Kites, kai and local kōrero receive support through 2019 Kāpiti Major Events Fund

The Kāpiti Coast District Council has awarded $175,000 to five local events that showcase a distinctly Kāpiti flavour and provide return on investment for the local economy.

Trail running event XTERRA Wellington, Māoriland Film Festival, Kāpiti Food Fair, FFFLAIR and the Ōtaki Kite Festival will each receive support through the 2019 Kāpiti Major Events Fund to deliver their events within the next year.

“We were really impressed by the quality of applications we received through this funding round,” says James Jefferson, Group Manager Place & Space.

“This year we added additional funds and clarified application criteria regarding what types of events might be successfully selected for financial support. This has resulted in some fresh ideas as well as continued support for events that have already proven themselves iconic to Kāpiti.

“Hosting a diverse calendar of events attracts visitors to our district, allows us to celebrate what we love the most about Kāpiti and is a key driver in delivering long-term economic development.”

2019 Major Events Fund recipients:

Event/Funding in 2019/2020/Event date

XTERRA Wellington / $20,000 / 19 May 2020 at Whareroa Farm, near Paekakariki.

Māoriland Film Festival / $55,000 / 18-22 March 2020 in Ōtaki.

Kāpiti Food Fair / $25,000 / 30 November 2019 at Mazengarb Reserve in Paraparaumu.

FFFLAIR / $50,000 / 26 February to 1 March 2020 at Otaraua Park, between Waikanae and Otaihanga.

Ōtaki Kite Festival / $25,000 / 8 February 2020 at Ōtaki Beach. 

The Kāpiti Major Events Fund was established by the Council in 2016 to help promote and grow a vibrant major events portfolio that brings economic benefit to the district.

Find out more about the Fund here: www.kapiticoast.govt.nz/majoreventsfund

Ends

10 Top Tips to Beat Procrastination

We are probably all guilty of procrastinating sometimes but some people continually put things off, meaning they are not achieving what they could. That’s not good - personally or professionally. In an article by Nilifer Atik he says that people who continually procrastinate are unhappier, as well as being less healthy and wealthy compared with those who get things done promptly. Studies have also shown that procrastinators are more likely to make mistakes. However, experts insist that procrastinators can change their behaviour: it takes a lot of self-work but in the end it’s worth the effort – and start today, not tomorrow! Here are his ten top tips to change your behaviour and stop procrastinating forever!

1.    Next time you find yourself putting off a task, ask yourself ‘What make me decide to do this in the first place?’. If you don’t know the answer – don’t do it!

2.    For each task, ask yourself – should I do this, delegate it or dump it – and act accordingly.

3.    Take small steps – break down tasks to make them manageable.

4.    Get help – if you’re overwhelmed, ask an expert in (or a Time Genie!).

5.    Drop perfectionism – an imperfect step taken today is better than a perfect step never taken.

6.    Remove distractions – turn off the TV, switch phone to silent and truly focus.

7.    Recognise when you’re about to procrastinate and acknowledge it.

8.    Learn from the past – remind yourself of the frustration of not getting things done and the satisfaction when something is achieved.

9.    Be kind to yourself – don’t beat yourself up and forgive yourself if you do procrastinate

10.                        Visualise your ideal future – what one step could you take right now to move you towards it? Then Just. Do. It.

Full article by Nilifer Atik:https://www.telegraph.co.uk/lifestyle/wellbeing/mood-mind/11422554/How-to-stop-procrastinating-now.html

Heather Knewstubb
Time Genie Personal Concierge and Errand Services
Kapiti Coast
Ph: 022 394 8493

www.timegenie.co.nz
https://www.facebook.com/Time-Genie-Magic-115372315722316/

Kāpiti Coast District Council wins Excellence in Climate Action award

Innovative work by the Kāpiti Coast District Council to reduce its emissions by 76% over the last 10 years has been recognised in the 2019 Enviro-Mark Solutions Awards.

The Awards are a biennial celebration of businesses certified under the CEMARS and carboNZero programmes that have shown exceptional leadership in climate change mitigation and environmental action.

This morning, the Council took out the Excellence in Climate Action (medium organisation) category at the Enviro-Mark Solutions Awards breakfast in Auckland.

This isn’t the first time the Council has been recognised by Enviro-Mark Solutions for managing its carbon footprint. In 2017, it received the Overall Award for Outstanding Performance in Carbon Management and in 2018, was confirmed as the leading certified CO2 equivalent emission reducer in the CEMARS programme.

“This award is fantastic recognition of our commitment and perseverance in reducing our emissions,” says Sean Mallon, Group Manager Infrastructure Services.

“As a coastal district, climate change is a particularly significant challenge for our communities and for us, this means committing to tangible actions now that contribute to the safety and wellbeing of current and future generations.

“Simple changes can have big impacts. A great example of this was converting 4,700 of the district’s 4,786 sodium vapour street lamps to new white light-emitting diode (LED) lights. This initiative alone avoids 1.05 million kWh of electricity use each year at a projected saving of around $130,000.

“We’ve also focused on supporting the wider community in reducing emissions through a range of collaborative projects including the installation of EV Fast Charging Stations around the district and supporting a community solar farm project at the Ōtaki Wastewater Treatment Plant that, when completed, will harvest energy from the sun to power the wastewater treatment process.”

In May 2019, the Council declared a climate change emergency in Kāpiti and committed to pursuing the goal of carbon neutrality by 2025.

“Carbon neutrality is an ambitious target but we have already proven that, by taking an active leadership role, we can achieve big things. We will continue to implement initiatives and look for innovative ways to keep reducing emissions as part of our ongoing commitment to the Kāpiti Coast community,” says Mr Mallon.

To read more about the Enviro-Mark Solutions Awards, visit https://www.enviro-mark.com/news-and-events/news/inspiring-action/e-ms-awards-2019

-KCDC

ENERGISE ŌTAKI ANNOUNCES SOLAR FARM PROJECT

Leigh Ramsey, Chair of Energise Ōtaki has announced a community solar farm project that will harvest energy from the sun to fund community energy projects in Ōtaki.  Funding of $407,000 comes from the Wellington Community Trust, in recognition of the significance of this innovative community project. 

“We thank the Wellington Community Trust and Kāpiti Coast District Council for being partners with us on this project with the support of our Mayor, K Gurunathan and Electra for their willingness to support the vision,” said Leigh Ramsey, Chairperson, Energise Ōtaki.

Roger Palairet, Chairperson, Wellington Community Trust said “One of the many appealing aspects of Energise Ōtaki’s proposal for us as a Trust was the return on our investment being reinvested back into the Ōtaki community. The establishment of a local community trust that will redistribute income earned from the solar arrays into projects that address energy hardship and sustainability in the region was innovative and very attractive to us”,

Energise Ōtaki is a charitable incorporated society established in 2010 to develop Ōtaki as a town that is as self-sustaining as possible in energy.  This includes energy conservation, renewable energy generation, innovation around technologies, energy education and working with schools, finding ways to avoid energy waste, and energy recovery from waste.  

Six hundred photovoltaic panels, will generate over 160 kWp of electricity when the sun is shining, something which happens a lot in Ōtaki. Two solar farms will be built later in the year: one adjacent to the Ōtaki Wastewater Treatment Plant, the other at Ōtaki College.

The Solar Farm at Kāpiti Coast District Council's Wastewater Treatment Plant in Riverbank Road will generate power to run the wastewater treatment process. The Council has approved the lease of nearby land to Energise Ōtaki, and agreed to purchase power generated by the solar farm.

The Solar Farm at Ōtaki College will provide energy for College operations, on similar lines to the XŌtaki Foundation Trust installation which Energise Ōtaki has also supported. Excess energy over the summer months will be provided to the local grid although Energise Ōtaki will also be exploring energy storage as a further stage, collaborating with Electra.

Anticipated annual income of $29,000 from electricity generation at the Riverbank Road farm will go to the Energise Ōtaki Community Investment Fund, which will support energy projects in the town.  

-Ends

Let’s Get Organised!

Some people like to live life on the edge. They make decisions on the hoof and don’t like to be tied down to planning – especially for events way in the future. Others like to be very organised and know exactly what’s happening when. They don’t feel secure unless every i is dotted and t crossed and their diary is up to date for months in advance.  

Probably most of us fall somewhere in the middle. There are certainly times in your life when you can just take off for the weekend or decide spur of the moment to go to a fancy restaurant. Other times, for example when you are responsible for young children, not so much. Any outing of any kind takes a kind of milatary precision and organisation that most of us didn’t know about until there was no choice! 

Another time when planning is important is when you want to go somewhere or do something at the same time as everyone else. Now we are in August, and in the midst of winter, it seems counter intuitive to think about the summer holidays and Christmas. However, if you fancy a quiet beach house holiday in Nelson, Raglan or the Coromandal,  or an overseas holiday in December/January it is not too early to be looking and booking. What about your furry friends? If you get your act together you can ensure they have somewhere to go if they can’t come along with you. 

Sometimes it feels that summer holidays are too far in the future. How can you decide on dates when you don’t know what your family and friends are planning? The easy solution to this conundrum is be first. Choose some dates, book your holiday home/caravan/overseas trip and announce it to the whanau. They can then start fitting around you. 

Planning for a fun event over summer and Christmas is also a wonderful way to cheer yourself up as you huddle around the fire with the rain pelting down outside. It helps to remind you that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Winter seems endless, but in a few short months the days will have lengthened and the sun will regain its warmth. 

Once you have planned, organised and booked your time away for you and your pets you can sit back and relax. You can enjoy watching others around you  panicking in November because anywhere they want to go is booked out...by people like you! 

If you need some assistance to get your Christmas holidays sorted, contact heather@timegenie.co.nz and we can magic up the time to make it happen!

Heather Knewstubb
Time Genie Personal Concierge and Errand Services
Kapiti Coast
Ph: 022 394 8493

www.timegenie.co.nz
https://www.facebook.com/Time-Genie-Magic-115372315722316/

Council releases its pre-election report

The Kāpiti Coast District Council has today published its pre-election report to help inform candidate and community discussion in the lead up to local body elections in October 2019.  

Council Chief Executive Wayne Maxwell says the pre-election report provides an overview of the current position and direction of the Kāpiti Coast District. 

“Overall, the Kapiti story is one of optimisim and potential however, we have some big challenges facing our district over the coming electoral term. 

“The report highlights what we are doing to respond to those challenges and what the Council has been doing to meet the needs of the community, and position our district for growth, in the past three years.

“We’re clear about the issues we need to focus on and what we need to do to enable development on the things people want to see in our district,” Mr Maxwell says. “This includes managing our finances carefully and making good decisions about spending.” 

“We’re in good shape. Our credit rating outlook was recently revised up two grades from A+ to AA which means our community can be absolutely confident that we’re managing our finances prudently and that we’re planning well for our future borrowing needs.  

“This information is important for candidates to understand the sorts of issues they will be working through and for voters to understand what views candidates have on these issues.” 

The Council’s pre-election report can be viewed online at www.kapiticoast.govt.nz/elections2019. Hard copies are available in Kāpiti Coast District Council libraries and service centres.

-Ends

High attendance at Kāpiti Beyond the Page events

Kāpiti kids experienced literature and story-telling like never before during the school holidays at this year’s Beyond the Page festival – NZ’s largest literary festival for kids. 

“Over the last couple of weeks Kāpiti libraries were abuzz with literary workshops, live-performances, creative play and interactive story-telling,” says Council Library and Arts Manager, Ian Littleworth. 

“It’s the second time Kāpiti has taken part in Beyond the Page, and it’s a great way of helping our kids connect with literature and develop a love of books and stories.   

“We had everything from interactive who-done-it murder mysteries, to stories told through ballet and mime, to live performances from NZ Star Wars costume artists, Outpost42, and Toro Pikopiko – the world’s first ever Māori rock-art puppetry group, which tells Māori legends using hand-crafted puppets.” 

“We were also lucky enough to get live interactive performances from several major New Zealand story-tellers, including award-winning kids’ authors, Donovan Bixley and Paul Beavis. 

“All in all we had 850 people attend the 22 events, which were facilitated by Kāpiti librarians in all our communities. 

“We had nearly 350 more people come along this year, so it’s definitely growing in popularity. We’d be delighted to see an even bigger turnout next year.”    

Beyond the Page is a collaboration between five Wellington region Public Libraries, Hutt City Libraries, Upper Hutt City Libraries, Wellington City Libraries,Porirua City Libraries and Kāpiti Coast District Libraries.

About Beyond the Page, New Zealand’s biggest literary festival for tamariki and their whānau!

6 – 21 July 2019 across the Wellington Region

The 2019 festival line up is the biggest yet with performers, authors and illustrators from across New Zealand arriving in Wellington in the July school holidays for the 3rd annual Beyond the Page festival.

Ends

-KCDC

Feasibility study underway for Kāpiti Island Gateway Centre

The Kāpiti Coast District Council is progressing work to investigate the feasibility of building a Kāpiti Island Gateway Centre at Paraparaumu Beach.   

Economic Development Manager Darryn Grant says Kāpiti Island is an internationally famed nature reserve protecting some of New Zealand's most endangered birds.  

“The 1965-hectare island is one of the few relatively accessible island nature reserves in the country and is one of New Zealand’s pre-eminent sites for bird recovery. 

“The Paraparaumu Boating Club carpark and the adjoining Maclean Park form the gateway to Kāpiti Island and it is important that there is infrastructure, processes and systems in place to protect and enhance access to this unique visitor experience.” 

“Through our 2018-38 Toitū Kāpiti long-term plan we signalled that we would progress work to investigate the viability of a Kāpiti Island Gateway Centre and we’re now in a positon to do this work,” said Mr Grant.  

Improving the Kāpiti Island departure point and providing an iconic visitor experience has been a discussion point for many years. More recently, it has come up in conversation about the redevelopment of Maclean Park and opportunities for Kāpiti to secure funding from the Government’s Provincial Growth Fund.” 

Mr Grant says the feasibility study will be used to assist future discussion with partners and the community, and decision making about the form and function of a potential Gateway building and where it could be located.  

“No decisions have been made. The study will help inform next steps.”

-KCDC