Vibrant New District Signs About to Rollout

New district signage is a move to put Tararua District on the map and the obvious place to start amping up our visitor marketing, Mark Maxwell, the Tararua District Councilos Economic Development and Communications Manager, says.

pGoing up next week, Phase 1 of the signage rollout, complements the upgrading of our visitor guide and visitor packs,q he said. pThe signs, with our new branding, Tararua District: Land of Ranges, was worked on by an external agency to develop the concepts before being put to Council on May 29.q

Tararua District Mayor, Tracey Collis, said the new district signage has been in the pipeline through the last Council term and is a project fully supported by councillors.

pThere was 100 per cent approval when the concepts were shown to Council,q she said. pThe change of brand to Tararua District: Land of Ranges encompasses who we are and where we are.q

Collis said each town has been consulted and have expressed pride in the designs.

pI am confident residents and visitors alike will be pleased with the result and we canot wait to see them at the town boundaries/ entrances,q she said. pThey will help promote our district and excite passing traffic with what we have to offer. It is pleasing to see these being rolled out as we prepare for growth and this signage will certainly help put us on the map.q

With visitors pumping an estimated $52 million into the Tararua economy for the year-end March 2019, Maxwell said there is an enthusiasm about the new signage concept, designed to capture the attention of an ever-growing number of visitors to our district. Council has also consulted with iwi and sought the necessary approval from the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) and Council planners.

pThe first phase is to replace the existing signs at both ends of Route 52, the Saddle Road and the Pahiatua Track,q he said. pIn Phase 2 we will be looking to replace the old, four Tararua Country signs across the district, but we are still in negotiation with the NZTA.q

Phase 3 will see new signage installed on all Tararuaos borders on State Highway 2 at Eketahuna and Norsewood, with these signs still to be finalised.

Signage on State Highway 3 will be delayed until the new Manawatu¯-Tararua Highway goes through.

pThere are also design options for our Tararua towns to adopt if they wish and we will work and consult with them in 2020,q Maxwell said.