The government has announced that our council will cease to exist in 2028. They’ve told every council in New Zealand that they have three months to come up with a plan to merge with at least one council and while this could be fantastic opportunity for our community I worry the government is more focused on making councils bend to their will.
For a very long time we made our own decisions in Raglan but in 1989 the 4th Labour government made us part of the new Waikato District Council. We were left with one councillor out of 13, a local board that was merely an advisory body and day-to-day decisions being made by staff who lived on the other side of the divvy.
I worry that the government’s approach might increase this democratic deficit – but it’s worth taking the chance to see if we can fix these problems
We’re going to be part of a much larger council so without a doubt we’ll need some kind of community board that actually has some teeth – with real decision making power over local issues.
It seems weird to say this but what would it be like if the people we actually elected were the ones making decisions about our community – as opposed to councillors from Hamilton East or Tuakau?
In this plan it would be locals making decisions about things like, local parks, town growth and whether we should have boat ramp fees. The full council would decide on our overall parks budget, their staff would provide expertise and write up the town growth plan and their accounts department would handle the boat ramp fees – but when we bought a complaint to a board member they would have a very real ability to do something about it.
This board would also need a budget as well as staff dedicated to what’s happening in Whaingaroa. It might only be one or two people but even now it’s clear we could do with someone whose job it is to save us from the inevitable problems that occur when decisions are made at a distance.
Right now, the ten councils in our region are in a weird game of speed dating to find out who wants to hook up with who and then hopefully they’ll move on to planning community governance. This means right now is the perfect time to get our comments into the council.
WDC’s submission form makes several suggestions about where they think the speed-dating process will land but it seems likely we’ll end up in a kind of super-council dominated by Councillors from Hamilton – a thought that doesn’t fill me with confidence given their recent history.
Despite public perception our council (Waikato District) isn’t doing too badly. I still have criticisms but we have nowhere near as much debt as Hamilton City and we’re probably the leading council in New Zealand when it comes to fixing up the 3-waters problems plaguing our national infrastructure. To me they also seem genuine about putting political ideology aside and trying to make the best decisions for their communities.
By comparison some of the Hamilton City councillors seem to view the world as an ideological battle between left and right and keep making the national news for all the wrong reasons. As for their debt problem (which has been made worse by the current government) no matter what promises are made, I can’t see how it won’t affect our community at some point in the future.
Tune in to the Raglan Morning Show on Raglan Radio, 6am-10am weekdays, where Aaron will be discussing the issue over the coming weeks.
The options being discussed
These are the options currently being talked about for the Waikato district. They’re shared so you can think them through with us. None is the preferred option, and no decision has been made.
Waikato region
A Waikato regional approach covering i) all, or ii) the majority, of the current region.
(NB: The Waikato region is bigger than many people expect. It includes Hamilton City and the following districts: Hauraki, Matamata-Piako, Ōotorohanga, Rotorua, South Waikato, Taupō, Thames-Coromandel, Waikato, Waipā, Waitomo.)
Hamilton metro (i) and Waikato towns and rural (ii)
An option that: i) recognises Hamilton as New Zealand’s fastest-growing city and includes the surrounding areas of Waikato district to support future urban growth; and ii) creates a broader towns, villages and rural unitary council from the remaining areas. This council could encompass the rest of Waikato, Waipā and potentially additional areas to the east and south. Unitary functions would be shared across both (i) and (ii).
Hamilton-Waikato-Waipā
A smaller, coherent metro-focused option that recognises the city while balancing its influence by adding Waipā District Council’s towns and rural areas to ours.
Do nothing
Council does not put forward a proposal and continues in its current form for now. Change would still follow through the government’s compulsory backstop process after the 2028 elections, shaped nationally rather than by a local proposal.
A reminder: these options are for discussion only.
by Aaron Mooar – Raglan Community Media – raglanradio.com
