Monday, November 12, 2007
Good morning.
It gives me pleasure to be here to celebrate the opening of the Ratanui walking track.
I want to welcome everyone to Hutt City and thank you for coming along to this very special occasion.
In particular I want to acknowledge members of the Hector and London families, former owners of Ratanui; we are delighted that you could join us.
The other day I was surprised to learn that 85 percent of Hutt City’s total land area is classified as “rural” – in other words, not used for urban land use. Much of this consists of regional parks and scenic reserves that bless us with a number of wonderful walking tracks, which from today includes Ratanui.
The opening of the Ratanui walking track is part of a host of events being held to celebrate the life and works of acclaimed scientist and explorer Sir James Hector and it is fitting that the track be named after the house he and his family lived in for many years and was situated on this site in Korokoro.
For Hutt City, the track is an opportunity to honour the memory of one of our most famous residents and also provides an historical link to our past.
It is important for other reasons, too.
The Council is committed to the well-being of its residents. The walking track will contribute to that as a place for exercise, for picnics, for beautiful views of the harbour and – of course – just to enjoy being out in the great outdoors. It is a recreational and lifestyle asset for everyone.
In my view, it exemplifies the work still to be done in Hutt City - a greening and softening of the City through public art, trees, cycle ways, gardens and walking tracks.
As well, the native and exotic plants that can be found on the site makes it of great ecological value and enhanced further by its proximity to Percy Scenic Reserve and its impressive collection of rare and endangered plants.
That we are here today celebrating this occasion is a testament of the generosity, goodwill and efforts of a wide range of people and organisations.
In particular, I wish to pay tribute to Gerald Davidson and Kate and Barry Malcolm from Korokoro for their vision and determination to create a walking track on this site. They initiated the project and I applaud such civic-mindedness.
Tributes must also go to the Wellington Botanical Society, Royal Society of New Zealand, Geological Society of New Zealand, Department of Conservation Wellington Conservancy, Friends of the Wellington Botanical Gardens, Lower Hutt Forest and Bird, Petone Historical Society, Geological and Nuclear Sciences, Jackson Street Programme and Petone Rotary for their support of the project.
Thank you to the staff of Excell, Hutt City Council's parks and reserves contractor, who have done a great job preparing the site for the opening.
And a special thanks to Transit New Zealand, with whom Council has a lease for the land. Without Transit’s co-operation, all of this would not have been possible.
The Ratanui walking track is an excellent example of what can be achieved when a local community, central and local government combine with a common purpose.
Again, my hat off to everyone involved in the project – you have created a wonderful community asset that will be frequently used and treasured for what I hope will be for many years to come.
Thank you.