Mayor had right prescription
Former long-serving Lyttelton mayor Bruce Collett, a strong advocate for the port town, died recently. He was 92. Son Hugh said Collett thrived in the pressure-cooker atmosphere of a small town where everyone knew everyone, and a visitor to his shop was as likely to be a citizen with a grievance as a customer.
He was born in Lyttelton and did his primary schooling there, before taking the train each day to Christchurch for secondary education. He kept a bike at the Christchurch railway station and rode to Christchurch Boys’ High School.
Leaving school, he followed his father into the pharmacy profession. He did his apprenticeship in the Lyttelton shop his father had founded and took night classes at Christchurch Technical College.
He joined the air force in World War II and was posted to Fiji, serving in the meteorological unit. When the war ended he returned to his father’s pharmacy.
Collett had a big year in 1949. He married Barbara, from Christchurch, bought the Lyttelton pharmacy from his father, and joined three mates in the yacht Miranda, attempting to cross the Tasman and compete in the Sydney-Auckland yacht race. The third venture failed, as the men struck storms in the Tasman and limped back to Auckland.
His father had been a councillor and deputy mayor in the Lyttelton Borough Council and Collett decided to follow suit. He won election to the council in 1953. He stood for mayor as an independent in 1956 but was unsuccessful, but tried again three years later and won. He won six consecutive terms, completing 18 years in office, before standing down.
Hugh said his father was a longtime National Party supporter but maintained his independence on the council. He was equally at home with people from all backgrounds. He enjoyed friendship and good working relations with local Labour MP, and prime minister, Norman Kirk, and with his deputy mayor, former
Six-term mayor: All Blacks captain Bob Duff.
Collett met the Queen several times on royal visits. Hugh said he told the story of his invitation to attend a reception on the Royal Yacht Britannia. An official asked what sort of car he would drive to the wharf, so security staff could identify him. Collett replied he would drive his Fiat Bambina. The condescending official said a car would be sent for him.
As mayor, Collett advocated strongly for Lyttelton, often in tandem with harbour board heads. Major issues included the Lyttelton-Christchurch road tunnel, development of Cashin Quay, attempts to have Lyttelton established as the South Island’s container port and efforts to keep the Lyttelton-Wellington overnight ferry service.
Hugh says his father’s proudest moment was the official ‘‘breakthrough’’ in the tunnel construction. He entered the tunnel from one end and met Christchurch Mayor George Manning, who had entered at the other end, to shake hands through the gap. Collett was a member of the Road Tunnel Authority from its inception and for many years.
In later years Collett was ‘‘sceptical’’ about amalgamation of Banks Peninsula District with Christchurch City. ‘‘He saw Lyttelton being swamped, and with little benefit. He believed in small-scale government,’’ his son said.
He was imbued with the ethic of community service. He was president of both the South Island Local Bodies Association and the Municipal Association of New Zealand. He was active in the Chemists’ Guild. He founded Lyttelton Rotary, was president of Woolston Brass Band for 18 years, chaired the Lyttelton Main School committee, and reached high office in the Masonic Lodge. In earlier times he had been a vestryman and vicar’s warden in the local Anglican church. In leisure pursuits he raced yachts on Lyttelton Harbour, sang bass in the Christchurch Liedertafel choir and played golf.
Hugh said his father enjoyed the recognition he attracted. However, the downside was that the family saw little of him. ‘‘We paid a price because he wasn’t there very much. But he was not neglectful. He was a loving, caring father. But he was not an emotional person. He was stubborn, but I never saw him get angry.’’
Collett was a man of strong principles and ethics. He did not welcome alternative views to his and seldom changed his mind. He did not ‘‘tolerate fools gladly’’, though he was patient with people entering the shop, believing each one had an issue or problem and needed treatment.
‘‘He never ran people down. He was very humane,’’ Hugh said.
Collett and his wife lived for 57 years in the house they built at Lyttelton. A son and a granddaughter became pharmacists, marking four generations of Colletts in the profession.
James Bruce Collett, born Lyttelton, July 29, 1920; died Christchurch, August 10, 2012. Survived by his wife, Barbara, sons Hugh and John, daughter Ann and nine grandchildren.