A new date for the opening of the extended Tot Town railway tunnel has been announced, following the postponement of the event due to bad weather.

A new opening date has been set for Sunday, June 6, at 12 noon, when Mayor Michael Laws will cut a ribbon and officially declare the extended tunnel open.

"A decision to postpone the opening event was made due to the extremely wet weather experienced last week," explains Senior Cr Randhir Dahya, who has been involved with organising the event.

"The forecast for this Sunday is looking much better and we're even expecting some sunshine.

"I commend the Lions Club on the tunnel extension and their on-going commitment to Kowhai Park, which ensures it remains a unique attraction for locals and visitors alike."

Rides on the train will be free for everyone on Sunday and there will also be a sausage sizzle and bouncy castle.

The tunnel extension was necessary to house the new additional carriage which was built for the Tot Town train. The original tunnel, where the train is stored when not in use, was not big enough to accommodate the additional carriage.

The event is being run by the Wanganui Lions and supported by Wanganui District Council as part of our commitment to developing a family-friendly Wanganui.

Up to 100 households in Gonville and Fordell will soon be able to have fast and reliable access to the internet as part of a free six month wireless broadband trial.

Access to the internet by Wanganui people is amongst the lowest in the country, something the council is addressing through a variety of schemes. These include supporting Computers in Homes, hosting free internet access via the Aotearoa People's Network in the Davis Library and Gonville Café Library and the newly opened Computer Clubhouse for young people aged between 11 and 18.

To be eligible for the wireless broadband trial people need to live within the trial areas, have a computer which is less than seven years old and currently not have a broadband connection to the internet. People with a dial-up connection are eligible.

There are 60 free wireless receivers available and 40 wireless receivers available at a cost of $170. Only one receiver is required per household. Funding for the receivers was provided by the Powerco Wanganui Trust.

The Gonville wireless trial area includes York Street, Pururi Street, Abbot Street to the Bignell Street junction, part of Harper Street starting from the Abbot Street junction, Central Avenue, Swiss Avenue, part of Rimu Street including Harris Place and parts of Gonville Avenue to the Cambridge Street junction.

A map showing the exact area of the trial will be on display at the Gonville Café Library, where people are able to sign up for the Gonville scheme; or view the map here (PDF, 362KB) - the circle on the map shows the approximate area of the trial.

Fordell residents can sign up for the trial at the Council Municipal Building at 101 Guyton Street, Wanganui, at the Customer Services Counter.

Wireless receivers will be available from both locations from June 14.

The popular 'dial the news' service, provided by Wanganui Library, has a new phone number.

After running for more than 20 years, the service was temporarily unavailable whilst a new phone system was installed, but the service has now been resumed.

'Dial the news' was initially put in place to serve the needs of sight-impaired people but it is used by a broad range of people.

The 20 minute daily recording consists of local news and other items of interest, which are selected by the volunteers who make the recordings.

To hear 'dial the news' phone (06) 349 3290.

The free parking trial for SuperGold Card holders has been extended until the end of June 2010.

At its 15 March 2010 meeting, Wanganui District Council agreed to trial a free parking scheme for SuperGold Card holders. This was as a result of Wanganui Grey Power's submission to the Council's 10-Year Plan suggesting we provide free parking between certain hours for all SuperGold Card holders.

The scheme offers free parking along Victoria Avenue from 8.30am to 10.00am, Monday to Friday. The trial period, which was scheduled to end on 31 May 2010, has been extended until 30 June 2010. New cards will not be issued showing the new expiry date. Our Parking Officers are aware of the extension and will not issue infringements in June unless the card is being used outside the hours and place of exemption.

Applications from SuperGold Card holders to take part in the trial scheme are still being processed. Forms are available from the Customer Services Counter at the Municipal Building, 101 Guyton Street, Wanganui, or by calling Tony Grant-Fargie from Grey Power on 345 7172 or the Customer Services Team on 349 0001. Parking trial application forms are also available on this page.

We are also interested in receiving feedback on the trial to help us determine the future of free parking for SuperGold card holders. A feedback form can be accessed here.

The Sarjeant Gallery will be closed from Monday, May 24, until Saturday, June 19, to enable building maintenance work to take place.

This will involve the gallery floor being sanded and re-varnished.

In order for this to take place the front of house area, offices and library will be cleared and artworks removed from the gallery. Once the work is complete then everything will need to be reinstalled in time for the annual Whanganui Arts Review and the winter season of exhibitions and events.

Details about the following vacancy are available on this page:

Development Engineer
Applications close 18 June 2010

The Wanganui District Council is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer.

We welcome members of the public to attend our meetings

Council – Tuesday, June 8 (Council Chamber, 1.00pm)
- Deliberation on Submissions to Draft 2010/11 Annual Plan.

Hearings Extraordinary Meeting - Wednesday, June 9 (Committee Room 2, 10.00am)
- Hearing by Independent Commissioner - Resource Consent Application Hearing: Prospect Urbanism on behalf of Wanganui District Council – 14 Tregenna Street.

Youth – Monday, June 14 (Committee Room 2, 4.00pm)

Hearings – Thursday, June 17 (Committee Room 2, 3.00pm) – to be confirmed

Council – Tuesday, June 22 (Council Chamber, 3.00pm)
- The Council will consider the reports from Committee meetings held in May and June, reports direct to Council and adoption of the Council's Annual Plan 2010/11.

Wanganui Rural Community Board – Thursday, June 24 (Committee Room 2, 4.00pm)

Agendas are available at the Customer Services Counter, Municipal Office Building, 101 Guyton Street, Wanganui and the Wanganui District Library two working days prior to the meeting.

The following arrangements will be observed by Wanganui District Council on Queen's Birthday Observance Day. However, for urgent matters you can contact us at any time on (06) 349 0001.

Municipal Office Building
Closed

i-Site Information Centre
Open 9.00am to 3.00pm

Davis Library
Closed

Gonville Café Library
Closed

Sarjeant Gallery
Closed

Whanganui Regional Museum
Open 10.00am to 4.30pm

Royal Wanganui Opera House
Closed

Recycling
The 'SaveMart' Wanganui Recycling Centre in Peat Street, opposite the netball courts, is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to take your cardboard, newspapers, plastic bottles, glass bottles, aluminium cans, steel cans and textiles. Free drop-off.