Guest View: Different take on plans for city

Whangarei District Council has recently produced a road show entitled Whangarei - At the cross roads to inform people where the area is heading in the next 30-60 years.

When this was recently viewed by a collection of community workers, council representatives were challenged to view a return presentation from the community.

The community presentation, called Pathways was this year shown to senior members of council.

The community groups response was to demonstrate major issues, either not yet addressed or currently misjudged by council. These issues underpinned the argument in favour of community input in council decision making.

Historically the undisputed areas are:

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  Income and expenditure.
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  Major capital works (infrastructure or other).
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  Broad brush planning for the future.

The issues have been the prerogative of council management and the elected members.

In sharp contrast, the community generally focus on single issues of contention with council,

The access to democratic process has always been dealt with by referring the dissenting members of the community to their local representative.

The other access to the council as a whole, is the right to make submissions where they wish to amend or dispute.

The complex scenario of community involvement in any council process has a critical hole in the middle.

Future council plans are an ongoing system of tweaking the longstanding ambitions of past and present management and councillors and at the same time the inclusion of new projects.

Management and the political wing deliberate the issues (and cost) in depth and agree on a Draft Plan.

This "draft" is published and submissions are called for. Public copies have to be applied for and copies are at public libraries and council offices.

It would be very generous to suggest that 10 per cent of the public are familiar with any Long Term Plan.

At this point, management and the politicians are happy in respect of the feasibility and the intended outcomes of the plan.