Viewpoint – Wins, but still much to do

Financial prudence will be essential over the next three years and I am committed to working beside this community to make sure that this council spends your ratepayer money wisely. I believe we had a financial milestone year in 2024/25 by limiting our rate increase to 3.49%, an average increase per ratepayer of $19.19 per rating year, the second lowest of any regional council in New Zealand. We consulted last year on a rate increase of 5.79%, undoubtedly a win for you the ratepayer.

However, through wise investment options and sensible budgeting we have been able to reduce the Long-Term Plan consulted rate rise, a first while I have been on council over the past nine years. It has been pointed out to me that the rate rise is low, but averaged over the past three and beyond it is not as prudent as it looks. My answer to this is ‘good things take time’. Previous councils have advocated for and enacted a zero rate increase policy. We all know that inflation carries on and accumulates year-in and year-out, and this rise must be met at some time. I believe that we have manged to keep this increase as close as possible to the current CPI and going forward, I am hoping to keep the rate increase manageable.

The prime purpose of a regional council is environmental management – we are the eyes on the ground for protecting waterways, flood protection, monitoring land and air quality, and assisting with biodiversity and biosecurity. Locally, we need to work in partnership with communities such as yours to achieve these ever challenging issues.

The Mangawhai Harbour is the jewel in the crown for your area and I look forward to continuing my association with the many local groups that protect this area, but also use it for recreation and other community activities. By working together, we can achieve improved environmental outcomes and continue with navigation safety upgrades that will protect this jewel for many years to come.

Finally, the impact of extreme weather events has hit Mangawhai hard, as a current member of the Northland Emergency Management Group I continue to advocate on your behalf for improved communication and post recovery support. We know these events are coming at us more frequently and by standing together this community can not only be better prepared but will also be able to recover more quickly.

Please do not hesitate to contact me on rjstolwerk@gmail.com if you have any further queries.