5 April 2024

Media: BOP Times

Topic: Government's Maori wards bill

Enquiry

*NOTE: this request was also sent to Tauranga City Council and Western BOP District Council

I have a few questions about the Govt announcement to bring back referendums for Māori wards decisions

• For TCC, how will this impact this year's election (given it's being held at a different time to others)?
• What does this mean for WBOPDC and RLC?
• What concerns, if any, does this raise and why?
• And what are you doing about this, if anything? (are there any plans to write to the minister about this, etc, and why?)

How much did the last referendum cost and what were those results?

Response

From Executive Director Corporate Planning and Governance, Oonagh Hopkins:

We haven’t yet had an opportunity to discuss this and haven’t seen the detail.

The Maori ward in the Rotorua district has been in place since the last local election.

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Media: Local Democracy Reporter

Topic: Interview with new council CE

Enquiry

*NOTE: this request was received previously and arrangements made for today

Reporter requested an interview with our new CE Andrew Moraes and provided an indication of questions she would have as below:

please find below some qs. I'm sure there will be other questions during the interview but do appreciate he is new to the role so will be fair.

What do you consider Rotorua's most pressing issues and council's role in alleviating them?

What do you consider makes a good chief exec? How will you work to this?

Start date to now, what kinds of things have you been doing? How do you feel?

Most immediate plans/wishes?

How do you understand public and staff perception of the council?

And can imagine topics will include things like "secret meetings" and transparency, emergency housing/housing, tourism, infrastructure issues etc.

Response

Topics covered by the reporter in today’s interview included:

• How he has spent his first few weeks at RLC and first impressions of the organisation, staff and Councillors
• His visions for Rotorua and Council
• What makes a great leader
• The issues Council is facing
• Issues facing Rotorua
• His plans and pressing challenges
• The skills he brings and how this will benefit Rotorua.
• Why he applied for the role
• His understanding of the public’s perception of Council
• What Council does well.
• His views on Government funding

Mr Moraes made the following key points:

• His priority in the first few weeks was to get to know staff and councillors and various groups from the community.
• He has found staff and councillors are passionate about their jobs and the roles they play in the community.
• The community want to see the region prosper and see economic growth for local businesses and in the tourism and forestry industry
• He is excited about working with Councillors and staff to help make that happen.
• Andrew is grateful for the unique and exciting opportunity his role brings. He and his family are looking forward to be moving to Rotorua and being a part of the community
• He touched on the great response from the community to the Annual Plan and encouraged residents to have their say in the LTP consultation document.

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Media: Local Democracy Reporter

Topic: Infrastructure challenges

Enquiry

*NOTE: this request was received previously and arrangements made for today to interview council's GM Infrastructure and Environment Stavros Michael and Cr Karen Barker as chair of the Infrastructure and Environment Committee

I was wondering if Stavros would be happy sitting down with me to have a chat about all the infrastructure challenges. I know lots of places have the same issue of aging infrastructure and the cost to replace it etc but can imagine Rotorua would have its unique hurdles.

Would be good to go into the specifics of what needs to happen, how to get there, the challenge in front of us etc.

Would be a bit of an overview as to the situation and include some stats on what we have, what needs renewing etc.

Be great to visit any of the key sites, highlight some of the mahi gone into maintaining it and get some pics etc.

Probably mostly focussed on waters but would probably need to touch on roading too as some aspects of assets at risk

Response

Interview topics covered included:

The unique challenges Rotorua faces in terms of infrastructure and funding for these essential services.

The priorities for infrastructure.

Reporter also asked if in their view previous councils over-spent.

Key points made by Mr Michael and Cr Barker included:

Cr Barker said she preferred not to dwell on past council decisions. Instead, Council was focused on its four main priorities: Housing, Community, Economy, and Infrastructure.

Infrastructure stands out as one of the 9 key points [outcomes] that are a focus of the Long-Term Plan (LTP).

Emphasised the significance of residents’ input, urging them to participate in LTP consultation.

Highlighted the vital role of the rural community within the district and encouraged their active engagement in the decision-making process.

Elected Members are aware of the financial challenges families currently face and there is a delicate balance between ensuring robust infrastructure, not only for the present but also for future generations.

Emphasised the paramount importance of providing fresh water and wastewater removal services to every household across the district, emphasising the necessity of ensuring these services are up to standard.

Covered the distinctive challenges the Council encounters in maintaining these services, citing examples such as sulphur damage and geothermal activity.