A tour of red zone after dark
Burnt-out cars, dumped rubbish and delinquents are among the many surprises night security can expect while patrolling Christchurch’s red zone.
And could these issues be solved by one of the ideas being presented at the Red Zone Futures exhibition starting this week?
As winter sets in and nights become longer, The Press joined Land Information New Zealand compliance co-ordinator Jason Notman for one of his regular patrols.
With spotlights on the truck and a highpowered torch in hand, Notman mounted the curb past the ‘‘authorised vehicles only’’ sign and talked about his role.
‘‘We’ve had to deal with . . . arson, burglary, stolen vehicles and your general poor behaviour and boy racer-type activity,’’ he said.
He had been involved with security of the red zone, including parts of the Port Hills, for more than six years. From a security perspective, their job had changed a lot – from reporting unoccupied house fires and rampant drug use to advising people of their access rights and chatting with dog-walkers.
‘‘I’ve seen the red zone evolve from being full of houses . . . to what it is now. We still have residents who live in the red zone or nearby, so there are a lot of cup-of-tea visits,’’ he said.
The truck stopped suddenly, tyre marks on the grass catching Notman’s attention. Not far away, he spotted a large pile of rubbish.
‘‘We do get a lot of this and it’s actually a real hatred of mine. This load must’ve been brought in with a trailer. It’s pretty disappointing really,’’ he said.
He logged the location, adding it to the list for a contractor to clear up. Once enough rubbish was identified, they would come in one sweep to pick it up. Burnt-out cars were removed more quickly as they were ‘‘an eyesore’’.
‘‘We do want people to access the red zone, it’s important and it’s a beautiful space now – not to the extent of say, Hagley Park, but it’s certainly a nice big space for people to get out and walk their dogs and pick fruit, and we encourage that sort of stuff,’’ he said.
A public exhibition of land-use proposals, run by Regenerate Christchurch, is expected to kick off in Cashel Mall on Saturday. An 11-kilometre green spine, wetlands and walking and biking trails are expected to feature in the exhibit, as well as unknown private and public uses.
‘‘There is a passion to ensure that when it does get handed over to whoever is going to take it . . . it’s looked after,’’ he said.
The Red Zone Futures exhibition will run from May 26 to June 30 in Cashel Mall. It will also be available online and a mobile exhibition will travel to public spaces in greater Christchurch.