Stories by Jonathan Leask

An Ashburton woman was surprised to find out the council would no longer help with the maintenance of the California Redwood tree that towers over her property.

Canterbury's 10 water zone committees look set for a restructure, but the Ashburton chair is questioning where the accountability is in the proposed new model.

James Meager is now a minister outside of cabinet after being given the new title of Minister for the South Island. Audio

A Russian business that owns a high country station in Mid Canterbury now owns a slice of Ashburton's CBD.

The man who said Ashburton would be turtle town after school speed zones were introduced is happy to see them changing.

The axe still hangs above Balmoral Hall in Ashburton, but its dancers are at least relieved they have time to find a new venue.

Chris Allen died, aged 62, in a tragic accident on his Ashburton Forks farm on Monday.

The long-awaited project will help reduce congestion along State Highway 1, where the existing bridge has had to close twice due to flooding in recent years, cutting the South Island off in the…

Two people per month on average have been trespassed from the new library and civic centre prompting the council to introduce a new code of conduct.

A large Canterbury solar farm is gearing up to increase the power output in the district, but it's also creating a massive jump in green waste.

Federated Farmers Mid Canterbury president said the government's changes around the Resource Management Act will be well received by local farmers.

Mid Canterbury biodiversity and pest management projects received a combined $50,000 boost, which will help a riverside restoration project reach the finish line.

"There's nothing for our kids and teenagers in this town."

Organisational failure saw Environment Canterbury fail to reprimand the chairperson - that's what the council are saying.

Ashburton's new library and civic centre cost $62.1 million to build.

A hut holder says Ashburton's council made the right decision not to apply for resource consent to divert water from Balmacaan Stream to the troubled Lake Camp.

Customers required emergency hospital treatment after suffering severe allergic reactions in two separate incidents at Ashburton cafes.

Helmets remain "strongly recommended" at the Staveley Ice and Curling Rink as it waits to consider the outcomes of investigations into a tragic accident.

Ashburton councillors will meet on Tuesday to decide if action is to be taken.

A group is calling for six district councils to amalgamate and end their involvement in Environment Canterbury.

Cars could once again be able to drive up to a popular Canterbury picnic spot and lookout - at least for now.

Lake Camp has been a summer recreational mecca for over half a century - but families fear it will be too dry to use this summer.

Recent polling shows abuse aimed at councils is on the rise. LDR looks into the behaviour that is increasingly becoming a threat to democracy.

People in Ashburton are cranking up their wood burners in the face of the cold winter weather and the town has already breached the high-pollution threshold twice.

Farmer Ray Logan has had enough of what he describes as the "over-the-top" use of road cones.