Stratford District Council plans for new logo and tagline

Stratford's leaders have rejected the efforts of a Christchurch design company as they look for a new town logo.

Stratford District Council chief executive Sue Davidson presented a rebranding proposal to the council including a new logo and slogan - "Make It Yours".

But, along with wanting more options for the logo itself, some of the councillors were upset Christchurch design company Beck & Caul's presented mock-ups with the logos superimposed on images of the wrong side of Mt Taranaki.

Ms Davidson said the proposal, which had an initial budget of $70,000, would be reviewed and a Taranaki designer used.

She said despite the error, she was happy with mock-ups, and they were "just to show you what the logo might look like on a picture".

But councillor John Sandford, who voted against the proposal, described the blunder as a "straight balls-up" that "shows that they don't understand Stratford well enough".

The district rebrand was identified as an economic development strategy in 2011 and planned for this year.

The plan was to overhaul the logo, which was designed by a high school student about 30 years ago, and slogan "In the Heart of Taranaki".

"Make It Yours" was presented to council after it won out over "Endless Opportunities" and "Find Yourself Here".

But Mayor Neil Volzke was not impressed with the new logo design and said he was quite fond of the current logo.

"I didn't like the imagery of the heart.

"I'm not sure the existing one's so bad to be quite honest, it just needs a little bit of a freshen up, and perhaps a modernisation.

"I'd be quite happy with it as it was."

And he said he found the mix-up with the background images quite frustrating.

Ms Davidson said they had not asked Beck & Caul's for a number of logos to give the councillors a choice.

"So rather than go back to them we've made the decision to try someone local and see if we can get it done more quickly."

Mr Sandford said he wanted local artists to be given the opportunity to come up with some ideas.

"I actually prefer the option of opening it up to either artists in Stratford or the high schools to give us some ideas."

Missing cat has Facebook page

In a sign of the times, the Abu family of New Plymouth has taken to Facebook to find their missing moggie Basil.

The family set up a page called Bring Back Basil in February which has attracted 110 “likes” and features pictures of Basil, contact details, and several heartfelt pleas for information about their “Basil boy”.

Lisa Abu said the purebred ragdoll cat had been missing from Carrington St for about 40 days, but the family refused to give up hope of finding him alive.

The 23-year-old said they were “missing him terribly” and that “not knowing [what happened to him] is the worst thing”.

No expense has been spared in the search for Basil. The family has placed ads in the Taranaki Daily News and the North Taranaki Midweek, and flyers have been distributed as far away as Fitzroy.

There is even an undisclosed reward being offered for Basil’s safe return.

The search was focused on the lower Vogeltown area, as Basil was a “home cat” and ragdolls “don’t really know how to survive”, said Miss Abu.

The family feels catnapping was another explanation for Basil disappearance, because Ragdolls were an expensive and sought after breed, known for their distinctive colouring and friendly nature.

Basil, who turns three in May, was originally from Auckland but has been living with the family since April last year.

Miss Abu said she felt strongly that Basil was still alive, and just wanted him home safely.

Should anyone see Basil they are urged to contact Miss Abu and her family via http://www.facebook.com/BringBackBasil. 

Missing: Basil the ragdoll cat has been missing from his Vogeltown home for about 40 days.  Photo: supplied