Kedgley Sue: Hamilton City Council (Parana Park) Land Vesting Bill — First Reading 
Kedgley Sue: Hamilton City Council (Parana Park) Land Vesting Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:664;Page:11762] 
SUE KEDGLEY (Green) 
: 
 The Green Party joins with all other parties in this House in supporting the Hamilton City Council (Parana Park) Land Vesting Bill and in thanking George Parr 80 years on for his extraordinary generosity and far-sightedness in gifting this land to essentially the people of Hamilton. People have been sharing their memories of this area and although I am a Wellingtonian I have strong connections with Hamilton. I went to the Hamilton West School for a period of my life I have many relatives in Hamilton and I have spent most of my holidays in Hamilton. It is interesting that Hamilton when I spent my childhood holidays there had far more open space than it does now. Others have talked about the open space around Hamilton Lake for example. My relatives happened to live near there and we spent a lot of our childhood playing in the open space next to Hamilton Lake. Sadly that is no longer open space; it is now quite densely built suburban housing. As in so many cities much of the open space that I remember in my childhood in Hamilton is now quite densely built-in with suburban housing. That is why we should be so deeply grateful to visionaries like George Parr who ensured that there is some land that is not developed built on or subject to suburban sprawl; that there is some land in places like Hamilton where people can play. 
I was in Christchurch very recently and what would Christchurch be without Hagley Park— 
Grant Robertson 
: A total wasteland. 
SUE KEDGLEY 
: Well indeed it would be without the visionaries who gave Hagley Park to Christchurch. It is a shame that Parana Park is not quite as extensive as Hagley Park; however as others have said it is incredibly beautiful. In the case of parks like Parana Park and Hagley Park it is not just that they are wonderful places for recreation; they are also the lungs of the city. In a highly built-up and congested city like Hamilton it is truly important that we have areas of green space which are the lungs of the city as well as places for people to recreate. 
I was just a little concerned when David Bennett was talking about the Hamilton City Council’s plans to develop this park. It has not been spelt out exactly what is intended in that development but we will be interested to learn about it in the select committee. However we are very reassured that it is remaining a recreational reserve and that it will come under the Reserves Act. Therefore we are happy to support it— 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: I don’t think there’s going to be a parking building there. 
SUE KEDGLEY 
: —because we are reassured by the Opposition spokesperson on education that parking buildings are not planned for this park. We certainly hope not. In fact we think that the park is so beautiful that it really does not need development and that probably the best thing that could happen would be absolutely no development at all. So we are very pleased to support the bill. 
There is something interesting about the gentleman George Parr whom we are all remembering today—and I think it is appropriate that we do that 80 years on. I hope he was given an honour for doing this and maybe if he was not we could give him a retrospective honour because his gift was very substantial. The interesting thing is that he was a visionary not only in vesting a park to the people of Hamilton but also in understanding the need for public transport. He was an advocate for a train from Hamilton right up to Kawhia. What a visionary and what a shame that that particular vision of his did not come into place. That reminds me of Sir Dove-Myer Robinson the great visionary of Auckland who had the vision of light rail or public transport for Auckland. What a shame that that vision was not implemented but instead was opposed by the developers of the time as with the plans for a railway from Hamilton to Kawhia. He also had visions for a canal. Hamilton would have been all the richer if we had implemented those visions as well.