Hutt CBD is coming alive.

A revitalised Central Business District is already beginning to hum. There are a number of significant developments that mix retail and new apartments and will encourage inner city living.

Hutt City is planning an economic forum in November which will increase the focus on the central business district.

We have been promoting businesses who are encouraged by the city’s Business Stimulus Package. Projects already under way or in the planning stage include:

• An inner city development that will include a multi-storey apartment building combining residential apartments with ground floor retail space.
• A fast-food drive-through development.
• A new tenant, Warehouse Stationery, for the space left vacant by Bond and Bond.
• Re-strengthening of prominent central city building which includes plans for adding further levels to the building and car parking.
• Transformation of an inner city building into eight apartments in High Street.
• A new development in Cambridge Terrace which has been granted resource consent and will include new tenants, Subway and a supermarket. This is currently under way.
• A proposal for a new office and retail premises adjoining the central business district in Knights Road.

Action is in play for generating new life into the central city and I believe these developments which provide the stimulus for a major resurgence in business activity.

We are also anticipating a lot of interest for the NZ Post building in Margaret Street which is considered a strategic property within the CBD and will soon go on sale.

A local voice for the environment is important

The Local Government Commission needs to consider the local voice on environmental issues when deciding on new boundaries for local authorities in the Wellington region.

Recently I spoke to an environmental institute and covered what Hutt City is doing to manage the environmental issues under local government reform and I explained why four local unitary authorities are better for the environment.

There are two main points that make multiple unitary authorities proposed by Hutt City the right decision for the Wellington region.

1. The four local unitary boundaries closely match water catchments and are closely aligned with ecological zones
2. The four unitary model provides a mechanism for ensuring local priorities are met within local authority boundaries to sustain successful existing practices.

My concern, and the concern of my community, is that a single unitary authority will take away the local voice of our people.

In terms of the environment, it would mean the good work being done at a local level will be eroded. The boundary of a United Hutt Valley unitary would encompass the three river catchments of the Orongongo River, Wainuiomata River and the Hutt River, and a large portion of the Rimutakas.

Our local authorities have been managing these zones since the early 1900s, so we have had experience.

My second argument is about the need to provide for local priorities. Our council, for example, has an open door for the likes of Forest & Bird and the Wellington Botanical Society. They have on the ground local knowledge and we can provide the resources to action the local priorities that have been identified.

Other examples of local initiatives include:

• updating our Environmental Sustainability Strategy which is targeted at local issues affecting our environment as identified by local people.
• Hutt City working with our neighbour Upper Hutt City, to develop the Silverstream landfill which is the only Class A landfill in the region. Reduced waste to the landfill highlights the success of local recycling initiatives.
• Earthlink charity which diverts waste from landfill on behalf of HCC.
• Silver Lining - another local Hutt initiative designed to reduce waste from local manufacturers.

Our concern is that such successful local responses to the needs of the environment will be lost under a super city where resources are focused on regional priorities. Multiple unitary authorities provide efficiency gains and are an optimum size. They are also responsive to local needs, a critical issue when considering environmental issues.

Solutions for each territorial local authority are specific to their local habitats. They need local management based on local priorities.

Why is all this so important?

Because it is the air we breathe, stable hillsides, water quality, it is our local landscapes and habitats. It is the place we play in and the views we enjoy.

It is a Hutt Valley Unitary Authority. Hutt City is our habitat. We know what it needs.

Petone West Plan Change 29 approved by council

The Petone West Plan Change 29, as recommended by Independent Planning Commissioners, has been adopted by Hutt City Council.

This was a change that attracted a great deal of local interest.

Independent commissioners, Alister Aburn, Chris Mitchell and Roger Lane, heard 44 oral submissions and considered more than 260 written submissions. Written and oral evidence was also presented by a range of experts.

Provisions contained within the recommendations will allow for a wider range of activities, including residential, than currently permitted in the Petone West area. The changes will allow high quality mixed use development with specific policies and rules designed to address concerns raised by submitters.

The permitted height limit is lower in the recommended change. However, there is provision for taller buildings to be considered through the resource consent process as a fully discretionary activity.

The process undertaken by the independent commissioners was rigorous. The plan change attracted a lot of interest and passion from the community and among councillors and, as elected members, we wanted to ensure we got it right.

The decision to use independent commissioners was taken to give impartiality to the recommendations made.

AA credit rating a vote of confidence for Lower Hutt

International credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s has reaffirmed Hutt City Council’s AA credit rating which shows we are in great shape as a city.
An AA rating is same rating as the NZ government and means recipients have a “very strong capacity to meet their financial commitments”.
The rating underlines the council’s careful approach to managing ratepayers’ money and makes the council one of the most creditworthy in the country.
We are currently the only New Zealand council rated by Standard&Poor’s that consistently achieves after-capital account surpluses.
Hutt City’s financial management is a very positive factor in the ratings. The agency says council is supported by an experienced and qualified management team.
The agency has a very positive view of Hutt’s financial management practices and says the city’s budgetary performance is very strong and our operating position is expected to improve in the future.
My Chair of the Finance and audit Committee, Deputy Mayor David Bassett, shares the view that the rating is a vote of confidence in the Hutt City Council’s management of its finances and plans for the future.
The agency outlook is that we will continue to manage our financial position and hold our AA rating.

Show Lower Hutt cares – step out and vote

Your city is your community. This is where you live. You have a right to make a statement about choosing the people you would like to drive council decision-making over the next three years.

Getting the people you want to represent you, and your interests, requires a bit of thought in terms of researching the ideal candidate and then making sure you return you postal votes within the prescribed time.

Voting in this election is also an opportunity to show Lower Hutt residents and ratepayers have an active interest in their local authority and a commitment to improving the city for future generations.

There is a bit more at stake this time round.

Lower Hutt is in good shape. We are sound and have invested in our infrastructure. We have started a programme of progressively improving our community facilities.

The new council that you elect will be faced with consideration of a Local Government Commission proposal on the future of local government governance structures. This is likely to be consulted on early in the New Year.

The new council will also oversee the development of the city’s administrative centre in Laings Road and many other projects designed to improve our city, including a planned upgrade of the city halls.

Implementation of the new urban growth strategy will also take the attention of the mayor and councillors during the new triennium.

Someone said voters need an incentive to get out and vote. Motivation could include selecting a city council that will continue to constrain the level of rate increases and be prudent when it comes to spending.

But most of a new council needs a mandate to govern. And that is truly possible when citizens step up and vote for their preferred candidates.

I am keen to see a minimum turn-out of 45 per cent of our eligible voters.

The election result is announced on Saturday 12 October…I hope your vote will be included.

Be prepared for an emergency


Being prepared and ready for an emergency is vital 

Be prepared …that’s my message to our community in the wake of shakes and quakes that are currently hitting our city.
Everyone should know the drill of drop, cover and hold in the event of an earthquake.
But too often not enough preparation is made for the aftermath.
Earthquakes can break infrastructure, leaving the city without power or water, and even telephones. The basics of water, some food, lighting of some sort, a radio, and warm clothing to help carry your family, or work colleagues and neighbours, through the first hours of an emergency are vital.
Emergency evacuation from your home and availability of emergency packs containing essential supplies needs planning and preparation. It is important.
Many residents are purchasing large water containers holding more than 100 litres from the council iSite. They are a good investment.
The quake of Friday 16 August showed how much pressure goes on the mobile telephone networks and main access highways with trains and buses being suspended and people from outside the central city hitchhiking home to the Hutt Valley or up the coast.
Just getting out of the city to Lower Hutt took more than two hours for many, and for others, it took even longer.
Nothing will be normal in the first hours, or even days and weeks, following an earthquake or other natural disaster.
Schools are doing a good job in educating their pupils about being prepared. Workplaces and families in their own homes must be equally active in planning emergency exits and assembly points. One emergency pack should be available for each family member and contain essentials suitable for them. A family emergency pack with greater food and water resources, emergency medical packs and other essential equipment should also be made ready.
You can then only hope that you do not need to use them…but you will be prepared in case you do.

http://youtu.be/Tm0ra6N0cuY

Take the best of local government and make it work

Our Hutt City Council unanimously supported a Local Government Reorganisation alternative application which proposes two new options that will provide a real alternative to a single council supercity.

We have asked the Local Government Commission to stay connected with the will of ratepayers in the Wellington region and to push for cost efficient management.

The application calls for an enhanced status quo that maintains current boundaries but merges the region’s transport and water management  under a jointly owned business; or four unitary authorities and regional transport and water management.

Our council’s submission is the only viable option for fixing the real problems facing the region – it is a call for common sense and pragmatism

We propose tackling the big issues of transport and water management across the region which require the region to speak and act with one voice.

Anything else is just expensive window dressing, I believe.

The Local Government Commission will be embarking on a mission impossible if it tries to launch a total regional amalgamation which has been firmly rejected across the majority of residents and ratepayers.

Our voice reflects the mood of our community who do not wish to see their hard earned money wasted on the creation of a single city.

We undertook to listen to our ratepayers. They supported an enhanced status quo and merging of transport and water management with a further option of four unitary authorities if more change is proposed by the commission.

An enhanced status quo is the most democratic and economically efficient model for our city and the region.

Mayor Wallace says his council directly opposes the application from the Greater Wellington Regional Council Council, which was formulated and submitted without being truly tested by the public.

Under the enhanced status quo we would be taking the best and making it work for the region as a whole.

The TDB report which supports our Hutt City Council application recommended no boundary changes, but region-wide Council-controlled organisations for transport and water. It says the second-best boundary option was creating four unitary authorities. The report also suggests a supercity is not the best option for the Wellington region

ENDS

Hutt City Council Alternate Application to Local Government Commission