Plan to reduce debt by reining in spending

The Northland Chamber of Commerce surveyed Whangarei's 12 mayoral candidates on five key issues in the district. The Northern Advocate is publishing the responses in alphabetical order.

At the September 3 Meet Your Mayor evening, all candidates were asked one of these questions. Stan Semenoff's response from that night is published today.

1: How would a council under your leadership establish what is an acceptable level of debt?

First, it is important to understand where council's debt has come from. There has been heavy investment in roading and sewerage at the community's request as well as continued development of sporting facilities, including the athletics track and gymnasium complex. The current external debt of around $160million is at the upper limit, and it would be my priority to reduce debt by reining in spending. A lot of people are finding it hard to survive, and cutting interest costs will help keep rates affordable.

2. What is the council's role in fostering economic development?

Council's job is to provide services and infrastructure and to liaise with Government in trying to achieve job creation. It is not council's job to pick winners, but it has to have business sense to understand what will encourage investment in our district. The ratepayers have built considerable infrastructural assets, and council has to go out and seek business investment to capitalise on this.

3. How would a council under your leadership foster a business-friendly environment?

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to establishing a business-friendly environment. Council has to be flexible to try to meet the requirements of different industries. Certainly council has to follow in behind Government initiatives regarding changes to the Resource Management Act to make the district a more affordable place to do business. I would definitely consider suspending development contributions where we are convinced that they are a disincentive to business investment and economic development.

4. Is the council currently involved in any commercial activities that you feel it should not be? How would you remedy this?

In my years with council we have endeavoured to put commercial activities into the private sector, which can run them better. At the moment there is nothing that strikes me that hasn't been done in this regard. Council is involved in very few commercial activities. Its major enterprise is the Puwera landfill, but it has a private partner which I instigated and the partner is adding tremendous value to it. The landfill company is going to prove to be one of council's very best investments and it must be retained.

5. What single piece of infrastructure do you believe Whangarei is lacking that would stimulate economic growth?

I think the district lacks a major attraction that would grow the tourism industry. Huge numbers of visitors come to our district, but they run right past us up Western Hills bypass without us clipping the ticket. A truly world class attraction would bring spending here and lead to a new 4-star or 5-star hotel being built, with a very significant growth in employment. If we were to ask the Government for a single piece of national infrastructure, top of the list would be four-laning State Highway 1 to Whangarei, which would have more economic impact than a rail line to Marsden Point, which would come second.

Mr Semenoff's Meet The Mayor question was Question 1 - his response on September 3 was:

That's been well spoken on tonight, for a start we'd try and cap it.

And like we have done in the past, in 1989, right through into the 1990s, under [Wally] Yovich and [Dick] Sumpter and co and now with Warwick [Syers]. What's been happening is we've been rolling out too much, well not too much in my thinking, the cost of roading, and of late, the gymnastics, the athletics, all wonderful things, prior councils, the swimming pools, the Sport Northland help, the stadium, the cricket.

Before I was born this has been a Blue Ribbon regional area. And unfortunately, and I don't want to get personal, but over the years we have not had our fair share of the regional cake, in regards to what should come north.

And with Warwick and myself, we were pretty set in the last years and with the help of my chairs who had done a fairly good job, Shelley [Deeming] and Crichton [Christie] and co, we were well on the road, and I'm not lying about it, I had the Geotech plans of the four-laning from Puhoi to Wellsford in the mayor's office on the carpet on my floor and going over them. Had I not been kicked out I can tell you, the bulldozers would be in there by now, and this is why I talk about, we've got to get closer to the government of the day. And if my cuzzie Shane [Jones], which we are cousins, should make the mark, we'll certainly cuddle up to him. Helen Clark and I got on very, very well. And when my stance on, as deputy chair of the hospital, I made sure that my hospital in Kaitaia where I was born had a $14.8 million spend.

So, back to here with the debt, it's about prudent control. You see, if you spend something, you've got to give something away, otherwise it's got to come out of your pocket.

In tomorrow's paper, Warren Slater responds to the Chamber's questions.