The school holidays brought a surge of visitors to our Council facilities, with the people counters at EA Networks Centre hitting 23,000 over the four days of an under 14 basketball tournament.

With 54 teams in action, plus their groups of supporters, the stadium was heaving and it was a pleasure to see such enthusiasm and energy, which had spinoffs for the whole district.

While basketball generated a lot of visitors, the entire sport and recreation facility was busy during the school holidays, with a total of 36,000 people counted at the door for the two-week period. The inflatable water park was also a hit over the three days it was in operation, with just over 1000 people having a go – including the mayor, deputy mayor, a number of councillors and staff.

The library, within Te Whare Whakatere, was also buzzing, with 7500 visitors recorded during the school holiday period. Some of the most popular activities saw youngsters make their own bouncy balls and origami frogs, while the laser cutter was running flat out for other DIY crafts.

It wasn’t just the kids having fun, the ladies from the Red Hat Society also popped in for a craft class.

Over the road at the art gallery and museum, the Clever Crustaceans exhibit being toured by Te Papa and NIWA was a drawcard, and just over 1500 visitors were recorded at that facility over the holidays.

It’s great to see the community enjoying these facilities, and all the activities they offer.

Staff are currently planning other community events, including Light up the Night, which will take place at Baring Square East on Saturday 30 November. The giant Christmas tree will be lit up that night and take pride of place in the square once again.

Events are also being planned over summer to celebrate 160 years of the Ashburton Domain, so watch out for those when the weather warms up.

We’re also expecting the warm weather to lead to the usual seasonal weed growth at Lake Hood, and this year we have a new weapon to deal with it.

Council has contracted Ashburton Contracting Ltd to manage the lake and they will be deploying a weed harvester that will work something like a lawn mower. The weed is cut and collected, and will be removed from the lake.

It’s a learning curve this summer as we figure out the mowing cycles, and how to operate the machine in the most efficient and effective way.

The weed harvester is part of work at the lake to minimise the risk of algal blooms and we’ve also installed a new diversion that brings water to the western canals and helps improve water circulation.