CBD CHARM OFFENSIVE

 It seems the WDC has embarked on a good news charm offensive to restore confidence in the Central Business District. Several positive stories have appeared in the Northern Advocate recently, and it is indeed encouraging to hear that some CBD retailers are doing well and living up to the Council’s Loving it Here motto.

Positivity is welcome, but it should come with a dose of reality. Empty shops remain a very visible feature of the CBD, and decades of plans and strategies have failed to reverse the decline.

SILENCE TO MINISTER’S DIRECTIVE

 In the last issue of LETTERBOX, we reported that on the 30^th of June, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts had written to local councils raising concerns about the continued use of RCP8.5, which the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has dismissed as “implausible”.

He said, "...the Government does not consider it appropriate for worst-case assumptions to become the default basis for investment decisions that impose significant costs on current and future ratepayers."

T2 FOLLOW UP

In the April issue of LETTERBOX, we raised concerns about the T2 bus lane between Kamo and the CBD, following criticism from businesses affected by the changes. We asked Brad Flower, Chairman of the Whangārei District Council (WDC) Infrastructure Committee, for an update on the project. Here is his response:

CR APOLOGIES, WELL SORT OF

 The Kaipara Lifestyler has reported that a WDC councillor has apologised for posting an AI-generated image showing a human body (representing the Kaipara District Council) being dismembered into cuts of meat and cannibalised by the WDC and FNDC.

The comment “Knives being sharpened as the menu now has a mains on the list, being KDC” was posted to the Kaipara District Council’s official Facebook page by Cr Paul Yovich, the Chairman of the WDC Finance Committee, and given a Like by Cr Brad Flower, Chairman of the Infrastructure Committee.

MINISTER’S DIRECTIVE TO COUNCILS ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE

 In the last issue of LETTERBOX, we raised the possibility that councils may face legal challenges if they continue to use RCP8.5 to justify their planning rules. This follows the United Nations committee responsible for the emissions pathways used in climate modelling rejecting RCP8.5 as "implausible".

Now, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts has written to local councils raising concerns about the continued use of RCP8.5. He said, "...the Government does not consider it appropriate for worst-case assumptions to become the default basis for investment decisions that impose significant costs on current and future ratepayers."

A TERRIBLE IDEA

The Whangārei District Council (WDC) has been forced into an embarrassing rethink of its $29 million Waterfront to City project after business owners overwhelmingly rejected plans that would remove dozens of car parks from the city centre.

The proposal, championed as a vision to transform John Street into a one-way "destination street", was unanimously rejected at a meeting of local business owners. They described it as a "terrible idea", disconnected from the realities facing a struggling city centre.

EMBEDDING TE TIRITI

According to Te Ao Māori News, the Whangārei District Council (WDC) has moved a step closer to embedding the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi across the organisation.

The proposal now before councillors stems from recommendations arising from a “Te Tiriti o Waitangi health check.” As reported in LETTERBOX #30, the audit was commissioned by the council’s Māori Outcomes Department without the knowledge or prior approval from councillors, for $77,293 funded from “spare” money.

The stated purpose of the Treaty of Waitangi “health check” was to help councillors better understand their “obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi and He Whakaputanga,” assess the state of relations between the council and Māori, and provide recommendations for improvement.

COUNCILLOR PAY

 It may come as a surprise to many, but councillors in the Far North District Council (FNDC) are paid more than their counterparts in Whangārei, despite representing a smaller council.

JOHN STREET UPGRADE

 

The WDC is proposing a $29 million upgrade of John Street to turn it into a “pedestrian corridor” between the Town Basin and the city centre. The proposal would remove 47 car parks from John Street and turn it into a one-way street.

We question the value of removing carparks to create a pedestrian corridor when the core issue  in the CBD is a shortage of car-parking and a lack of pedestrians.

T2 MADNESS

When the 6km bus lane between Kamo and Whangārei was first proposed in October 2023, LETTERBOX questioned why a bus lane (T2) was needed in Whangārei.

At the time, Cr McKenzie (now Deputy Mayor) said Whangārei needed T2 because Auckland and Wellington have them, and it “provided interesting and innovative public transport options.”

The Whangārei District Council (WDC) website is a little more specific. It says: “The T2 transit lane helps to keep Whangārei moving, reducing congestion and improving travel times by separating buses and vehicles with more than one occupant.”

TALKFEST TASKFORCE

In the March issue of LETTERBOX, we reported that Hamilton CBD shop owners noticed a significant decrease in business after the previous council reduced free parking from two hours to one hour.

LETTERBOX suggested that if the WDC is serious about attracting people back into the city, it could start with two hours of free parking across the entire CBD during normal business hours, and unrestricted parking outside those hours.

PUBLIC TO DECIDE ON STV

The public in Whangarei will finally have a say about the voting method used to elect their mayor and councillors. A choice between the Single Transferable Vote (STV) or First Past the Post (FPP) system will be put to voters at the 2028 local body elections.

STV was used for the first time in last year’s local body election after the previous council voted by a narrow majority to change from FPP. They did so without consulting the public.

 Cr Marie Olsen took the view that this needed to be corrected and moved a motion in two parts. The first was for FPP to be reinstated for the 2028 election. She was supported by Crs Baldwin, Martin, M Yovich, P Yovich, Reid, and Flower. Against were Mayor Couper (casting vote), and Crs McKenzie, Baker, Connop, Christie, Harding, and Ruka. The second part of the motion, to hold a referendum in 2028, was carried unanimously

THE CO$T OF DEMOCRACY

LETTERBOX has heard of some fanciful figures being bandied around by the anti-democracy brigade about the cost of holding a local referendum, with one person claiming it to be around $300,000.

In the interests of introducing some fact to their fiction, LETTERBOX asked the WDC how much it cost to hold the Maori wards referendum run at the time of the local body election last October. Here’s their reply:

“The additional poll cost amounted to $13,401 + GST for 67,004 electors @ $0.20 + GST per elector.”

Half of this was for the additional information included with the voting mailer and the share of the public notices cost. The other half was for the additional labour involved. The cost does not include postage and other costs that would have been incurred for the local body election anyway.

Is $13,000 to poll all 67,000 electors too much to pay for people to have their say? It seems like good value when compared to the $18,200 the WDC spent last year surveying 500 people about fluoride! 

LESSONS FROM HAMILTON

An independent audit was highly critical of the Hamilton City Council when it found that 75% of the contracts awarded during the three years from 2021 to 2023 were done without a competitive bidding process. The newly elected council has resolved to do better.

To find out how the WDC compared, LETTERBOX asked the WDC for details about its open competitive process. Here’s their reply:

 “I refer to your request…for statistics on procurement contracts for the 2024/2025 Financial Year….Council does not hold the information requested… I hope this information is of some assistance in responding to your request.”

It is astounding that the Council does not know how many contracts it has awarded without an open competitive process. Surely that is something they should know, and more importantly, something councillors ought to know if they are at all interested in how efficiently ratepayer money is being spent.

LIBRARY SUNDAY CLOSURE

 

The WDC has closed the central city library on Sundays, and some Whangārei residents are not happy. They say it denies families, students, and vulnerable groups a free and accessible community space. Council said it is doing so to cut costs but did not say how much it expects to save. 

Mayor Couper says the public can have their say about the closure during the Annual Plan submissions. We think Ken should have thought about the public BEFORE the decision was made to close, and AFTER the council had completed the cost review. Ken and councillors may find other areas for saving with less impact on families, students, and vulnerable groups.

WDC COST REVIEW

 According to Mayor Couper, an independent review of the council finances is “progressing well”. Council minutes record that the review has a target of at least $1 million, representing approximately 1% of general rates.

1% is a very low bar. Case studies suggest reviews typically achieve spending reductions of between 2% and 5%, which points to savings of between $3m and $8m for the WDC, not $1 million. The review itself is expected to cost up to $100,000 in consultancy fees, which is ridiculous when LETTERBOX is aware that some well-qualified locals would donate their time as a community service.

WDC WATER RATES TO RISE 22.6%

 The WDC Annual Plan is out for consultation. And it is proposing massive rate increases:

 • A 22.6% increase in water rates, 

• A general rate increase by between 5% and 10.1%, depending on which of the three options they choose, • A 2.6% increase in wastewater charges, and 

• Increasing the stormwater rate (which they introduced last year) from $45 to $124 a year. 

The 22.6% water rate increase is in stark contrast to a statement made in the 2025-26 Annual Plan, where it said an increase of 5.7% would provide enough funding for good management as well as increasing capacity for growth. What’s changed? Mayor Couper needs to explain. Is it because of Northland Water Done Well? 

And the results are in...

Whangarei District Council

Whangarei has a new mayor and six new faces around the council table. In a close race for the mayoralty, two-term councillor Ken Couper beat the incumbent Vince Cocurullo by 435 votes.

In the Urban Ward, Marie Olsen topped the voting and is joined by newcomer Brad Flower, re-elected councillors Nic Connop and Paul Yovich, and Crichton Christie, who is returning as a councillor after a six-year absence. Carol Peters lost her seat, as did Jayne Golightly. 

Two candidates lead race for the mayoralty

A LETTERBOX poll shows Marie Olsen and Vince Cocurullo are the frontrunners in the WDC mayoralty race and puts newcomer Brad Flower ahead of Ken Couper and Fiona Green.

The tracking poll asks respondents to list the five candidates in order of preference, and the results are calculated using STV counting.

Opinion piece by Frank Newman: THE PODIUM OF PROMISES

A 𝐌𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐭 𝐍𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐫𝐮 (Thursday, 15th August) reminded me why so few people engage in local politics. It was underwhelming and, in hindsight, less attractive than an evening in front of the telly.

The public, of course, was smart enough to know that, which would explain why so few attended. Those who were present were largely candidate hangers-on, with a fair number of greenies adoring the Saints of Wokeness who spoke from the podium of promises.

Before us were candidates for the mayoralty and ward candidates from the NRC and WDC, general and Maori wards (although none of the NRC Maori ward candidates turned up).

Most of the speakers started by attempting to demonstrate an empathetic connection with the local community, like how their second cousin's grandfather used to collect kai moana from a local beach. Most said it with sincerity, which suggested they actually thought we might be interested. And I guess, those who want to know about irrelevant nonsense would have found it interesting.