A parade, parking and real sausages

A street parade through New Plymouth for the crew of the HMNZS Endeavour will be followed by a barbecue with, wait for it, real sausages.

Closing roads for the ceremonial charter parade was approved by the New Plymouth District Council’s performance committee, who were in a jovial mood last week and quite concerned about whether or not there was going to be a party for the navy ship’s final visit.

Council officer Julia Straka assured them that there would indeed be party on Puke Ariki landing.

‘‘There will be a barbecue with real sausages. And there will also be a band and a large inflatable for the young folk,’’ she said.

Mayor Neil Holdom was particularly pleased to hear about the real sausages, he said.

‘‘I’m really excited that we’re not having pre-cooked sausages. This is Taranaki. People eat real meat.’’

The HMNZS Endeavour is a four-deck, 138-metre fuel-carrying navy ship which is soon to be decommissioned and replaced. Its home port is New Plymouth.

The Endeavour had a fantastic relationship with the city, Holdom said.

‘‘I heard about the work being done with local schools and I heard about the building of this new ship HMNZS Aotearoa.’’

Councillor Mike Merrick said it would be a great day.

‘‘I’m pleased we’re going to have a significant community event.’’

Queen St from Devon St West to King St in New Plymouth will be closed for the parade from 10am to noon on Saturday November 18.

The ship’s crew will march through central New Plymouth to Puke Ariki Landing. A ceremony will then be held and the crew hand the charter back to the New Plymouth district. Then the party starts.

Councillor Gordon Brown said the loss of parking revenue while the street was closed, which he estimated to be about $51, could have been the reason for precooked sausages in the past, he joked.

Parking had been discussed earlier in the meeting. A report said the average occupancy rate of car parks in the CBD was 51 per cent, a statistic councillor Shaun Biesiek said, at least three times, that he didn’t want to read in the newspaper.

It’s not just the CBD – it takes into account the one way systems, he said.

‘‘It’s an average on the whole stock.’’

It is also far below the council’s target of 85 per cent occupancy.

NPDC customer and regulatory solutions manager Katrina Brunton said there had always been a target of 85 per cent for car parking and it was best practice in the whole world.

‘‘And it’s never been achieved. It was set a few years ago when there was a view we might be able to reach it...for no particular reason.’’

Councillor Harry Duynhoven suggested it was time they buried the optional target.

‘‘I’m really excited that we’re not having pre-cooked sausages. This is Taranaki. People eat real meat.’’

Mayor Neil Holdom