Roadshow Week 2

We left Wanganui on Monday in plenty of time on a beautiful winter's day for a leisurely drive to Carterton. Within minutes we were returning home to pick up forgotten items. Suddenly time was very short, Margaret lamenting the lack of passing lanes all the way through to Masterton.

AG Marilyn Hunt has done a magnificent job in organising this trip. Our first hosts were Mike Palmers and his team at Carterton Rotary Club. The team had very thoughtfully arranged a visit to the new Carterton Community Centre, currently under construction, knowing that OPUS were involved in the design of this innovative building, the first civil building to be built in the town for a 100 years. The design utilises laminated veneer lumber shear walls, which are post-tensioned to the ground using high tensile steel rods that are designed to withstand earthquake loads. The system is designed to rock back and forth in an earthquake absorbing earthquake energy as they move, and is the second such design built in New Zealand, the other being in my old home town of Nelson.

The frontage to the new Carterton Community/Events centre still under construction

We were shown around by Carterton CEO Colin Wright who later attended the Rotary meeting along with Mayor Ron Marks. I took the opportunity to invite myself to the opening of this facility in late September/early October.

CEO, Carterton DC Colin Wright, yours truly, Councillor and President of Carterton Rotary Club Mike Palmers.

 At the meeting I also caught up with an old colleague of mine in the MWD Ken Edwards. Many, many thanks to Carterton Rotary for a wonderful day.

Margaret and Past President of Carterton Rotary Club Nicky Orsborn. Margaret is receiving so many gifts of this nature we need to hire a trailer to bring them home.

PS Margaret found the leather shop in Carterton. Oh my God!!