Apparently there's a dire shortage of pink Hi-Glo tagger vests in parts of the Eastern Suburbs, and a public appeal has been launched.

Stuff: The message is a reaction to Wellington City Council-funded pink vests that school-aged taggers are being made to wear as punishment when cleaning up their handiwork.

Read more on Drinks After Work...

I have been told that the only conference facility, within coo-ee of the Beehive, that has meeting rooms with free* wifi access is the Backbencher.

This can't be true. I mean we are living in the future aren't we?

If anyone knows of any other venue I'll be eternally grateful (as might other meeting-organising readers)

*Oh and by free I mean is part of the conference facility service, but is not an extra charge.

The first person who can supply us with photographic evidence of any workmen in the city, operating heavy or noisy machinery, AND WEARING EAR PROTECTORS!!

Will win a 1kg bag of Rahui Lodge Macadamia Nuts.

But I'm not sure you'll find one.

On the off-chance anyone wants a bag of nuts... photos of ear muff wearing Wellington workmen can be emailed to andrew.llewellyn@gmail.com.

I noticed this today as I strolled in the rain:

Hooray! Recycling bins! And Midland Park is the perfect place for these.

For those who weren't aware of it, the Council has a nice online service that allows people to "petition the Wellington City Council, via the internet, on matters relevant to the Council's business".

Anyone can create one, so, if there's something bugging you that you think the council should be looking into, just go right ahead. (Remember though, if it's something that needs fixing as opposed to some more substantial infrastructural problem, just use their Fix It service).

A majority of the current petitions cover one of Wellingtonista's favourite topics, namely urban transport (they're removing cycle lanes!?), so, if you'd like to add your weight to those issues, or raise one of your own, rock on over and have your say.

(Note: this service is bought to you by the excellently entitled 'Democratic Services' council department).

Note: The following is not an advertisement or "astroturfing" but just an article on a service offered in Wellington

With all the talk of connecting Wellington with city-wide wifi I thought I'd remind readers of the interim stop-gap: Cafenet.

I have been using Cafenet for a few years and found it to be reliable and fast (where you can get it). The biggest downside is that it isn't free. Still it is good to have a few Mb in the account (and I would suggest the Mb packages rather than time) for those times when reliable internet is required downtown.

Heck, they're even in Palmerston North (a fact that was a lifesaver during a work trip there).

But the gist is that it is still very very far away from a complete coverage of Wellington and doesn't reach further than Newtown (if you can call the scarce hotspots of Newtown coverage).

So where is it available? Hotspots (and some "tips") after the jump.

The "evil overlords" have won and the YMCA and swimming pool on Tasman St have closed down and are ready for demolition.

The area is all fenced off now and the public is not allowed in anymore. So hopefully you saw the wonderful graffiti that graced "The Ruins" (home of the occasional play, fringe festival event, fashion shoot or impromptu concert). And hopefully you had a swim in the pool. And maybe you even hung out at the Y.

Well, soon the site will be a Pak-n-Save... (sigh)

Photos after the jump

The recent flap (no pun intended) over noisy tui may seem like a typical silly season non-story, but believe me, it's a real problem. I live above a major central city intersection, and people sometimes ask whether I'm disturbed by road noise. "No," I say, "but those bloody birds wake me up at 5 in the morning!" A small patch of harakeke eight floors down is enough to attract hordes of juvenile tui flitting around and chattering and generally carrying on like kids in Manners Mall. Tsk tsk, youth today!

It's probably just the morning-averse urbocentric biophobic grump in me, but does anyone else notice it? And what is the best collective noun for tui? A disturbance? A larrikin? A raucous?

Disclaimer: that's a Peanuts reference, rather than a comment on the quality of candidates. Ahem.

Nominations for local body elections closed last week, and the candidates are all listed on the WCC website (residents of other Wellington Territorial Authorities should find them on their respective council sites). While it can be argued that the choice of Mayor is less important than the composition of the council as a whole, it's certainly the role that generates the most heat. So, here's a full list of the mayoral candidates, followed by a call to action:

• Ray Ahipene-Mercer
• Paul Bailey
• Carl Gifford
• Rob Goulden
• Nick Kelly
• John McGrath
• Bryan Pepperell
• Kerry Prendergast
• Helene Ritchie
• Jack Ruben
• Nick Wang

Other than sitting councillors and John McGrath, I don't know much about the candidates. I'm sure you'll find plenty of comments about Kerry P on the Wellingtonista, and I've mentioned McGrath in passing on WellUrban, with the odd reference to Jack Ruben as well. But here's your chance to comment sagely, speculate wildly or just generally vent spleen. Here's a starter for ten: if you don't like the incumbent mayor, who can and should get the numbers to unseat her?

Wellington public transport has made another great leap forward. From the margin of a local community newspaper:

Bus users across Wellington can use their cellphones to find out when the next scheduled service will arrive. The service allows prospective passengers to find the times of the next three buses due by txting a four-digit number -- the bus-stop ID number, displayed on bus-stop signs -- to BUS (287). A reply will arrive within seconds.

Now note that this will not tell you when the next bus will actually arrive, but (presumably) give you the next three buses due as per the timetable. So not hugely helpful when your bus has not shown up for no apparent reason, and nor is it as cool as the digital signs I've seen in Auckland's inner suburbs, but still a start. Now can they just sort out integrated ticketing? Kthxbai.

Our very own Anti-Fascist Protective Rampart has been up for months now, and remains as ugly as ever.

Looking south towards Friedrichstraße *cough* I mean Abel Smith Street:

... and north towards Ghuznee Street. In the distance, over the wall, we see the symbols of capitalism brazenly and proudly flaunted:

All we are really missing are some sentry towers, razor wire, and anti-personnel mines. Somebody really needs to finish this damn "bypass" already.

Well, did you?

More info once every other man and his dog stops hammering the GeoNet website.

Update. Well, there ya go: a 4.8 shake, focal point 50km deep, 30km west of Porirua, out in Cook Strait. A decent rattle.

(And if you did feel it, report your experience here. Do your bit for science.)

The Harbour Ward comprising Petone, Korokoro, Seaview, Gracefield and Eastbourne are launching a petition campaign over the next 2 weeks to gauge public support for the transfer of the HARBOUR WARD from Hutt City to Wellington City.

They allege that the Hutt Council has failed in its responsibilities to protect buildings, the parks, and the ageing citizens.

There are public meetings planned;

19th September 8pm Muritai School Hall, Eastbourne

26th September Senior Citizens Hall Silberry Place, off Kensington Street, Petone

From my perspective, I think Hutt Council has allowed some beautiful buildings to be annihilated and replaced with such fabulous structures as Rebel Sports.

I also think that the very witty billboard campaign they have at the moment has got up the noses of many Eastbourne residents (imagine implying Eastbourne residents are snooty - the cheek!), and they are behind this move.

I'd be happy to change to Wellington Council. They have cheaper rates. Plus, we all know that Petone is the Riviera of Wellington.

Last night, I once again forced myself to sit through a Waterfront Development Subcommittee meeting. While it was full of enough procedural tedium and political pigheadedness to make sitting in broken glass during a Celine Dion concert seem like a pleasant alternative, it was worth it to get the latest updates and to see an inspiring presentation from UN Studio's Holger Hoffman (since Ben van Berkel had to miss it due to illness) about the processes behind their design for the transition building.

Here's an update on progress and plans, mainly based upon reports from the meeting, but with a few other tidbits.

[read on...]

I've been asked to give a brief talk to the board and management of Wellington Waterfront Ltd (WWL) about my "three top priority ideas for the waterfront". It will be no suprise to most of you that I won't struggle for things to say, but while I've been asked to speak as an individual rather than as a representative for any group, I'd like to get your input into this.

read on...