BRIEFS

Community board grants

The Ōtaki Community Board at its meeting on April 9 approved grants for:

• Ōtaki Playcentre – $822 to assist with the cost of celebrating its 70th anniversary in July

• Te Ataarangi ki Ōtaki – $750 to assist with the cost of making rauemi (learning resources) for students studying te reo Māori though the Te Ataarangi method.

• Ōtaki School – $1184 to assist with the cost of having a professional scooter track painted on the school paved area for tamariki to use both during breaks in the school day, and during weekends and holidays.

• Lucas Mildenhall – $750 to assist with the cost of representing Aotearoa Māori Basketball at the Native American Basketball Invitational from July 18-31 in Phoenix, Arizona.

Expressway speed increase proposed

Waka Kotahi is asking for feedback on a proposal to increase the speed limit on the Kāpiti expressway from 100km/h to 110km/h. Consultation is to begin on April 22 and will last four weeks.

Busy March for brigade

It was almost a call a day during March for the Ōtaki Volunteer Fire Brigade. It attended 28 calls in total, 11 of them being rubbish, grass or scrub fires, and five property fires. The brigade attended three vehicle crashes and three calls were “good intent”. There were two each for private fire alarms and medical emergencies, and one each to deal with hazardous materials and to assist the Levin brigade.

Pool numbers jump

Ōtaki Pool reports a 43 percent jump in visitor numbers in 2023.

Kite dates set

The 2025 Ōtaki Kite Festival will be on the weekend of March 8-9.