Napier council calls for feedback after fiery reaction to rates hike plan

Less than two per cent of more than 800 submitters to the Napier City Council’s draft three-year-plan seem to want to speak at the hearings before the decisions before a likely record rates rise is struck.

Napier Mayor Kirsten Wise last year at the festivities marking the completion of the War Memorial restoration. Now ratepayers are questioning whether Napier can afford other projects such as the council's library and civic precinct redevelopment. Photo / NZME

With about two hours to go until submissions closed on Friday 834 submissions had been received, but just 19 had indicated they wanted to also speak, a surprise to Mayor Kirsten Wise after seeing waves of social media posts and comments attacking herself, the council, and the draft, particularly around the proposal for a record 23.7 per cent average rates increase.

Social media posts and comments, which she said had been “fiery” at times, have called for petitions, protests, a rates boycott, and abandonment of such big-spending as that targeted for Public Library and Civic precinct redevelopment which has been planned since the sudden evacuation of the buildings more than six years ago after failing earthquake risk assessment, the civic buildings now already demolished.

Also targeted have been plans for an Emerson St “revitalisation” expected to cost over $5 million over the next two years but which some punters see as unnecessary in the current economic times, when councils throughout New Zealand are facing demands to upgrade ageing and failing infrastructure, such as underground water assets.

Wise, who currently plans to stand for a third term at the 2025 local elections, and believes most of her 12-member council have similar plans, said she’s been “virtually begging” for ratepayers to make submissions, and points out the council, which will make its final proposals in two days of hearings on May 27-28, can only consider the submissions made directly.

She prefers face-to-face discussion, or “email-to-email”, and welcomes solutions if ratepayers think they have any, but the council cannot take into account the social media posts and comments, which did however spark her own social media response.

In it, she said that “without doubt” the No 1 topic is the “perception” that the council is spending large amounts of money unnecessarily on big projects resulting in the “large proposed rates increase.”

The mayor said there are “a number of misconceptions” about the cost of the library and council accommodation, and that if they were cancelled it would lead to a significant reduction in costs.

The library project is a 10-year project that started in 2017 with public consultation leading to a “strong” mandate from ratepayers, and a plan to be funded by generations to come with little impact on the current rates proposal.

She said Napier had “for years” had among the lowest rates among councils in New Zealand, but it had become clear there was under-investment.

It was also clear that the city had been struggling to attract some staff because of wage levels, and it’s significant that about half of the rates increase relates to getting the qualified staff to guide Napier into the future, initially with a three-year plan focused on recovery from Cyclone Gabrielle.

Councillors now face the busy time of reading all the submissions before going into the crucial meetings in four weeks’ time, armed also with summaries and recommendations from staff.

Submitters who have not yet indicated they wish to speak at the hearing can still do so and should contact the council.

“They can change their mind at any time.”

The council expects to modify its proposals during the hearings, and formally adopt the plan on June 27.