Latest news with #LongTermPlan
Otago Daily Times
4 days ago
- General
- Otago Daily Times
$65k fence for cemetery
The new fencing. Photo: Toni Williams Wooden fencing is being installed along the Bremners Rd side of the Ashburton Cemetery for an estimated cost of $65,000. The work, which is being carried out by Hayman Fencing, was approved in the Ashburton District Council's Long Term Plan. It is a three-rail design, the same as the entrance fencing to a cemetery extension on Seafield Rd and the Methven Cemetery. The design is a contrast to old wrought iron fencing along the main part of the cemetery on Seafield Rd. The news fencing on Bremners Rd. Photo: Toni Williams District council group manager of infrastructure and open spaces Neil McCann said the new fence was a Long Term Plan project for the entire frontage of the cemetery along Bremners Rd. ''The job is a work in progress, but we hope to have it completed within the next month,'' McCann said. McCann said ground maintenance staff worked at the cemetery all year round, with the aim to keep its public areas as tidy as possible for visitors. He said there were no plans to remove the wrought iron fence. It had been relocated from its original location at Baring Square East, many years earlier.
Otago Daily Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Wording of campaign draws ire after lack of public consultation
"Together we decided" - that is the catchphrase of a Selwyn District Council campaign to tell people how their rates will be spent. But the word "together" has come under fire because the council bypassed public consultation, relying on the 1500 submissions it received as part of the Long Term Plan just over a year ago. The campaign, which the council spent $8000 advertising, focuses on two taglines: "Together we decided" and "together we're delivering". It was designed to provide an update on projects scheduled for the year ahead. On Wednesday councillors voted to approve the 14.2% average rates increase as part of adopting the 2025-26 Annual Plan. The vote was five to three with Ellesmere Ward councillor Elizabeth Mundt, Springs Ward councillor Grant Miller and Malvern Ward councillor and mayoral candidate Lydia Gliddon voting against the plan. Darfield Residents Association chair Harvey Polglase was not impressed with the campaign and said it was farcical the council did not recognise the need for consultation given the amount rates were increasing. 'We certainly did not decide, we were denied the opportunity to decide,' he said. In November, councillors voted 8-2 not to have a consultation on this year's rates rise. Instead they opted to 'engage and inform', which this campaign is part of. The decision to forgo consultation also meant councillors were unable to make any changes to the wording in the draft annual plan beyond small tweaks. Rolleston Residents Association chair Mark Alexander said he personally did not agree with the campaign. 'We haven't decided anything – except not to consult the community in 2025,' he said. Mayoral candidate and Malvern Ward councillor Lydia Gliddon said the campaign was 'tongue-in-cheek' given there was no consultation on this year's annual plan. 'The wording is not quite right when saying 'together' when we are 'engaging and informing'.' Gliddon, along with Springs Ward councillor Grant Miller, had voted in favour of holding a consultation. Mayor Sam Broughton defended the choice of wording. 'I think we have talked to our community, and it has been very transparent. We had 1500 submissions to the Long Term Plan, which includes what we are delivering this year,' he said. 'So together we did decide to do all of the things we are continuing to deliver for our community.' Broughton said it would be a waste of ratepayers' money to have another consultation just a year after deciding on the Long Term Plan. The last time the council skipped consultation in year two of a long-term plan was in 2019, when rates rose by 6%. Gliddon and Ellesmere Ward councillor Elizabeth Mundt were surprised at the timing of the campaign which started a week ago – before councillors had approved the draft annual plan. Broughton said he had expected the campaign to start tomorrow after the councillors had voted.
Otago Daily Times
16-06-2025
- Automotive
- Otago Daily Times
12 new speed bumps for Christchurch suburb
The road works will start in Bromley on Monday, June 23. Photo: Christchurch City Council Work to install 12 new speed humps near a Christchurch school will start next week. The Bromley street upgrade project will begin on Monday, June 23. As well as the speed bumps, 12 new signs will be put in and the asphalt in five areas near pedestrian crossings will be upgraded. Tactile paving will also be added to six crossing points, a new pedestrian refuge island will be built and line markings will be refreshed across six locations in Bromley. Christchurch City Council transport planning and delivery manager Jacob Bradbury said the work aims to reduce traffic speeds, limit heavy vehicle use, and improve safety for people biking and walking, especially outside Bromley School. 'Residents have told us they're concerned about fast, heavy traffic on Bromley streets, including safety around crossing points,' said Bradbury. 'We've worked closely with elected members and the community to identify the areas that need attention first, particularly on Hay Street, Keighleys Road and Bromley Road, where road safety for tamariki is a key concern.' Bradbury said the street upgrades in Bromley were previously been part of the council's Way Safer Streets programme, with some of the work earmarked to be funded by central Government via the Transport Choices programme. He said this funding became unavailable due to the Government's changing priorities. "This phase of work is funded via the Long Term Plan 2024 to 2034. Other street upgrades in Bromley will be scheduled as funding becomes available, through future annual planning and long term planning processes. "To carry out the upgrades, temporary traffic lights will be used to create a 'one-way at a time' system through the work areas during the day. Two-way traffic will be reinstated after 7pm each night. Work will take approximately 2-3 weeks. "We know roadworks can be disruptive, and we really appreciate everyone's patience while we make these important street upgrades for Bromley," Bradbury says. The upgrades are part of the first phase of the Bromley Transport Action Plan, developed in response to community feedback and approved by the Waitai Coastal-Burwood-Linwood Community Board in December. Image: Christchurch City Council Work area 1: The intersection of Keighleys Road and McGregors Road. Work area 2: The intersection of Keighleys Road and Korora Street. Work area 3: A section of road between 25 and 39 Keighleys Road, opposite Bromley School. Work area 4: A section of Keighleys Road, opposite Cypress Garden Reserve/Bromley Cemetery. Work area 5: The intersection of Keighleys Road and Bromley Road. Work area 6: A section of road at 42–50 Bromley Road, opposite Bromley Community Centre. The work will start in work area 1 and continue southeast, towards work area 6.
Otago Daily Times
15-06-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Brace for another big rates rise: Selwyn District Council 'not listening to ratepayers'
More pain is on the way for ratepayers as the Selwyn District Council looks set to lock in a 14.2% average rise. For a house valued at $847,000, the rates bill will be $4723. The rise follows a 14.9% average rise in the last financial year and means the same household is paying $1153 more than they were two years ago. Selwyn's increase is at least double and triple more than its nearest neighbours – Ashburton (7.3%), Christchurch (6.77%), and Waimakariri (4.98%). Selwyn is the fastest growing district in the country. Council executive director of people, culture and capability Steve Gibling said the growth has an impact on costs. "It does create some challenges to how we keep up with our essential infrastructure, how we keep providing the services for our new residents, how we get in front of that growth, how we maintain the growth, and then how we respond with a range of services our community expects us to provide,' he said. Compared to other fast-growing areas, Selwyn has the highest rise. Queenstown has a forecast rates rise of 13.5%, while Tauranga has a forecast rise of 12%. Controversially, councillors voted eight to two in November not to have a public consultation for this year's annual plan. At the time, council staff recommended consultation was not needed because there were no significant changes to what had been agreed to in the 2024-34 Long Term Plan (LTP), and having a consultation would slow down planned work. Councillors had until Friday to provide feedback before it is due to be signed off on June 18. There was disappointment about the rates rise and the lack of community consultation from some residents' groups. Darfield Residents Association chair Harvey Polglase said people no longer had faith in the council. "They are not listening to the ratepayers in any shape or form, and it has become farcical,' Polgase said. Lincoln Community and Residents Association chair Lindsay Wilson said no consultation meant there was a lack of transparency. 'Not impressive behaviour (by the council) to be fair,' Wilson said. Rolleston Residents Association chair Mark Alexander said a $27m reduction in funding from the NZ Transport Agency in September was a big enough change to have a consultation. It meant a reshuffle and the cancellation of some projects to make up the deficit. "That significant amount of funding should have gone back to the community for consultation as to whether it was spent on projects or simply not spent,' Alexander said. The council deemed the change not significant enough to trigger a consultation, as part of its November decision. Mayor Sam Broughton said he did not want to hold rates down lower than they needed to keep up with the infrastructure required. 'My conscience won't let me do that for our community,' he has previously told Selwyn Times. He also backed the decision not to consult, saying it the council could get on and deliver the projects supported in the LTP. In 2025/26, the council has forecast it will spend 80% of its $145.8m capital expenditure delivering core services such as roading, water and waste. Construction will start on Leeston's new library and service centre, Whata Rau, in March and the continuation of the Lincoln town centre project.
Otago Daily Times
10-06-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Canterbury councils list roading ambitions - if they can find the money
While pleased to see the Woodend Bypass going ahead, Canterbury council leaders say they will keep lobbying for other roading projects. Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency has been pressing ahead with geotech testing with its contract partners, ahead of work starting on the Woodend Bypass next year. The project is expected to cost close to $1 billion, around half of Canterbury's $1.8 billion roading budget in the 2024/27 National Land Transport Programme (NLTP). It means other North Canterbury roading projects are having to wait. Top of the list for the Waimakariri District Council is the proposed Rangiora eastern link road, Skew bridge at west Kaiapoi, and the Tuahiwi crossroads intersection on Rangiora-Woodend Road. ''They are all in our budgets for the outer years (in the 2024/34 Long Term Plan), but if we need to bring them forward, we will be only too happy to,'' Waimakariri Mayor Dan Gordon said. The council has prepared a business case for the proposed $35m Rangiora eastern link road to present to NZTA. The road will help reduce congestion through Southbrook by diverting traffic at the 'S-bend' on Lineside Road, passing to the west of the council's waste treatment ponds and cutting through council-owned land and the Spark family farm, before connecting with Spark Lane. From Spark Lane, the arterial route will continue up McPhail Road and Bellgrove Boulevard to Coldstream Road. Should the council be successful in obtaining a 51 percent NZTA subsidy, ratepayers will stump up 25%, with the balance coming from development contributions. The Hurunui District Council has estimated it needs about $3 million a year to maintain and upgrade its ageing network of 286 bridges. But it has received funding for just one bridge replacement in the 2024/27 NLTP. The council's chief executive Hamish Dobbie said if the Canterbury region received its fair share of funding, it would reduce the delays for local roading projects. The Canterbury region has around 13% of the population and accounted for around 15% of vehicle kilometres travelled, but received just five percent of national road funding, Mr Dobbie said. ''If Canterbury got its fair share of land transport funding, then we would get a better deal out of it.'' Mr Dobbie said one of challenges was NZTA funded bridges out of operational funding, when they were expected to last 80 years. ''Funding it through operational funding is not sustainable. We should be looking at intergenerational (or loan) funding, where we spread the cost out over time.'' Four bridge replacements were included in the 2024/34 Long Term Plan, but the council received just $600,000 towards bridge replacement in the 2024/27 NLTP. It is planning to replace a bridge at River Road, Waiau, in this year's annual plan at a cost of around $1m. By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter ■ LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air
