Getting feedback on our plan for the next 3 years
During July, the Hibiscus and Bays Local Board have been consulting on our Local Board Plan (LBP). This is our strategic 3-year plan that sets the key initiatives and outcome areas we will focus on.
The Hibiscus and Bays LBP was developed on the ideas and feedback from an initial round of community consultation. Now that we have the draft, we are going back to the community to check that we have got it right.
We held two drop-in consultations at Whangaparaoa and East Coast Bays Libraries, as well as a Youth Webinar. The East Coast Bays Library session also involved a sit-down discussion with the Browns Bay Chinese Association and an organisation based in Windsor Park that supports new Chinese immigrants settling in the East Coast Bays. It was interesting to hear what they wanted to see more of. One suggestion was wanting the Local Board to provide greater information about the history of the area. They are also very eager to learn more about Maori culture and history here in this area. Julia Parfitt is connecting them with Te Herenga Waka o Orewa Marae and I’ve linked them up with Sir Peter Blake MERC in hopes that there might be some opportunities to collaborate.
There’s still time to read our draft LBP and give your feedback by 13 August: https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/have-your-say/topics-you-can-have-your-say-on/local-board-plans-2020/Pages/default.aspx
Mairangi Bay – proposals for Ramsgate Tce getting flak
Auckland Transport is asking for feedback on some big changes for Ramsgate Tce in Mairangi Bay. The proposals are causing quite a bit of backlash from the local community already, so I’ve asked for more background information and an urgent briefing for the Local Board.
The proposed changes include:
A northbound bus lane operating 4 pm – 7 pm weekdays (175m long outside 18 Ramsgate Tce)
Changes to bus stops and shelters, these directly affect properties at 3 (Countdown), 6, 7 and 12 Ramsgate Tce.
A new signalised pedestrian crossing (outside 7 Ramsgate Tce).
The footpath heading down the hill between 8 and 10 Ramsgate Tce is being resurfaced and widened. The steps down the same hill are being removed.
Removal of on-street parking at various locations and during the operation of the bus lane (9 permanent and 7 unavailable during the operating hours of the bus lane).
As far as I’m aware, the need for a pedestrian crossing was what spurred the rest of this work to come about. Ramsgate Tce can be very busy at peak times, and this proposed crossing would provide a safe crossing location when activated by a pedestrian. The rest of the proposals appear to be ‘future proofing’ – they’re attempting to carry out work that may need to be done in the future while they’re there putting a crossing point in. Can’t blame them for trying to be responsible, but equally, I’m not sure residents and businesses are willing to lose car parks for it.
If this consultation affects you, the most important thing you can do is to give your formal feedback. It’s not up on their website just yet but will be shortly at this link: https://at.govt.nz/about-us/have-your-say/north-auckland-consultations/
There is also a public drop-in session at the Mairangi Bay Bowling Club, 19 August 5-8 pm. I’ll be at this.
Local Board input into the Emergency Budget
Earlier in July, the Hibiscus and Bays Local Board workshopped our feedback to the Governing Body on the Emergency Budget. This was formalised at our 9 July Business Meeting. It was a hefty amount of feedback on various issues. The full feedback we gave is in the minutes.
Some notable feedback we gave:
Our Local Board, and all other 20 Local Boards, supported a 3.5% rate increase. Whilst Local Boards do not make decisions like this, we were asked to provide feedback to the Governing Body who do. At our meeting, a division was called for and there were 6 members for and 0 against our resolutions. In our Local Board area, 80% of respondents to the budget consultation supported an increase of 2.5% or higher. I appreciate that for some of you, the support we gave for an increase of 3.5% will be disappointing and not what you may have wanted. Personally, it was a bit gut-wrenching in some respects, but it was clear to me that the best outcome for our community was for a 3.5% increase. Even with this increase, we will still see most projects deferred and savings activity will still mean some disappointing cuts to services in our community and region. A 2.5% increase would have seen devastating cuts to services that would have been inconceivable. The types of cuts we would have had, would have been damaging to the well-being of our community and would have had detrimental environmental effects. I very carefully weighed up the consequences of an increase for ratepayers, and the outcomes of supporting a smaller increase. The outcomes of anything less than 3.5% were not in the overall best interest of our community and environment. I know it may not have been the ‘popular’ decision to make, but I am fully confident, that with the information provided, it was the right thing to do given the circumstances. I think the general feeling among ratepayers, and what I hear a lot of, is that they resent paying more when they aren’t seeing any value from the rates they pay. I empathise with this view, but in my view, it is a much wider organisational problem to tackle than the immediate financial problem at hand the Emergency Budget was dealing with.
Do not support the proposal that Glenvar Road/ East Coast Road intersection and corridor improvements should be delayed. This is an essential, long-awaited safety upgrade that must proceed as planned.
Don’t support the closure of either Henderson or Silverdale Animal Shelters as it will likely result in increased costs. (As far as I’m aware, this was a success- neither are closing).
Strong opposition to any proposals to defer funding in the environment space (e.g. pest eradiation, reduction in compliance staff, delay of planned track upgrades, deferral of Water Protection Fund grant and Natural Environmental Heritage grant) as it would have a detrimental effect on the environment, wildlife and wellbeing.
Do not support the deferral of the Recreation Facilities Investment Fund – a key leveraging fud for sports groups to gain additional external funding.
Don’t support reductions in public transport service levels (where analysis and investigation haven’t been undertaken to identify appropriate, necessary reductions) or charging for Park and Ride facilities.
Supported the need for additional spending by Watercare.
The Emergency Budget strikes a tough balance – it deals with a nearly half-billion income shortfall while meeting an additional unbudgeted capital investment of $224 million to bring forward water infrastructure projects to deal with the worst drought we have ever faced. Council have cleaned out jobs – over a thousand will be disestablished and non-essential spending has been slashed. About $240 million worth of ‘surplus’ properties and non-strategic assets are going to be sold too. This, all whilst still undertaking some critical upgrades to keep our city running, people employed, and some certainty to the construction sector to support economic recovery.
Open now: Hibiscus and Bays Local Board Grant Round One
Grant Round One is now open for the Hibiscus and Bays Local Grant. Applications are open until 21 August. Our Local Grants are for sums between $2,000 – $10,000.
Grants help groups and organisations to provide activities, projects, programmes, initiatives and events that make a positive contribution to the community within the local board area.
For more information about our full programme check out our Community Grants Programme 2020/21.
Water update
Stage one water restrictions remain in place. We’re continuing to experience low rainfall this winter after the driest summer on record.
Hunua rainfall
Watercare is working on pushing water treatment up from 165 to 175 million litres a day at the Waikato Water Treatment Plant. The first of two connections from the reservoir to the existing water supply network was completed in July. While the second connection is being made, the 50-million litre reservoir will be filled and the commissioning process can then begin. Construction on this project was delayed by appeals to the Environment Court, which set Watercare back about a year and resulted in additional conditions affecting things like the working hours of heavy machinery.
Demolition of the old Papakura Water Treatment Plant is almost complete and makes way for the construction of the new treatment plant, which will treat water from Hays Creek Dam. It should be up and running before Christmas treating up to 6 million litres a day.
Watercare is at work on its network improvement programme, which includes proactive leak detection. An important part of their role now that we know they’re losing around 70 million litres a day through leaks and poor infrastructure. They use acoustic methods to find leaks that are not visible on the surface and therefore go unreported. They’re planning to run leak detection on 6000 kilometres of piped by this time next year.
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