Mayor's Message 23 April

I am writing this off the back of an engaging Dargaville business community event last week. My thanks to the DCDB for co-hosting this as part of our long term plan consultation. It was well attended by the Dargaville community and i enjoyed the interactions with plenty of questions and answers about our plans for the next three years. One thing is clear – there are many, many people who are passionate about this great district. I know that together we can make Kaipara the place to be.

The consultation period for the Long Term Plan opened earlier this month. The consultation document for the Long Term Plan 2024 – 2027 is out and outlines our proposed plans to recovery — a roadmap for Kaipara. The direction for the next three years affects all who live in this district, so now is the time to share your thoughts and speak up for Kaipara. I urge you, if you haven’t already, to read the consultation document. You can do this at our website (go to www.kaipara.govt.nz/ltp) or by picking up a physical copy from either of our offices or libraries across the district.

One of the topics we are asking for feedback on is whether or not Council should be funding a dedicated climate resilience programme. As a council we already follow strict legislation, and some of that legislation includes considering climate resilience in the work we undertake – for example with the roads we build, the infrastructure we implement (including stopbanks), the services we provide. We collect a targeted rate for the Raupo Drainage area, which funds things like the maintenance of drains and outlets by weed spraying and machine cleaning, and if necessary, replacing floodgates. Across the district, climate resilience is already considered as part of the development of the new District Plan and the revised engineering standards. This is just some of the work we already do, and irrespective of any dedicated climate resilience programme we will keep doing this. Last year, as a Council, we chose to pause the Ruawai Adaptive Pathways programme, the emissions accounting, and work on the climate smart policy. At the time we saved a good chunk of money. I believe as a responsible conscientious council, we should always be looking for savings like this. For the next three years, our preferred option is not to spend any ratepayer money on such a programme, which is why we have not included any funding for this in the draft budgets for 2024 – 2027. So, let us know what you think. There are three options for this topic.

We have been all over the district this month, and there are still a few opportunities to talk to us during this LTP consultation period. Over the next week and a half, elected members and staff will be at drop-in sessions at the Dargaville Library and Mangawhai Museum, as well as online on 1 May. You can find details of the events online on the Long Term Plan webpage on our website.

Mayor Craig Jepson
Kaipara District