot of bars, so if they all work together we can have a family-friendly street event, not a boozefest, with quality music.
‘‘It doesn’t need to be massive, it can be intimate.’’
He said that as New St wasn’t one of Nelson’s major streets, closing it to traffic wouldn’t be a problem.
De Maupeou said the arts council aimed to expand the concept of a musical event to include performances and visual art in the future. To determine which acts would be performing, the organisers would call for expressions of interest.
If the blueprint for the New St event worked, the idea was to have different areas of the region host similar street events.
Nelson City Council group manager of community services Roger Ball said the council had not been approached yet about the event but was looking forward to hearing more about it ‘‘in due course’’.
‘‘Council is focused on building a healthy, vibrant and thriving CBD, one that supports our retail and other businesses, while attracting visitors and residents alike. Events are key to achieving this,’’ he said.
She said Messan, also 22, ‘‘being a good friend’’, was also hit. He followed suit, dislocating his shoulder.
‘‘Allistair is a musician, he plays the keyboard, and he was meant to playing this weekend but he won’t be able to now.’’
The crash happened at the intersection of Rutherford and Van Diemen streets at 2.30pm on Thursday.
The driver of the car didn’t stop, and Nelson police are asking for witnesses to the crash. The car was seen heading towards Waimea Rd.
Wilson said that because everything happened so fast, she wasn’t sure if the car hit her front wheel or her frame.
‘‘Allistair is pretty sure that [the car] kind of sped up behind us to give us a bit of a fright and get really close.
‘‘I don’t know if they accidentally hit us on the way out, but they would have seen us fall in their rear view mirror.’’
She said an ‘‘angel woman’’ who was about to pick her child up from school saw the accident and came to help them.
‘‘[She] was the most lovely lady. It was a bad experience, but everyone was so helpful.’’
Wilson said that from memory, the car was an older, lighter green, four-door vehicle.
She said she knew of other cyclists that had had bad experiences with cars getting really close, but this had been her first such incident.
Wilson and Messan were taken to Nelson Hospital by Messan’s father, who came to their rescue.
‘‘I don’t know if it was a complete accident and they didn’t even notice, but if they did notice, it would be good if they came forward,’’ Wilson said.
‘‘I just want to make sure it doesn’t happen again.’’
Constable Peter Buzzard said police were looking for witnesses to the crash or for the driver who did not stop to contact police. Buzzard can be contacted on 021 192 0144.
‘‘I don’t know if it was a complete accident and [the driver] didn’t even notice.’’
Arna Wilson