Cr Bill Faulkner Faulkners Corner www.sunlive.co.nz

Following on from last week's column, the seemingly never ending story of the Pilot Bay walkway continued at the Strategy and Policy Committee. A speaker told elected members in the public forum that there hadn't been enough time for public consultation and asked for even more time. The speaker said that Pilot Bay was the last piece of family friendly space at the Mount. Really? I thought the entire Mount was totally family friendly! From some elected members' point of view, consultation has been on-going for almost a year. And consultation is just that. The design has been and is being altered on an on-going basis. Monday, April 8 will be final design decision day and then the walkway needs to be built quickly. The decision to actually build a walkway was made late last year.

Proposals seem sensible and practical and when they're done most will wonder, like the Ocean Beach walkway, why it hadn't been done sooner. By the way, a petition received about the walkway has apparently been signed by Rick Curach. Despite originally voting in support of the walkway, this now disqualifies Rick from voting further in the issue.

Another speaker in the public forum suggested a Rotary Club project to build a gravel cycle/walkway, from Logan Rd to Taylor Reserve at Papamoa, on an existing worn track through the dunes. That should get some people going too, but elected members saw photos of similar tracks along the coast making the areas more accessible to more people. Rick Curach said part of the experience of walking his dog was the sand between his toes.

Elected members heard submissions to council's Draft Smokefree Places Policy. Before some of you get up in arms about this proposal it is advisory, educational and voluntary. If you really have to light up a cigarette on council-owned places it is unlikely you would be prosecuted. And it's on that basis that most of us supported the intent of the policy.

In my lifetime smoking has gone from a mainstream accepted ritual to a socially-unacceptable, revolting habit, to most people. My mum and dad both smoked. Both had been in the Air Force during WWII and had been issued free cigarettes. I saw dad quit one day when he threw a packet out of the car window and said he wouldn't ever smoke again – and he didn't. Mum smoked the rest of her life with little effect on her health. Us kids suffered in silence and none of the three of us ever smoked so I understand both sides of the argument. Once hooked it is hard to quit.

One submitter told elected members that in Southport Queensland, children had done a clean up and picked up 52kg of cigarette butts in a day. Larry Baldock, in a lighter moment, reflected that as a teenage smoker he had done that just to get another smoke. Oh dear! Larry is now a non-smoker. As are most elected members although some admit to the occasional social smoke. Smoking is a dying habit and is rightly, in my view, being actively discouraged. Yes, there are other scourges to health that need attention too, but one thing at a time.

Commercial activities on council reserves will be more controlled. Limits will be imposed on various sports reserves to ensure that free-for-all situations don't develop. Vendors will tender for allocated space and limits will be enforced to ensure a fair distribution of licences so that a monopoly situation isn't created.

A review of the Coastal Reserves Management Plan is proposed. As luck would have it Issue 5 is Pilot Bay. A reserve management plan outlines what can and cannot happen on reserves. Other issues to be discussed – with you via the consultative process – include Marine Parade and the trees, dune restoration, freedom camping and additional tree planting.

The Bluebiyou Restaurant's lease at Papamoa and Papamoa Surf Club's building proposal were discussed. Some people get a little precious about buildings on reserves.

In New Zealand it seems some are too keen to keep the coast clear of buildings when doing so can deprive many people from enjoying the vista. What's wrong with a restaurant on a reserve? It allows many people access to the reserve out of wind and weather. Not everyone is a gung-ho beachgoer. And, proposed extensions to the Surf Club will provide further amenities for the Papamoa community. Extensions will also allow the Surf Club to gain more income to fund their club activities which is a way to self-sufficiency in funding – much better than calling on ratepayers. When the draft plan is being reviewed, your submissions will be invited. The pony club lease at Papamoa will also be rolled over on a year-by-year basis.

On behalf of the Mayor, I recently attended the Trustpower National Community Awards. It is a really positive, encouraging and enabling initiative by Trustpower for volunteer sectors of communities throughout New Zealand. 24 finalists were judged by a panel, of judges 50 per cent and their peers another 50 per cent. After daily doses of negativity through the media it really is uplifting hearing the eight minute presentations from finalists on how they made a voluntary difference to their community.

Our local finalist was Age Concern, an organisation of 150 volunteers making a huge difference to many isolated and vulnerable people in our city. Tauranga has many lonely people and contact through Age Concern can be a really life changing experience for these people. The winner was Kaibosh from Wellington, an organisation that collects leftover food from commercial operators like restaurants and supermarkets, on a daily basis, and distributes the food to 21 charities who deliver it to needy recipients.

This week's mindbender from Abraham Lincoln – 'The trouble with quotes on the internet is that it's difficult to determine whether or not they are genuine.”