Tararua District mayor reflects on 2023 in Christmas messge

Mayor Tracey Collis, at an event celebrating the King's coronation in May this year, with former yeoman warder Patrick Nolan. Photo / Leanne Warr

2023 will be remembered as a tough year as inflation and higher interest and fuel costs put immense pressure on household, businesses and council.

We felt the tail end of Cyclone Gabrielle in our communities and declared a Civil Defence emergency, followed by the Minister of Civil Defence including us in only the second ever National State of Emergency in New Zealand’s history.

I reflect on this as a reminder of the damage we endured on our land, where our resilience and our amazing communities gave so generously to help out locally and in Hawke’s Bay.

Christmas is a time when our community spirit shines again as we focus on caring for others with so many finding it tougher to make ends meet.

Thank you to our volunteer organisations, foodbanks and social agencies for all their work in helping those in need throughout the year and especially at Christmas.

Tararua is a caring and resilient district and the principle of TEAM (Together Everyone Achieves More), is one we can be proud of, meaning our communities can thrive and grow, while supporting those around us.

Towns throughout Tararua have celebrated with fabulous Christmas parades and we are fortunate to enjoy four parades.

Our amazing businesses are so supportive and generous to the community, which we are truly grateful for.

With the tightening in the economy being felt throughout the country, it has never been more important to support local, and shop local, as every dollar spent in the Tararua District circulates back through our economy eight times which equates to many services and jobs.

Giving our support to our businesses is a positive way to grow and strengthen our communities, so we all benefit.

We are promoting the Tararua District as being open for business as we look to capture our share of the visitor market.

We know that welcoming them with a smile, good service and our caring attitude reflects well on our communities, enhancing the visitor experience for everyone.

Often new residents move to our towns after experiencing a wonderful time when travelling here.

Council staff and councillors are preparing for the decisions which must be made in 2024.

We face another challenging year with inflationary costs as well as dealing with many issues.

We have aimed to be future-focused and have adopted our District Strategy and will have our Urban Growth Strategy ready for consultation early in the new year ahead of any District Plan changes.

We need to be prepared for the opportunities coming and plan well for them, especially with the new Manawatū-Tararua Highway set to open mid-2025.

Staff have worked hard throughout 2023, determined to do the best they can for the communities they serve, and this will continue next year with little sign of pressure easing.

We can be proud of the dedicated team we have at council, many of whom work hard behind the scenes to deal with the challenges thrown at them.

We all acknowledge that sometimes the road ahead may be rocky, but like our staff, councillors are prepared for the hard mahi ahead, wanting the best for our communities in what will be difficult and demanding times.

Tararua is a beautiful place and I hope you all get the chance to experience our backyard over the summer, while enjoying a very happy and healthy Christmas and New Year.