3 August 2021
Media: Rotorua Daily Post
Topic: Car fire
Enquiry
Can I please request the mayor’s response to this unfortunate incident overnight at the Distinction Hotel carpark.
Many of the cars damaged belonged to visitors staying at the hotel. I have just spoken to some of them.
Clearly this isn’t a good look for Rotorua and not the experience of our city we want for our guests.
Police have confirmed it’s suspicious and doesn’t appear to be an accident.
Would it be possible for the mayor to provide a comment by 2.30pm please. Appreciate it’s short notice but such is news.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12462235
Response
From Mayor Chadwick:
Any crime, whether against visitors or locals, is unacceptable and unwelcome, and can be traumatic for the victims. It’s always disheartening to hear of such incidents, especially when we are working so hard to keep our district moving forward.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Media: Local Democracy Reporter
Topic: Councillor lead role appointments
Enquiry
*NOTE: this is a follow-up to enquiry responded to yesterday re Councillor lead role appointments
I've put the below comments to the Housing Minister and MHUD for right of reply.
The Housing Minister's office has suggested it may be useful for the council to also provide some context on the below comments as they say MHUD liaises directly with council officers and then the inclusion of, and communication with, a councillor lead is up to council officers.
Would be great if the council can please clarify how that works for this story too please.
Thanks very much
**
Kia ora,
I am a Local Democracy Reporter with the Rotorua Daily Post.
In a Rotorua Lakes Council meeting on Thursday, councillor Tania Tapsell was given a supporting councillor lead role (similar to portfolio) in housing. She had previously held a councillor lead role in the same in 2019, but had withdrawn.
In the meeting, she queried being given the role, citing "concerns" she'd raised with the mayor and councillors about it in the past.
Today, I asked Tapsell to expand on what she meant and I would like to put those comments to the Minister for Housing and Urban Development for right of reply as they are critical of this Government's approach in the area.
COMMENTS
Speaking to Local Democracy Reporting on Monday, Tapsell said when she had led the housing lead role she had enjoyed setting up a plan for the district’s housing through the council’s Homes and Thriving Communities Strategic Framework, which was passed in 2020.
“What I found is, once Government got involved, the decision-making just got completely taken out of my hands and I was finding things out either through the media … or after the fact.
“I’ve always been really clear with the mayor that I will only lead something that I am actually given the ability to lead, so I was no longer interested.”
She said an example of decision-making being taken out of her hands was with the city’s emergency housing.
“I made quite a strong comment in the council meeting about the Government dictating.
“There would be workshops with our stakeholders being hosted at [the] council, that I would find out [about] about a day before.
“I had no appetite for being used as a token gesture and felt my voice was stronger outside of that group, advocating for the people I represent.”
She believed the issue was something specific to this Government, rather than central government generally.
“It’s been no surprise that I’ve been critical of this Government and their inability to deliver on promises they’ve made around housing. To not have a local voice taken seriously … I just fundamentally didn’t agree with it.”
ENDS
Response
From CE Geoff Williams:
As the Mayor referred to when the new lead and support roles for the priority workstreams were presented during last week’s Council meeting, the next step is developing Terms of Reference that will include roles, responsibilities and expectations.