Wainuiomata Trademe Tractor/Farm Buyer for $250,000 pulls out

Well it apparently didn’t meet Trademe’s Terms & Conditions and the auction probably should not have gone ahead for that reason but media interest created a story, that resulted in high interest in the auction but in the end a very sorry outcome. I feel for the charities involved, as well as Gore couple, I hope like most they get a result soon.

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The couple who listed their tractor for a dollar on TradeMe and offered to throw in their farm for free have been left “furious” after the winning bidder was denied finance by his bank and the sale fell through.

Gore couple Shelley and Allan Holland listed their farm, valued at $260,000, two weeks ago on the back of a tractor sale on auction website TradeMe.

The old red tractor was listed with a $1 reserve in the auction which expired last night, with an 8.1 hectare farm in the Catlins thrown in for free. Of the proceeds, $10,000 was to be given to charity.

Owner Shelly Holland said they had been left feeling gutted.

“I feel really embarrassed, incredibly embarrassed and I feel belittled and just made a total fool of really. We couldn’t have been any more upfront and honest if we tried because where we come from you’re normally straight up and honest – a hand shake’s a hand shake.”

She said that with the large amount of interest and publicity in the auction, she had not expected any problems with the sale.

TradeMe business manager Mike O’Donnell said all of the top bidders had been contacted before the close of the sale, to ensure bids were legitimate. They had spoken to the eventual winner, Wainuiomata man Lance Karanga, twice, he said.

While Mr Karanga had appeared genuine when TradeMe spoke to him, his bank had declined him the financing to finalise the sale today, Mr O’Donnell said.

Mr Karanga said today that he had not misled the Hollands. He was serious about the sale.

He was “really pissed off” about the way things had transpired, but said he had been instructed by his lawyer not to comment.

“I’m not allowed to go into details at the moment.”

Mrs Holland said they had emailed the auction winner to congratulate him earlier today, and had then received a string of non-committal responses culminating in Mr Karanga telling them he had been instructed not to comment.

She said Mr Karanga had taken the bidding from $233,032 to $250,000 in a move she called “a bloody stink thing to do”.

“It’s not just us. We’ve still got our land, we’re no worse off than where we started … but it’s all the people that we promised money to. We wanted to give $10,000 to some people that we thought really deserved it because people had been so overwhelming with the auction and we had such an incredible response.”

“And now what do we do? We are just absolutely gutted – totally and utterly gutted.”

The couple was disappointed for people they had offered to support out of their earnings, including one boy named Ollie whose plight had come up in the question-and-answer section of the auction. Ollie needs medical treatment in the United States.

She said the feedback on the auction had been overwhelmingly positive and there had been no negative feedback. They had even received fan mail, emails and phone calls wishing them well.

Meanwhile, Mr O’Donnell said TradeMe had contacted all other bidders to tell them the sale had fallen through and encouraging them to get in contact with the Hollands if they were still interested.

“Should Shelly and Allan wish to take legal action against him, we’ve got an audit trail of his bidding and of the contact that we made to him to confirm his buying status.”

Mrs Holland said legal action was not being considered at this stage.

Mr Karanga had had his TradeMe membership terminated.

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Lance Karanga Interview on Tv3 Nightline

 

  
 

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A Gore couple are gutted that the sale of a tractor they offered for auction on TradeMe with a $1 reserve and an 8.1ha farm thrown in for free has fallen through. (see updating link to auction as it occurred here)

Shelley and Allan Holland last night thought they had sold the tractor for $250,000 but their delight turned to despair today when the supposed buyer, Lance Karanga of Wainuiomata, pulled out after reportedly being unable to obtain the necessary financing.

The Hollands said they were gutted and furious at the same time.

“I feel really embarrassed, incredibly embarrassed and I feel belittled and just made a total fool of really,” Shelly Holland told the Stuff website.

“We couldn’t have been any more upfront and honest if we tried because where we come from you’re normally straight up and honest — a hand shake’s a hand shake.”

She said that with the large amount of interest and publicity in the auction, she had not expected any problems with the sale.

TradeMe business manager Mike O’Donnell said all of the top bidders had been contacted before the close of the sale, to ensure bids were legitimate.

They had spoken to Mr Karanga twice.

Yesterday, Shelly Holland said she hoped the bidder was not a time-waster.

“A promise is a promise, you don’t go back on your word where I come from,” she said.

Lower Hutt Griffins Gingernuts better

This from TVNZ Fair Go the other night, it appears that Gingernut Biscuits taste better from the Lower Hutt factory than from their Auckland factory. They will replace them if you think the taste is different. 

Mount Maunganui man Brian Cotter got in touch to say he wasn’t happy with the last batch of Griffin’s Gingernuts he bought – they were card-boardy, he said. When he rang Griffin’s customer services they said they’d had a bunch of complaints, and the problem started when Griffin’s shifted all the biscuit-making from their Lower Hutt factory to their Auckland factory.

There was a problem with the new machinery involving about 31,000 packets of Gingernuts, but now the teething problems have been sorted. Griffin’s said it was only about the texture and appearance of the gingernuts; the recipe hasn’t changed. Brian says no, they taste different.

Fair Go did its own test and we thought that both the “old biscuits” that Brian liked and the “problem” biscuits were pretty similar in taste – but the problem biscuits were harder and crunchier! No-one thought they were “card-boardy”. So Brian – taste really is an individual thing.

If you are unhappy with your packet of Gingernuts ring Griffin’s on 0800 GRIFFINS – that’s 0800 47433467.

And finally, Gordon found an English biscuit expert Stuart Payne who’s mad about the things – comparing them with a fine single malt whisky in his book Nice Cup Of Tea And A Sit Down. Check out his website for more.

www.nicecupofteaandasitdown.com

Ex Petone Football Club manager up on child sex charges

A former soccer club manager is facing charges of sexually abusing children over a timespan of more than 20 years.

Grant Williams, 69, of Maungaraki, appeared in Lower Hutt District court yesterday facing 15 charges including indecent assault and sexual violation.

Williams was a long-time member of Petone Football Club and its manager for several years.

The charges relate to four boys who were aged between 9 and 12 at the time of the alleged abuse. Most of the abuse was said to have happened in the 1980s, though one charge is for an indecent assault in 1962.

Williams was remanded on bail for a pre-depositions hearing on June 11. He refused to comment on the allegations outside court yesterday.

Football club chairman Craig Deadman confirmed Williams’ former position at the club and said police had told him of the allegations.

Williams left the club in 1995 because of declining sponsorship and had not had any involvement since, Mr Deadman said.

Chris Hipkins MP opinions on Hutt Super City possibility

Extracted from Chris Hipkins (Rimutaka Labour MP) blog  it takes a strong stance on attitude to Super City legislation (no doubt partially fuelled from being in opposition) and the impact it could have on the Hutt Valley (are we next in line?) . It appears fairly obviously that the agenda around local government is moving, and fast.

 I think it is important that we clearly think about the road ahead if this was to occur. Given strong feeling against police merger what does the Hutt Valley feel around this? I would appreciate your comments.

Chris Hipkins comments and blog

“Fundamentally I objected to the Super City legislation being pushed through parliament under Urgency because the people of Auckland haven’t had their chance to have a say on it. I think any reform as significant and extensive as the Auckland Super City proposal needs to be endorsed by a referendum,” Chris Hipkins said.

“While the government don’t seem to have immediate plans to replicate the Super City concept anywhere else, I am still concerned that many within National see the merger of the two Hutt Valley councils as inevitable.

“Before I support any reform of local government in the Hutt Valley I would need to be convinced that local people want it. From the feedback I’ve had so far, I sense there is a strong desire to keep our two local councils separate,” Chris Hipkins said.

Mr Hipkins said he had asked Local Government Minister Rodney Hide whether he had received any advice on the possible merger of the two Hutt councils and he confirmed that he had received some background information ahead of meetings he had recently with local mayors Wayne Guppy and David Ogden. Mr Hipkins has requested a copy of that information under the Official Information Act.

“While Rodney Hide claims a local government amalgamation in the Hutt Valley is not currently part of his plans, I’m still not convinced it won’t make it onto the government’s agenda in the near future.

“If they follow the same process they did with Auckland, our two councils could be merged, either with each other or as part of a wider Wellington council amalgamation and local people wouldn’t have a chance to have their say. That’s something I would actively oppose” Chris Hipkins said.

Mr Hipkins said the strong opposition to the proposed merger of the Upper Hutt and Lower Hutt police districts showed that Upper Hutt people in particular have a genuine desire to maintain a separate identity.

“Local government is about local communities. In my view central government shouldn’t go tampering with that unless they have a mandate from the people affected.

Upper Hutt Railway Station to get upgrade when?

The Upper Hutt Council is planning an upgrade to the tune of $800,000  in the area around the railway station the problem being that it is a minimum of 4 years away not planned until 2013-14.

The direct responsibility of the station building and platform belongs to the Greater Wellington Regional Council which also has the station on an upgrade plan to roughly coincide with the UHCC plans.

A recent submission by Ms Tamsin Sommerville (UHCC Policy Mgr) to the GWRC highlighted the need for a coordinated approach

“The attractiveness and usability of this train station is of vital importance to Upper Hutt economic development and community well being. The problem is the station has been in a bad state of repairs for many years. It has been identified and highlighted by police, youth surveys and older adult forums as a major hot spot for crime.”

Recently UHCC upgraded the subway but without a coordinated approach the public perception of safety in using public transport is hindered. 2014 is a long time away.

It would appear that the Hutt Valley region has suffered strongly from under investment in Rail infrastructure as has been highlighted here before. The arrival next year of the new trains will mitigate this situation. Given the current economy one can but hope that several plans for rail are fast tracked to help the vast majority of commuters who use this service.

Wainuiomata Hill road crash Update

21 May

A woman was admitted to intensive care after the car she was driving on the wrong side of the road, with its lights off, collided head-on with a van.

Police suspect alcohol was a factor in the crash, which happened about 4.50am yesterday on the Wainuiomata Hill Road.

The three passengers in the Holden Commodore a man, a woman and a three-year-old were treated and discharged from Hutt Hospital.

The Mitsubishi van driver, on his way to work when the crash happened, was unhurt.

Detective Sergeant Scott Cooper said the serious crash unit would investigate this week and blood tests would reveal if alcohol was a factor.

“We won’t know until that’s analysed … that could be a couple of weeks.”

Charges were possible, he said.

The crash was near a lookout on Wainuiomata Hill, on a stretch of road with a median barrier in place.

“At a guess, they’ve driven down from the lookout.”

It was not known whether the passengers had been wearing seatbelts, or whether the child was buckled up.

The car and van were both badly damaged in the accident and two points of impact were visible on the car’s windshield.

The vehicles were towed to a secure location for further investigation.

A Hutt Hospital spokesman said the injured driver was stable and improving in intensive care yesterday.

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Three adults and a toddler are in hospital after their car and a van collided at the summit of the Wainuiomata Hill road this morning. Lower Hutt area commander Inspector Richard Chambers said the car, a dark-coloured Holden Commodore, and the van collided at 4.50 this morning.

The occupants of the Holden have been taken to hospital, with two suffering serious chest injuries. The male driver of the van was uninjured. The accident had blocked the road, the main access route between the suburb and Wellington, however emergency services have now cleared the accident site and re-opened the road.

Police are appealing for witnesses to contact them on 04 560 2600.

Woman dies off Petone Wharf

A woman has died after jumping off Petone wharf, police say.

A witness saw the unidentified female take off her shoes and jump into the water about 1.30pm.

Inspector Paul Jermy said the witness called police immediately and a police launch set off within a minute of the call.

Westpac Rescue Helicopter staff were called in to help with the search.

The woman was pulled from the water 15-20 minutes later but CPR was unsuccessful.

Her death has been referred to the coroner.

via Stuff

Hutt Hospital Staff’s lack of understanding led to death: report

Hutt Hospital staff did not understand the needs of a severely disabled woman who died of an undiagnosed infection, an investigation has found.

The 52-year-old, who worked with the Health Ministry’s disability policy team, suffered spinal muscular atrophy and was partially paralysed.

Following her death in May 2008 an independent review was commissioned by the Hutt Valley District Health Board.

Having encountered problems during previous hospital stays, the woman had met with doctors, managers and health board members to create a support plan which would be implemented during future visits, The Dominion Post reported.

However, the review found that while staff had tried to provide nursing care, they had “little understanding” of her needs.

Staff considered her demanding and were reluctant to respond to her requests for help.

Six days into her stay a dietician noticed a naso-gastric tube was draining away food as she ate it. Four days later the tube was still in place.

After two weeks a feeding tube was inserted into her intestine.

The woman complained of pain but there was no consideration of whether the procedure had caused a bowel perforation.

She died four days later from peritonitis, brought on by a small cut to her bowel from the tube.

The report said it was not clear whether the woman could have been saved through early detection as her weakened condition would have made it hard to fight an infection.

The health board said the review had been `a significant learning experience” and led to major changes.

During her stay, the woman was seen by 27 different people, including 15 nurses, many of whom were casual staff.

The health board has since appointed more permanent workers and reorganised the medical ward to form smaller teams with a senior nurse to oversee the care of each patient.

NZPA

Lower Hutt Armed Offenders Squad Callout stood down

A 22-year-old man is helping police with inquiries following an Armed Offenders Squad (AOS) operation in Lower Hutt today.

Streets surrounding the Naenae Rd location were cordoned off and school pupils were told to stay indoors.

Police were responding to reports firearms were involved in what was believed to be a domestic incident.

The cordons were lifted by 12.40pm.

A police spokesman said no arrests had yet been made and there were no reports of anyone being injured.

An ambulance had been on stand-by at the cordon.

Thanks to www.twitter.com/psycik who provided live updates from within the cordon at the time.

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psycik

  1.  Think it’s over now..    
  2. AOS seem to be wandering back….looking relaxed.
  3. Wonder if it’s over
  4. @ajobbins yeah from about 70 upwards i think. Have heard from Tilbury st is cordoned off.
  5. Just seen somebody collected (a distraught woman) and put into an unmarked police car….
  6. HuttNZ not sure I’m keen to photograph the armed offender squad!!
  7. HuttNZ any news???
  8. they are just standing around at the moment, and not pannicking – but still freaky to see them there
  9. eeeeek armed offenders outside my house!!!!