Porirua Hospital recalled

You ran a story ‘‘Future of Kenepuru Hospital grounds up in the air’’ (February 3) and illustrated it with pictures of buildings on the old Porirua Hospital site!

Having worked there for many years I knew the site well and, like others once employed there, was surprised by the error.

It should be noted that Kenepuru Community Hospital was built on part of the original Porirua Hospital grounds and opened in the 1970s.

It has never been named or considered to be a part of the Porirua Hospital campus.

Porirua Hospital was opened in 1887 and its grounds extended on to the hills.

It had a farm, water reservoir, gardens and a variety of amenities to serve the increasing population of people admitted for care and treatment.

For many years it was the major employer and those who worked there played a large part in the developing town of Porirua.

Over decades, as treatments became available and alternative care was developed, people have moved out of Porirua Hospital.

Services remaining on part of the old Porirua Hospital site, now named Ratonga Rua O Porirua

Hospital, include regional forensic and rehabilitation services.

There are some acute mental health services at Kenepuru.

In the centre of the old site are the Porirua Hospital Museum and Resource Centre and the Chapel. The museum is open on Tuesday afternoons and at other times by arrangement. beginning. It has proposed the same formula for the Far North and Hawke’s Bay.

The commission is doing National’s bidding to take ‘‘local’’ out of local government, reduce democratic representation, and set up mega-councils that are divorced from popular control.

National’s right-wing agenda is being helped considerably by the fact that neither of the two local promoters of the super-city, the regional council and Porirua City Council, are under National’s control.

The collaboration by some Labour politicians is interesting, to say the least.

I hold no hope that the commission will listen to submissions on its proposal; it will steamroll ahead regardless.

It is hoping that pro-super-city propaganda by business interests, the media and its acolyte politicians will eventually make people feel resigned to the amalgamation.

The true measure of the proposed reduction in democracy is that the existing 104 mayors and councillors would be replaced by one mayor and 21 councillors.

The proposed wards for the super-council are massive. The Porirua-Tawa ward has a population of 68,710 (2013 estimate), which is about the same as the parliamentary Mana