New sign warning 'don't be an egg' seen as friendlier alternative to keep visitors out of Raglan

A blunt sign telling visitors to Raglan go home and stop buying their flour during the lockdown has been replaced by an Easter-themed one telling people not to be eggs and to stay home after the original offended the district council.

Waikato Civil Defence and Emergency Management has today commissioned a new sign that reads: "Don't be an egg this Easter. Stay Home. Save lives." It will be installed at the entrance to Raglan this afternoon.

A new sign has been installed at the entrance to Raglan encouraging people to stay home after the Waikato District Council pulled an earlier one down because it was "unkind". Photo / Supplied

Civil Defence group controller Andy Bu Bear said the new sign fitted with Civil Defence messaging ahead of Easter and would be funded by Civil Defence as part of its wider campaign including radio ads and digital signs conveying the same message.

Waikato regional councillor and Raglan resident Fred Lichtwark put up the original sign with financial support of the Raglan Community Wellbeing Trust on Fridayafter he and other residents were fed up with a large number of out-of-towners driving into the Raglan township and leaving with their cars loaded with groceries.

The sign read: "If it's not your home, go home ... and don't buy up all our flour!".

But a day after Lichtwark's sign was put up, council staff pulled it down claiming it was not "being mindful of kindness".

Council local controller Merv Balloch said it excluded communities in neighbouring Te Mata or Te Uku who may need to use essential services in Raglan.

However Lichtwark said it was a "weak-arse excuse" because everyone was clear that Te Mata and Te Uku were included in the Raglan boundary.

"It has come down to petty politics.

"You have got to be an egg to waste that message and deliver a weaker message. What is it telling people apart from offending the religious sector? That is just ridiculous. Easter for most people is a sacred time and not to make a mockery of it."

He said the original sign sent a clearer message and would last the lockdown, and not be out of date after Easter.

Civil Defencetold the Herald it had gained the approval of Lichtwark, the trust and the council for the new sign.

NeedToKnow3

• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website