Princely trees in for chop Briefs
Judge a real character
The newest High Court judge has a Twitter feed, and a rich history as the son of immigrants. So the swearing-in ceremony for Justice Pheroze Jagose in Wellington yesterday was culturally diverse, with references from Lady Gaga to the heritage of his father, a Parsi Indian descended from Persians. His mother is Irish. David Goddard, QC, speaking for the Law Society, said having seen what the judge could do with 140 characters on Twitter, he was looking forward to similarly concise judgments. Justice Jagose will sit in Auckland. A large number of storm-damaged trees are set to be removed from Prince of Wales Park in Wellington, after bad weather earlier this month. Wellington City Council’s arboriculture team will begin the process next week, with an estimated 100 pine and macrocarpa trees on the chopping block. The southerly storm this month brought down several trees in the area behind the Scottish Harriers Club building, all of which were removed at the time. However, to decrease future risk to users of the City to Sea walkway and the Harriers building, the remaining unstable trees must now also be taken care of. Public access to the site will be restricted during the project for safety reasons. The main project is expected to take about four weeks.
SH1 deviation for Kaikoura
A proposal to deviate the state highway from Kaikoura’s busiest and most challenging intersection is on the table. The intersection at State Highway 1, Ludstone Rd and West End has caused problems for some time, with locals claiming it is ‘‘an accident waiting to happen’’. Following a review of possible solutions and discussions with Kaikoura District Council, the New Zealand Transport Agency has recommended a deviation to SH1 to improve safety and manage traffic flows around the busy intersection. The project is expected to cost more than $16 million. The proposed highway will be realigned to follow Lyell Creek before joining Beach Rd opposite the Kaikoura Top 10 Holiday Park, and include two new bridges. The concept design is out for public consultation.