Changes on cards

David Montgomerie

The election for South Wairarapa District Council, with mayor Adrienne Staples unopposed, has voted out incumbent Mike Gray and sees the formal departure of Keith "Porky" Sexton, who is stepping down.

Newcomers are real estate manager David Montgomerie and mechanic and motelier Colin Olds.

Mr Olds, who lives in Tauherenikau, narrowly lost to Porky Sexton in the 2010 election but "this time around we made it", he said.

"I'm going to open a bottle of wine - a bottle of bubbly, I might add, and perhaps go out to dinner," he told the Times-Age on Saturday afternoon.

"I'm just delighted, I really am."

He thanked the support of "a great community with a whole heap of things going for it".

Mr Olds said there was a "million things" in Featherston to be worked on.

He wanted to work with absentee landlords to improve the look of the main street.

"This is the gateway to the Wairarapa - we should set a standard.

"We want people to say: wow, if the rest of the Wairarapa is like this ..."

Mr Montgomerie said it was a good result, after campaigning with fliers, meeting lots of people and "getting my name out there".

"My message was for a bit of change for council, I think the council needs to focus more on how it attracts young families to Wairarapa.

"With population projections, by 2031, medium age [here] will be 50, and one in three will be over 65.

"We really have to see what we can do, to make sure there are sufficient people of working age, but also meeting the needs of people at that point."

He also wanted to address management of council assets, citing the empty library in Greytown.

"Obviously the challenge now is to get some of these things happening."

He said he would celebrate over dinner on Saturday night.