Kerikeri mainstreet beautification continues

The Kerikeri mainstreet beautification project resumes this week (week beginning September 3) with work on the first stage starting at the Fairway Drive end of the central business district.

The first stage, due for completion before the Kerikeri half-marathon on November 18, will complete the beautification of the Fairway Drive to Kerikeri Road intersection and a second stage from Homestead Road to Kerikeri Road intersection is planned to start in March next year.

The mainstreet work will be carried out in tandem with finalisation of the one way street system in order to minimise disruption to the community. The decision to carry out both projects in two stages also allows for a break over the Christmas and summer holiday period and for the undergrounding of power lines at the Homestead Road end of the main street.

Community services operations manager Sue Hodge says the themes used in the first stages of the mainstreet project and the same lead contractor, Stonecraft Construction, will be used to ensure continuity.

“We’ll incorporate the stone walls, paving, planting, lighting and street furniture already familiar to Kerikeri residents, along with accommodation for bicycles and motorcycles as residents have requested,” she said. “Visually impaired needs near the raised pedestrian crossing points will also be taken into account, along with the need for improved directional signs.”

A working party comprising residents’ representation, council community services and roading representatives, the project engineer and a landscape consultant, has been established to oversee the work and keep people informed.