Major roading projects on Te Rapa RoadMajor reconstruction work is now underway on Te Rapa Road between Beerescourt Road and Vercoe Road. The project contractors, Works Infrastructure Ltd, began setting up this week (Tuesday 28 January) preparing the site.Roads and traffic manager, Cliff Boyt says the road's substructure is in need of replacement and while it is being worked on underground service... more...

Hamilton's metered car park price rise to $1.20 an hour becomes effective from Monday, 3 February.Roads and traffic manager Cliff Boyt says the price rise is part of a broader CBD parking strategy to cope with steady increase in traffic volumes and parking demand."Traffic growth in the city continues at 4 per cent a year, and we have developed an effective strategy to keep pace with this growth an... more...

It's carnival time at Waterworld, with a Family Fun Day [8 Febraury, 11am-9pm] booked to celebrate a hot summer in Hamilton.Customer services co-ordinator Tina Farrant says there are a number of extra attractions planned for the day, to give the already popular facility a carnival atmosphere."We have booked Mica the clown, a bouncy castle, lots of giveaways and competitions with fun prizes and mor... more...

Emergency Services is putting on a full-scale mock emergency [1 February, 10am] to officially open Exscite's latest exhibition, Earth's Fury.Libraries and museum manager Geoff Williams says Emergency Services' spectacle works well with the exhibition focus on natural disasters."It's comforting to know that we have a well organised emergency services team equipped to help despite what nature throws... more...

Hamilton City Libraries has invited about 130 kids to dress up as famous spies in a fitting finale for one of Hamilton's most successful summer reading programmes, Spy Search.Collection services team leader Jo McSorley says reports from all the libraries spoke of kids being really excited about Spy Search, and that this enthusiasm showed in the end results."We had about half of those enrolled achi... more...

Water sample tests of the Waikato River and Hamilton's treated water show that no toxins are present in the water.General manager works and services Sally Davis says increased testing of water samples from the Waikato River and from Hamilton's treated water has continued since precautionary measures were taken [Thursday 9 January]. Results are now coming in, and so far indicate an absence of toxin... more...

Hamilton City Council has temporarily closed the newly constructed playground slide at Hamilton Lake for alterations following feedback from the public.Manager Parks and Gardens, Bill Featherstone, says there have been comments from a number of people using the slide that it was uncomfortable to play on because they felt it levelled-off too sharply at the bottom."Although the slide has been extrem... more...

Hamilton's water treatment station is taking immediate precautionary measures to protect the city's water supply from a potential release of toxins from blue green algae in the Waikato River.Water and wastewater plants manager Marcus Shipton says Council's routine water quality monitoring has detected a spiked increase in the presence of blue green algae in the river water. "The blue green algae h... more...

Trials are expected to begin next week to test for an effective means of removing the musty taste in Hamilton's drinking water. The taste is caused by seasonal, naturally occurring blooms of algae in the Waikato River and is likely to continue through February. Water and wastewater plants manager, Marcus Shipton says work is being done now to identify the most likely way to remove the mustiness. "... more...