Too late to cancel Ashburton events on one-off public holiday

Nicole Mathewson Reporter from The Press

From local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:

“It’s too late to pull out now.”

Ashburton Market Day organiser Carol Johns is poised to still go ahead on what is now the one-off public holiday on September 26 to mark the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.

The market will also coincide with the opening day of the annual week-long Bookarama at the Ashburton Sports Hall.

The decision on the one-off public holiday has come too late for Johns to change her plans after investing considerable time and resources into holding the event.

“At this stage, everything is so well underway and this [public holiday] has happened so quickly we are too far through now to call it off,” Johns said.

“It’s not out of any disrespect.”

The event needed council approval after the road closure request for the event met opposition from CBD retailers, mainly citing further disruption after two years of Covid-19 restrictions and the CBD upgrade.

As it turns out, they will be closed now anyway.

The council approved the closure as long as Johns can submit adequate documentation by Friday.

The council has also placed conditions on the event, mainly focused on protecting the new CBD green and paved areas.

Johns, who is standing for a seat on the council in the upcoming elections, has submitted her insurance and traffic management plan and was finalising the health and safety plan to be submitted by the Friday deadline.

She is also wading through a long list of conditions imposed on the event, mainly focused on protecting the recently upgrade CBD landscape.

Johns said she can understand the council restricting the use of the East Street green and the new pavers to limit the damage.

“Nobody wants to see the new CDB ruined.

“I’m trying to work through [the conditions] with them.”

The restrictions have raised questions as to why the council upgraded the area – including widening the space and narrowing the road – if it isn’t to be used.

At the hearing last week Councillor Angus McKay highlighted that the council had consistently been told the pavers were “bulletproof” and the grass has been well laid, leaving him to question why the market couldn’t utilise the space.

The market day is taking place instead of the annual Boulevard Day, which has always been scheduled to coincide with South Canterbury Anniversary Day.

Now that it clashes with the one-off public holiday, the three South Canterbury councils will be voting on Tuesday on whether to move its Anniversary Day holiday.