PHOTO; by ANN WOOLLIAMS 4.4.08 Velda and Max Smith at Lake Ruatanewha , Twizel for the Maadi Cup

Lake creator 'man before his time'

http://www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-herald/news/9357871/Lake-creator-man-before-his-time

TRACY MILES                     04/11/2013     

Max Smith, the project engineer for the Upper Waitaki Hydroelectric Power Scheme in the 1970s, and creator of the South Island's top rowing venue, Lake Ruataniwha, near Twizel, died on 1.11.13.

A civil engineer by trade, Mr Smith went to Twizel to put into practice the National government "Think Big" policy, including a series of dams and canals across the Mackenzie Basin.

His legend lives on in the form of Lake Ruataniwha's international rowing course. Now central to rowing in New Zealand and an important sporting venue for the region, it was also the project that got him sacked.

Unknown to some of the heads of the Ministry of Works, as well as building the reservoir, Mr Smith was also turning Lake Ruataniwha into a community asset.

His daughter, Pip Sutherland, said: "Max was very pragmatic. If he decided he was going to do something, he did it."

"I think he felt that a lot of people thought the dams left nothing for the community at the end of it." So he decided to do something about that.

Mr Smith told the Timaru Herald in 2008, "it would be fair to say ... some were a little surprised."

Some of his bosses were keen to prosecute him under the Public Works Act after it came to light but in the end a compromise was met where he chose to retire. Mr Smith also had to spend two years fighting the government and his superiors to retain Twizel. His vision, 25 years later, sees a thriving town and rowing complex. Mrs Sutherland remembers the family's years at Twizel from 1970 to 1982. She said her father also made sure there were trees and picnic areas around Lakes Aviemore and Benmore.

After losing his job, he and wife Velda spent the next eight years developing their farm, Castle Hill Station. Having been born and bred in rural Waddington near Christchurch, Mr Smith was used to rural life. He had his 60th birthday at Castle Hill. After that, they bought a farm called Sandhurst at Weka Pass and later moved to a 121.4 hectare property at Waipara where he grew pinot gris and pinot noir grapes. Using a contract winemaker, the result was sold under the label Whitestone Wines. The couple retired to Amberley where he remained active until the middle of last year. He had been in Holmwood Resthome, Rangiora, since January.

Mrs Sutherland said Mr Smith was a good father and as children they had lots of camping holidays. "He was very probably a man before his time. He had great ideas, he loved young people and being able to help young people. His legacy made him a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) and earned him a Queen's Service Medal, among other awards.