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Kaipara District Council will proceed with its predecessor’s plans for community hubs in Mangawhai and Dargaville, after its attempts to reallocate government funding to more immediate projects did not win iwi support.
The decision to build community hubs in the two centres was originally taken by the previous council, deploying funds from the government’s Better Off Funding, a package linked to the Three Waters (later renamed Affordable Waters) reform process.
The former council proposed to use $4.04 million provided in tranche 1 of the package for design and preparation work for the community hubs, and then to use an anticipated $12 million in tranche 2 funding to build them.
However, the Labour government cancelled tranche 2 funding before the election, while allowing councils to revise their plans for tranche 1 funding.
Seeking to reallocate the $4.04 million, council then compiled a list of alternative “immediate projects to benefit the community”, including work on the Dargaville Town Hall, Mangawhai shared pathway, and footpath projects in Maungaturoto and Kaiwaka.
Council was required to demonstrate it had iwi backing, but ahead of its monthly meeting on October 25, iwi representatives from the west coast withheld support. They cited concerns about broader disputes with council relating to the termination of karakia to open meetings, the use of te reo Māori in council documents, and what they saw as the need for genuine engagement.
At the council meeting Deputy Mayor Jonathan Larsen then proposed proceeding with work on the Dargaville community hub, but reallocating the funding intended for the Mangawhai hub to other projects, in Kaiwaka and Mangawhai. His motion passed, but after the meeting Te Uri o Hau did not support the proposal, seeking more time for community engagement.
In the absence of iwi support, council announced it was returning to the original plan for the $4.04 million: for Mangawhai, where land will need to be bought for the envisaged hub, $3.02 million was earmarked for the purchase of land and designing of a hub. For Dargaville, where council already owns land for a hub, the remaining $1.02 million was allocated for design and preparatory work.
Mayor Craig Jepson said that although it was disappointing not to receive iwi support for the reallocation, the funds would still be used to benefit Kaipara communities.
“While the new council would have preferred the funding to be used on projects that could be funded now, we know the community hubs have been long desired by the community,” he said.
“This will allow us to get them shovel-ready and prepared for any possible future funding opportunities.”
Council said in a statement that each community hub could include a library, digital facilities, meeting rooms and a multi-purpose space for activities and events.
Council spokesperson Hayley Worthington said the land in Dargaville currently earmarked for a hub was in the council precinct, between the town hall and the RSA.
In Mangawhai, a suitable location has not yet been identified, although one option under consideration is at the 34-hectare Mangawhai Community Park on Molesworth Drive.
“We will be consulting with the Mangawhai community around preferred locations,” she said.
