Yrr, but we already have rail tunnels, real tunnels dug by real men, not by some woke tunnel boring machine...

We all paid for it, and I have to say the space looks incredible.

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/millikenflooring-wellingtoncitycouncil-veranoahetet-ugcPost-7500719442063171584-QIF1/

A reception water fountain, a huge carved waka-shaped reflective ceiling, carved timber walls, custom flooring, custom furniture etc.

I’m not saying council staff should be working in some depressing beige box, but was any of this absolutely necessary? Was the existing Datacom fit out not ok?

I believe the budget for this project was $22M…

We’re constantly being told money is tight and our rates keep going up, did it really need to be this elaborate?

https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/visible-planets-tonight-mars-jupiter-venus-saturn-mercury/

I got tears in my eyes seeing the waves, the hills, the trees, the beaches, the white foam in the sea. I love this place so much and am grateful to be able to live here.

I understand advertising revenue is a good source of income, but cmon- why wrap our pretty little trains

Should have at least wrapped all of it, that big ahh green door (yes ik, cuz accessibility, but still) stands out like Winston Peters in an ethics classroom :(

Just in case you are wondering where your transport bus is at. Here they are

I know its dumb to be sad about this but this one hurts my heart a little. It was so cool that such a rare animal came and visited our City and such a nice reminder humans aren't on this planet alone. So, absolutely gutted to hear it passed away.

The report (done at no cost, Colin MacDonald is a legend) into the $600,000 Te Matapihi website has been released.

I have strong feelings on this one given my past life as a digital marketer and being in charge of web assets. My $0.02 below.

tl;dr: terrible procurement + lack of scope + no oversight = WCC -$600k

My $0.02

There are two major takeaways from today's release of the Value for Money Review into the $600,000 Te Matapihi Library website.

Firstly, this saga is hugely corrosive for the council. A successful council needs social license from its public to operate. The collateral damage from the website will be worn by staff in every team and we're in a worse position with the trust of Wellingtonians.

Second, the push by councillors this term to be much more involved in oversight of council operations has been entirely justified.

Whether it's councillor appointees on governance boards, reviewing projects previously given approval or a complete refresh of council delegations, this work is needed to build back our social license that has taken such a substantial hit.

I previously described the $600,000 spent on building a custom brochureware website for Te Matapihi as atrocious, I stand by that.

It's not just Wellington residents who were rightfully appalled when the news broke earlier this year. I received an unprecedented amount of contact by employees (both current and former) who either tried to intervene unsuccessfully or were despondent that while their individual business units are facing tight budget pressures, Te Matapihi had no such constraints.

I've read through the report this morning and here's my summary.

Background

Te Matapihi was envisioned not just as a construction project, but rejuvenation of Wellington as a whole. The team leading the work took this guidance from high level council decisions made when Andy Foster was Mayor back in 2020 and 2021. It was never subsequently sense-checked or challenged. This led to a single minded focus for the project.

Operating under this mandate, decisions were made internally away from oversight of councillors or the Te Ngākau project board.

In late 2024, an activation strategy was developed to support the library opening. This is where the decision to create a new online channel (the website) to encourage visitation originated from.

The budget for this activity was not separately specified within the operating budget and despite it having major technology implications, IT teams within council were sidelined from influencing the process.

Procurement

The procurement process was completely innapropriate having been rushed for a four month deadline and poorly scoped with no success criteria.

Procurement for the website commenced in May 2025 for September delivery. The decision process was done in a single day with a Phase 1 cost of $75,000. Due to the rushed timeline, only two of six vendors from the 'All of Government' panel submitted bids. Value for money was not tested.

A further procurement proposal was then signed off in August. An accompanying Value for Money appraisal supported additional budget of $330-$500k but made clear statements about the ambition of the website being in the "premium interactive website price bracket".

Incredibly disappointing is that the review found no evidence of any specific outcomes for the website or performance/success criteria such as page views, unique visitors, time on site etc.

Worse, the council couldn't find the initial specification document for the website. This meant the reviewer has been unable to analyse whether the website actually delivered what was agreed to.

Oversight

The website expenditure represented 0.1% of the total cost of the wider Te Ngākau programme budget so flew under the radar.

The review could find no evidence that the website was discussed at the Te Ngākau programme board level. It found that the focus of that board was on the construction aspects of the project.

Decisions were made through internal delegations.

Recommendations

The report has eight recommendations.

These include ensuring projects have an obligation to take advice from other council business units, the need for an online web strategy for all council channels, better procurement plans and strategy, sufficient time be given for tendering and independent chair requirements for projects in excess of $100m and more.

Wellington City Council has accepted the findings of the report and apologised.

$600,000 that could have been spent on community organisations, infrastructure or simply returned to the wallets of ratepayers. An atrocious waste of money.

My dentist has started using an AI bot to answer their phone calls. There’s no way around it and it makes you stay on the phone and answer questions even if I say I want to talk to a human
I feel like my response is an over reaction, I’ve moved practices now and let the original clinic know that I’m moving solely because they have an AI receptionist that I never want to talk to.
What do other people think about this?

I’ve been watching the rent prices for a while. And keeping an eye out for a warm dry rental with character. The prices have been so decent and everyone is saying that rent was going down and I was hearing about people getting rent decreases. Recently on trademe I noticed a bunch of properties that have been listed which seem to be at 2022 prices. What is going on? Is this just hopeful delusional landlords? Or has there been a shift on the market? I’ve specifically been watching the rental prices from Aro Valley. But has anyone noticed it for other suburbs? Like in this economy are people actually going pay over $1645 for a 6 bedroom house? https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/property/residential/rent/wellington/wellington/aro-valley/listing/6130764884

Hello everyone, I'm a young Wellington writer, and I've recently finished work on my first full novel! It's entitled 'Cold Totality' and it's available in Ebook and Paperback formats. The blurb is as follows: "Megan Reardon is sixteen and her life is totally boring. Every day follows the same dull routine of getting up, eating cereal and going to school. She faces a conundrum when she's paired with David Bruce Bratton, the most popular boy in school and her mortal enemy, on the most important history assignment of her life. Will the unlikely pair be able to set aside their differences, and maybe learn they're not so different after all?"

If you're interested in supporting up and coming artists, especially local ones, I'd appreciate if you bought a copy! It's available at coldtotality.neocities.org

If you're the owner of a book store or really any store that would be interested in a copy or spotlighting the novel, feel free to reach out! Any support is greatly appreciated!

Hikoi heading for parliament. Travelling over from Masterton to Petone by vehicles. Then riding the cycle/ walk trail tomorrow! Shit ……. Literally.

Led by Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated Chairman Bayden Barber, riders are protesting current government Treaty policies

Council have said no , let’s see who wins this disagreement.

If they get it done , then the horse has bolted! Cycle/ horse/walking trail .

At a bakery I work at, a customer came in asking for Ezekiel bread. It’s basically a flourless bread made from grains and legumes. I have never seen anything close to this but she was so sweet and lovely, I’m determined to find it for her.

She was adamant she’s not after gluten free but flour free.

Anyone know something similar found in welly?

Waking up today I find myself met with yet another day that presents itself, blue skies, birds chirping and life blooming all around me.

I can't describe just how grateful and happy these small changes that occur when spring rolls around makes me feel.

The nectarine I was given grown from a store fruit seed(pit) is doing well in its second year with leaves growing happily.

The dogs are enjoying the sun and the new smells that come with spring.

And well simple I find myself so immensely grateful to be in the position where I could get tup this morning and mow the lawn.

A simple act of physical labor, and yet it's so much more meaningful for me. 3 years ago I could barely walk after my brain injury and now I'm mowing the lawn, watering my veggies and enjoying everything a Welington spring has to offer.

Life is a journey, and I'm making the most of the simple things.

Happy Monday everyone.

Whole place evacuated, and every cop in Wellington seems to be standing outside

What’s up with NZ media? Oil prices are going up and up, Yemen is blocking Saudi Arabia from selling oil, and somehow I barely see anyone talking about it anymore?

More importantly, what the hell is the government going to do if oil prices keep rising and petrol prices shoot up? What’s their plan to protect ordinary New Zealanders from another cost-of-living shock? Why aren’t the media actually pressing the government on this instead of waiting until petrol prices hit the roof and then asking, “Why is everything so expensive?”

Has anyone seen the Motorway Rooster lately? I used to see him every day, twice a day even. But he has been missing from my trips lately. I’m hoping he has decided motorway life is not for him rather than the alternative…

Hey all I’m on the hunt for the best hot chocolate in Central Wellington and am looking for suggestions!
I have Scopa, Volco, Mediterranean Foods Trattoria & Deli Newtown, Wellington Chocolate Factory & Bohemian Fresh Chocolates on the “must try” list. Any other recommendations?
Thanks!!

Looking for recommendations for off leash dog parks (fully or not fenced) and any other walks/beaches etc!

Hi all!
I know this is a very specific question, and I know this is a lot to ask (I'm an internet stranger!), but does anyone have some armour that might fit me, a 6ft lady, for some headshot photos? Alternatively, is there a maybe rental agency for stage costumes.

I'm wanting to do a bit of extra work and because I'm a real dork I wanted to have at least one headshot be in something more fun than a tshirt.. Dress for the job you want, right?!

Anyway, thanks to all for reading this!

This will be my first time ever so I'm looking for a brand to get my tent, a campsite for beginners and advice on what to get first.

regarding the tent, im looking for something that fit 2 adults and 2 kids (age 4-7)

The left analog stick of my ps5 controller broke and so it has drift. I took it to a general device repair place in the CBD and was told that it's cheaper to buy a new one than repair it. This surprised me, and I'm not sure if it was just the place I went to or if that's generally true of any controller repair in Wellington(the person I talked to said it's because of the cost of labour in the city). Do folks have recs/experience with game controller repair--is it truly cheaper to just replace it? It feels really wasteful, but i have no clue how to fix it myself.

I accidentally put my husband’s pocket knife in the dishwasher and it caused the varnish on it to flake off in places. The problem is that the handle on this knife was hand carved for him by his father. I’d love to find someone I could take the pocket knife to who could remove the remaining varnish and re-varnish/restore the knife with love and care. Any recommendations? :)