| It’s always darkest before dawn. While the saying may not be 100% true it does feel as though here, in town, we are going through a bit of a dark patch at the moment. And the thought of the day breaking soon feels like a hopeful metaphor. We have a number of businesses who are finding it hard since the motorway opened and while it is easy to just blame the motorway perhaps, we also need to look at some other factors. I was in Auckland City this week with Dave Stott, OMBA Co-Chair, for a meeting with the Auckland Transport Hill Street design team. And yes, before you ask, we do feel like we are making some progress. But what struck me about our visit to the city was how quiet the middle of the city was during the middle of the day, during the middle of the week. I was in a taxi later that day and I asked the driver how things were in town. His answer was that it’s very quiet and it has been for quite a while. When I asked him what he thought the reasons for that were he said, the cost of living and the weather! So, for us, it might not just be the motorway making things quiet. It is possibly also the cost of living, petrol at over $3 a litre, food and interest costs going up in conjunction with it is the middle of winter. All these factors combine to make people think twice before coming into town. We had a Retailers Think Tank open forum last night where we discussed ways in which we can collectively promote Warkworth as a destination and an area worth visiting. I am looking forward to sharing with you the outcomes from the meeting as it was well attended and a lot of great ideas were discussed. As we’ve always said, we are stronger together.  Murray Chapman One Mahurangi Manager www.onemahurangi.co.nz Support Local, Buy Local, Employ Local, Love Local! |
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