My Account
There were never going to be any fireworks at a public ‘meet the candidates’ event hosted by the National Council of Women at Wade Hotel on the wet evening of September 13. However, it was an example of grass roots democracy.
All but one of the women candidates for the Hibiscus subdivision of the Hibiscus & Bays Local Board attended.
Leanne Willis had to leave early – Sam Mills, who is standing on the same ticket, read her answers. The other attendees were Donna Patterson, Trish Nathan and Lia Shelford-Toopi. Nancy Stride put in her apologies. Retiring local board member Janet Fitzgerald chaired the meeting.
Each candidate introduced themselves and answered questions that had been provided in advance. This meant responses were well-rehearsed and timed to meet the strict four minutes given. No questions from the floor were permitted, but candidates mingled with the attendees afterwards for a more informal chat.
Around 12 women came to the meeting and were a polite audience with no interjections.
The questions were generally focused on areas within the remit of the local board, rather than bigger picture political issues such as the government’s 3 Waters reforms.
Candidates were asked about the Unitary Plan changes to permit more intense housing development, particularly on Whangaparāoa Peninsula; suggestions to boost local business; how facilities providing activities for teenagers could be increased and the condition of footpaths.
Failing infrastructure, insufficient green spaces and inadequate planning were mentioned by candidates in relation to the zoning changes. Shelford-Toopi encouraged submissions to the proposed changes, which are open until the end of this month (September 29).
Ideas to boost local businesses included social procurement – using local suppliers for goods and services (Nathan); Patterson spoke about supporting businesses affected by roadworks. Improving connectivity and parking provision for shoppers was raised, and all spoke about the need to encourage residents to shop local, given the scale of commercial development in the area.
The four candidates agreed that local footpaths are in a poor state. Sam Mills (for Leanne Willis) wants 3m wide shared footpaths, and, along with Patterson, prioritised the use of local contractors to make the work more economically viable.
Nathan and Shelford-Toopi pointed out that the local board is only responsible for new footpaths, so repairs come down to advocating to make Auckland Transport, Waka Kotahi or Council (for paths in reserves) aware of the issues.
It was generally accepted that teenagers are in need of more facilities – Mills suggested the local board may look at a permanent pump track if the movable one coming to the area soon proves popular and Shelford-Toopi said Hibiscus Coast Netball courts need covering and investment. Patterson said it all comes down to funding, but we need to do more for this age group. Nathan suggested the Coast would be ideal for waka ama and that a youth panel could be set up so that the local board can listen to what young people want.
Concluding the meeting, Fitzgerald, who has been in local government for 30 years, said it was interesting to hear what the candidates hoped to achieve.
“If you are elected, do your homework, so you make well-informed decisions,” she advised them.
Audience members said that the meeting had achieved its purpose of helping them decide who to vote for.
