After a long period of ‘normality’, community transmission is back and we find ourselves in a Level 4 lockdown. A place, quite arrogantly, I don’t think any of us thought we would ever be again. Unlike last year, there doesn’t appear to be the same level of fear. We have been here before. We understand the virus better. We have a vaccine. And working from home is a firmly established business...
Unless you have been on a complete spending freeze it would be hard not to have noticed the rapidly escalating costs of goods and services. Nowhere is this more evident than in the building industry which has been hit hard by supply issues. For years New Zealand has had relatively low inflation which is an indication of slow growth. One way to stimulate growth is to lower interest rates because it...
The central business district has historically been considered the heart of any city, but recent events have changed the way people use the CBD. So, how does the changing face of business influence our cities and the way we live? We are making steps all over the world towards vaccinating the masses in the hope of returning to some sense of normality. At some stage down the track we will look back on this...
Price pressure It’s often been said that you can tell if a city is humming based on the number of cranes on a skyline. And I’ll tell you what, I’ve noted a fair few around here recently. So, is Wellington really humming? Cranes, and their association with a thriving economy, are generally an indication of new commercial construction. But in Wellington’s case, the bulk of the inner-city...
Wellington wastewater issues continue to plague the city as our aging infrastructure haunts us. Last month trucks blocked main CBD routes as they were put to work removing wastewater to prevent another environmental issue in the harbour. No sooner had the trucks taken the sewage and buried it at the rubbish dump, did the pipes burst in Aro Valley. No wonder rates are on the (significant) rise! So what...