Maximus

The local media hasn’t caught up with this just yet, but we have just seen the greatest loss of architecture since – well, I don’t know. Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s masterpiece of design, the Glasgow School of Art, caught fire yesterday, in preparation of the 4th year final degree show. Sparks on foam, in the basement, and as flames were filmed breaking out of the roof, for…

Maximus

Blink and you miss it. Never has there been a more apt saying, than with the moving of the Crèche of Compassion. It can’t really be said to be a surprise, but the Crèche was moved backwards on Monday, quietly and without any real fanfare. Which is surprising, as the NZTA are normally keen on a bit of good PR. I’m most annoyed, because I actually…

9
4
Maximus

As the Basin Bridge Board of Inquiry has been debating the merits and issues about Heritage, and in particular the heritage aspects of the Crèche of Compassion, over the last week, it seems an appropriate time to discuss the crèche. It is, of course, about to embark on a journey, or two, or in fact three! Firstly, it is going to be jacked up, then moved…

Maximus

Following on from the post on Trains, and some discussion there, Wellington also needs to be discussing its buses right now. You have until 4pm on Friday – ie tomorrow! to put in a submission to Greater Wellington Regional Council – gw.govt.nz – about the future of Wellington. They’re consulting on the Wellington Public Transport plan – so that means routes, and that means what goes…

Maximus

This week, as you may have heard, Auckland finally joined the league of grown-up cities. After 174 years of existence, Auckland finally started to run electric passenger trains on a local metro network, with the first few of their 57 new CAF Spanish-made trains joining the network. Out go the diesel-powered locomotives pulling railway carriages, in come three-car electric units that are faster, quieter, and with…

5
4
Maximus

There is one year to go before ANZAC Day 2015, and therefore only one year for the War Memorial Park to be up and running. That means, of course, that the War Memorial Underpass needs to be in place well before then, which is a pretty steep ask, but at this stage it looks as though it will be finished in plenty of time. The almost…

Maximus

Councilor Andy Foster writes to the Fish, with some clarification over costs and leases on the waterfront. Published here in the full, with the aim of correcting misinformation, by the Eye of the Fish: “I wanted to address the apparently emerging urban myth that Council and the Waterfront Company give away land – apparently to line the pockets of private developers. Some people event think the…

Maximus

The smallest car I’ve ever seen, since my Matchbox days at least, lead to this little micro-mini number appearing in Wellington the other day. You can read all about it here. Question is, is the Tango just too small to – well, tango? It’s a two seater, i think, with one passenger behind the other, so its pretty much just an electric motorbike with a plastic…