BRIEFS

Upgrade for train station

It was buried in an announcement on Monday (Sept 8) that Alstom was to build new battery-electric trains for the Palmerston North-Wellington line, but Ōtaki it seems is to get an upgrade of its decaying train station. Great Wellington said it would upgrade stations “including strengthening and refurbishing the historic station building at Ōtaki”. The new trains – the first battery-electric in the Southern Hemisphere – will replace the Capital Connection trains and are expected to be in full service in 2030. They will quadruple peak hour passenger services for Ōtaki and provide a weekend service.

Green light for hall car park 

Te Horo Hall is to get its long-awaited car park. Mayor Janet Holborow said at the September meeting of the Waikanae Community Board, held this month at the hall, that the council will develop part of the empty paddock next to the hall into the car park the community has been waiting for. The council owns the land. The work has been budgeted in the current Long-term Plan and is scheduled to start this financial year. The 30-year wait was highlighted in the May issue of Ōtaki Today.

Brigade attends 15 call-outs

Ōtaki’s fire brigade had 15 call-outs in August: four private alarms; three each for property fires and vehicle crashes; two to help at Levin; and one each for rubbish/grass/scrub, medical, and “special service”.

LETTERS

Support for Sam

I’ve just read your front page story in (Ōtaki Today, August) about Sam Leason and his attempt to march to the Palestinian border in Egypt. I was very literally in tears reading it, and not just because of the appalling situation in Gaza and other nations’ complicity it. It was incredibly refreshing and reassuring to see the facts of the genocide in Palestine reported in the press, not to mention on the front page. I don’t know how difficult an editorial decision that was for you, but I applaud you for making it. Please, if you are able, pass on my unwavering support for Sam and his bravery. And please continue to report on his activism. The world changes for the better because of people like him.

Kate Bryson, Manakau

Cherry picking information

Your science contributor Dr Steve Humphries accuses Dr Shelton of NZDSOS of “bad science” (Ōtaki Today, August 2025), Humphries further suggests that NZDSOS “cherry picks” information. But with all due respect the same allegations could be levelled at him. He has cherry picked a small number of references for criticism from Part 1 of the NZDSOS 375-page submission, which has cited dozens of references from many highly qualified professionals. True, some of these individuals have been officially censured or sanctioned for not following the official Covid narrative, but that doesn’t make them all wrong. He also ignores Part 2 of the NZDSOS submission altogether, and he doesn’t offer any “better” science; in fact none at all. He merely cites some official statistics which many thinking Kiwis must already know are woefully lacking in accuracy. His bias towards the official Covid narrative is clear, but the tide is slowly turning. The US FDA has recently withdrawn all approval for the mRNA vaccines except for those over 65 or with risk factor(s), and the CDC has stopped recommending the vaccines for healthy children and pregnant women. NZ must surely catch up.

Neville Watkin, Ōtaki

 

Kites dates March 14-15

The 2026 Ōtaki Kite Festival will be on the weekend of March 14-15..