FLEXIBILITY NEEDED
Like many Northland families during the Christmas/New Year period, we had a constant flow of visitors from other parts of the country and overseas wanting to experience all that our beautiful Far North patch has to offer.
On Boxing Day, having taken our visitors to Cape Reinga, we stopped at Mangonui, hoping to take them to a highly recommended restaurant. Despite a flourishing local market and hundreds of visitors, the restaurant was closed, just as it was when we visited a previous long weekend. We were told ‘‘But they close on Mondays’’.
On January 2 about 2.15, we popped in to two Kerikeri restaurants hoping to have lunch. Again, despite plenty of tourists, both establishments had closed their kitchens. One had run out of food and the staff of another gave the impression that they just wanted to go home.
A group of visitors, who had unsuccessfully tried several Kerikeri eateries, only to be told they had closed their kitchens, frustratingly commented out loud that Kerikeri seemed to be closed for business.
Friends who visited Paihia on the same day had a different story to tell, saying Paihia was well and truly open for business. So guess where we’ll we sending our visitors!
I often hear from local hospitality establishments that the problem in the North is not being able to get good reliable staff, but after 30 plus years of living here, I think the problem goes much deeper.
Many of our hospitality and other businesses tend to adopt an inflexible management style that might just get them through the quiet months, but has no place when things get busy.
The boom/bust nature of tourism demands a much more flexible approach, like keeping your kitchen open when visitors are pouring in, or opening on Mondays during the busy holiday season.
Who knows, by adopting a flexible management style, businesses might be able to attract and hold onto good staff so that they can capitalise on the influx of visitors who just might want to be fed on a Monday after 2pm. I have jumped onto my soapbox many times regarding the dust issues that cause so much havoc in the lives of those unfortunate families who live on dirt roads.
I say dirt rather than metal roads, because at this time of the year in particular, the roads are comprised of dirt and dust with barely a smidgen of metal in some places.
Billowing dust can be seen for miles along country roads and while some residents have placed ‘‘Dust Problem’’ signs outside of their property, along with a few large boulders in an effort to encourage vehicles to slow down, many vehicles think it is great fun to speed along these dirt roads.
I believe Council should be responsible for providing an adequate strip of tarseal outside of residential properties which are subject to dust issues.Dust carries a long way finding its way into water supplies, children’s lungs, open windows and causing a build up of thick irritating dust into grazing animals’ coats.
It is amazing how many dirt roads exist in close proximity to Kerikeri township as well as country roads.
Something needs to be done as a matter of some urgency to help these families.