An orange glow for business

The move to the orange traffic light setting will be welcome relief for Kāpiti hospitality venues suffering from Covid restrictions, Kāpiti Mayor K Gurunathan says.

“The move to orange will mean more people can enjoy our local cafes and eateries . . . but a cautious approach is still required to ensure we don’t lose sight of the gains we’ve made.

“I encourage people to keep wearing masks when they are out and about as much as possible and in places where it is required — this includes council’s public facilities and libraries — and to stay home if they are sick.

“This will help reduce the spread of the virus and other winter bugs in our community.

“Let’s make sure we don’t turn the long tail of Covid-19 into a ski jump — we don’t want numbers to turn upwards again.”

Gurunathan said the council was gearing up to transition its services and community facilities to orange, but some things will remain as they are for a few weeks due to staff rosters and the need to keep people safe.

“At this stage, operating hours at council libraries and aquatics facilities will remain unchanged until after Anzac Weekend due to staff rosters.

“This also gives the council team the best chance of keeping our facilities open through the busy school holiday period should staff need to isolate at home.

“The Waikanae Service Centre will remain closed until Monday, May 2 due to staff availability but the O¯ taki and Paraparaumu service centres remain open.”