Foxton upgrade dividing town
Foxton residents remain divided on whether proposed upgrades to the town should go ahead as planned.
The Horowhenua District Council plan identified four key projects in the town, including an upgrade of Main St, enhancing SH1 intersections and improving the Manawatu River’s Foxton loop and the Seaview Gardens.
Horowhenua mayor Michael Feyen said a public meeting held this week about the upgrades highlighted the ‘‘volatile situation’’ in Foxton.
There had been a lack of public consultation from the council about the Main St upgrade, he said.
‘‘If we’d had consultation we wouldn’t have been at a stage where people are yelling and screaming.
‘‘It’s still a relatively volatile situation.’’
Feyen, who lives in Foxton, said he disagreed with previous consultation processes and the proposed Main St upgrade.
‘‘It makes no sense to narrow the street.’’
The council suggested it would make the road safer but Feyen said that logic did not add up.
‘‘There have been no accidents. The last person killed on the Main St was 51 years ago.’’
The road needed a tarseal job but Feyen did not want it to lose width.
Feyen also wanted the cenotaph to stay put rather than moving 10-metres, as proposed by the council.
The council, in a statement attributed to a spokesperson, said consultation about the north end of Main St, near the cenotaph, was ongoing.
The upgrades to Main St would make it safer for pedestrians, the statement read.
‘‘No longer will there be a 20-metre distance to cross. Instead, there will be several pedestrian crossing areas where there is just a four-metre distance to cross between the footpath and pedestrian refuges in the centre of the road.’’
‘‘Creating spaces outside our shops and cafes that are attractive and encourage people to stop is important.’’
There would still be enough space for traffic lanes, car parks and a wide painted median once the footpath was been widened, the statement said.