Te Awamutu Know How Numbers count in property management Benefit from experienced managers with market insight backed by the collective strength of over 1000 CouPublished Tuesday & Thursdayurier THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 2017 offices and countless training sessions. EXTRA COPIES 40c PH 07 872 0927 TE AWAMUTU Your community newspaper for over 100 years Rosetown Realty Ltd Licensed REAA (2008) OTOROHANGA STAR TURN BY DEAN TAYLOR A guest at Peter and Linnie Jones’ Amberfields Bed and Breakfast on Pirongia Road has taken full advantage of New Zealand’s clear skies to take an image of the night sky. The posted astrophoto amazed Dave Owen — aka Space Dave from the Te Awa- mutu Space Centre. He says he has seen a lot of night photography — but this image is ‘stunning’. The photo was taken by Mr Hu, a guest from Beijing, using a Nikon D810 camera and an obviously beautiful f1.4 20mm lens. wards the top star of the For the technically Southern Cross. minded, the image, taken at He says New Zealand is about 3am, was shot at f1.4 for blessed with relatively clear one second at 1600 ISO. skies, especially compared to Mr Owen says the photo densely populated areas such contains a number of as Europe and America. treasures. “Many visitors to New Zea- “Most obvious is the sheer land see stars for the first number of stars — far more time in their lives. than you’ll see with the un- “Waikato skies are fairly aided eye. good but would be better with “The rising band of stars is improved management of the Milky Way galaxy. light pollution,” he says. Many visitors to New Zealand see stars for the first time in their lives. “Because the galaxy is He says that you’d never roughly disk-shaped and normally see the night sky we’re inside it, we see most of like this with your own eyes its stars as a thick line that — it takes a good camera and circles the Earth,” he says. some skill to bring out this Mr Owen has identified the much detail. Southern Cross nestled in “You can come close by that band of stars. finding a dark spot away from He says it hard to find town lights and giving your because the camera reveals so eyes 20 minutes to fully many other stars that the adapt,” he says. cross gets a bit lost among “You’ll be amazed at how them. full the night sky really is.” It’s right next to the dark The best stargazing experi- patch known as the Coal Sack ence in New Zealand is in the ‘Nebula. Mackenzie Region, home to Below the Coal Sack are the the world’s largest ‘dark sky two pointers that point to- reserve’. FREE POWERSTEER ON KINGQUAD 500 Buy an LT-A500XL7 and we’ll give you the choice of taking an LT-A500XPL7 NowN available from Pratts at the same price instead! HURRY! $13,039+GST$13,03 Colour has SAVE $2000 never been INC GST this hot ONLY 50 AVAILABLE NATIONWIDE Offer ends 31 March or while stock lasts FIRES 2 Kihikihi Road, Te Awamutu Your local Pyroclassic specialist P 07 871 3069 E [email protected] W www.wilkspenny.co.nz The divisions of FINANCE 2 Te Awamutu Courier Thursday, March 23, 2017 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR CourierTe Awamutu Community Newspaper of the Year 2014 Corrections are given a second chance Your community newspaper for over 100 years. The recent case of Phillip We have recently seen this a best ones? They may have now Brazil. Did he escape? No. They Circulated free to 14,055 homes through Te Awamutu Smith has adjourned so that number of times. Notably on run out of ‘bullet points’. My opened the door and said the Department for Corrections the calculating of ‘time’. Re- hunch is that their own general ‘Smith, out you get’. and surrounding districts. may think up and present cently on the use of shackled attitude has again become an It is worth noting that CIRCULATION 14,055* (7136 urban, 6919 rural) proper reasons why Mr Smith beds for prolonged periods and obstacle. We regularly see this prison officers do not extend should continue to be denied now because they choose to in prison officers, especially the courtesy of the title ‘Mister’ We welcome letters - preferably via email. They the use of a hair-piece pre- interrupt Mr Smith’s rehabili- ones that write to you. to their clients. should be under 300 words and must have the viously agreed as part of his tation based on their own They do not like being on The lesson here is that if you sender’s name, address and phone number. No rehabilitation. staff’s recommendations. Will the losing end of the case. They want to take away a person’s pseudonyms are accepted and names will only be If the boot were on the other this event be followed by a are days away from looking human rights then you had withheld in special circumstances at the discretion foot and the Department was ‘book burning party in the even more silly. better have a very good reason of the editor. Letters are not usually acknowledged the applicant for something, yard’? It is an interesting case. for doing it. and may be edited, abridged or discarded. would the court have given Mr It will be interesting to see While I do not condone Mr While everybody else knows Smith a second chance? what further reasons the Smith’s crimes that saw him not to do it, Government agents MANAGER It appears that they have Prison ‘Dons’ will advance. I imprisoned, it is laughable that get second chances from the Alan Price been found to have again not would think that their first he was practically shooed out courts in New Zealand. [email protected] observed the law. reasons will have been their the door when he set off for JAMES PARLANE EDITORIAL Dean Taylor (editor) [email protected] Disappointing comment Colin Thorsen (journalist) Home Expo charity named [email protected] We were very disappointed nise the belittling of Paula he funds raised from the dren in New Zealand and to Bethany Rolston (journalist) to read Mayor Jim Bennett from the Mayor, who 2017 LJ Hooker Home create a movement in New [email protected] Mylchreest’s comments about has endorsed police support TExpo will be donated to Zealand where people feel ADVERTISING New Zealand’s police force, from the Prime Minister, Bill Stop the Bus — the main charity empowered to look out for the Dorinda Williams and particularly the local English. of choice. welfare of children in their own [email protected] police force. Mr English said earlier this Stop the Bus charitable Trust communities and to raise aware- Ange Holt He says ‘Meanwhile, we’ve year ‘Today I announced a new is a ‘not for profit, registered ness of domestic violence to- [email protected] got ram-raiders having a field- $503 million Safer Communi- charity set up in Te Awamutu to wards children in our neighbour- Bookings day in Cambridge and Te Awa- ties package to reduce crime promote the well being of chil- hood. [email protected] mutu and in fact, across the and prevent reoffending. Over country’. the next four years the pack- CLASSIFIEDS He later apologises to the age will fund an additional Tania Cortesi-Western, Kihikihi to have say on plan Alanah Harvey, Tania King police force, working in a 1125 police staff, including 880 [email protected] ‘fundamentally flawed sys- sworn police officers,’ which is ihikihi Residents and Rate- expects this year to be the same. tem.’ showing an obvious support to payers Association invite He says Kihikihi residents are We as the youth of New the New Zealand Police Force. Kvillage residents to a pre- especially keen to hear about DELIVERY QUERIES 0800 111 200 Zealand, however, believe that The Mayor needs to under- sentation of Waipa Council’s progress on the planned Te POSTAL ADDRESS rather than making these stand that these changes will draft annual plan at the Kihikihi Awamutu/Kihikihi Cycle Trail. 97 Sloane Street, PO Box 1, Te Awamutu 3840 negative comments (which we take time. By making negative Town Hall, 7pm next Mr Fraser says there have OFFICE HOURS understand is sometimes comments deprecating the Wednesday. been a lot of improvements Monday-Thursday 8am-5pm, Fri 8am-4.30pm necessary), our Mayor should New Zealand police, he is only Association chair Peter recently to the Kihikihi Town Hall, PHONE 07 871 5151 | FAX 07 871 3675 be making all the changes that making the process more tedi- Fraser says Kihikihi residents so the association has changed he possibly can within the ous and unnecessarily painful. have always turned out in force venue for this year’s presenta- community without the per- KYRA LOOMANS, CAITLIN to hear what the Mayor and tion and plans to use the venue HAYES and other ISSN 1170-1099 (Print) ISSN 2253-4075 (Online) mission of Paula Bennett. Council has planned, and he more often. *Circulation Source: Audited Bureau of Circulation, 1 YE Dec 2012 It is also important to recog- supportive youth NEW NEW $73,990 $53,990 $41,990 2016 Ford Everest Titanium 2016 Ford Ranger XLT 4x4 2017 All New Ford Escape Trend 3.2 TDi, 4x4, 20” Alloys, Terrain Management, Trailer Sway Control, 3000Kg 6 Spd, Auto, 3.2 TDi Diesel, Hill Start Assist, Hill Descent, 6 Spd Auto, 9 Airbags, Stability Control, Crash Mitigation, Blind Spot Info, Adaptive Towing,PowerSeats,PowerFold3rdRowSeats,ParkAssist,DualPanel, HD Tow Pack, Trailer Sway Control, Cruise, Dual Climate Air, Cruise, Hill Start Assist, Reverse Camera, Moon Roof, Blind Spot, Adaptive Cruise, Auto Lights and Wipers, Heated Navigation, Voice Control, Sync Infotainment, Auto Lights, RearSensors,AutoHeadlightsandWipers, Seats, Rear Camera and Sensors, Plus, Plus, Plus, Demo Kms Auto Wipers,