Incumbent Phil Nixon announces bid to retain South Taranaki mayoralty

Phil Nixon says he is not aware of any challengers for the South Taranaki mayoralty. Photo / NZME

Incumbent Phil Nixon is the first to throw his name in the hat for the South Taranaki mayoralty at this year’s local elections.

Nixon, first elected in 2019, said there was still work to be done, especially around the Government’s Local Water Done Well legislation.

South Taranaki District Council is proposing to join with the New Plymouth and Stratford district councils to form a council-controlled organisation for water delivery.

All councils must submit a water services delivery plan by September 3.

The council’s public consultation on the plan closed on May 30, with about 500 submissions received.

“I’d love to see it through further,” Nixon said.

“I won’t say everything will all be in place [by the end of the next triennium] but we’ll know where we’re heading and what we’re doing.”

South Taranaki will have an average rates increase of 5.46% for 2025/26.

Nixon said the expected increase in its 10-year plan for 2024-2034 had been 8.66%.

“We’ve managed to go below that, and well below the 11.1% last year,” he said.

“It’s still high enough but, unfortunately, we are in a world at the moment where costs are increasing all the time.

“We need to keep growing our district but make it affordable.”

No service cuts were required to get to 5.46%, which was important, he said.

“I don’t want to compromise on that.”

Nixon won the 2022 mayoral race in a landslide, receiving 5243 votes.

His only challenger that year, Walter Smith, got 583.

Three years before that, Nixon (5253 votes), beat out Craig Baylis (1931) and Clem Coxhead (1052) for the top job.

Nixon said there had been several council milestones since 2022 but he was most proud of the opening of Hawera’s new library, gallery and iSite building Te Ramanui o Ruapūtahanga last December.

“We were also able to open the Te Ranganuku Rd, off Nukumaru Station Rd and down to Waiinu Beach.

“That is vital for the resilience of that community. Now, they won’t be cut off should something happen.

“There is an important meat processing works [Waitōtara meatworks] down there, a lot of farmers and other businesses.”

The 8.3km road was officially opened in March 2024.

Nixon said he welcomed any other candidates for the mayoralty in 2025 but was not aware of anyone else planning to run.

“We’ll wait and see what the process brings.

“I really enjoy the job and want to do it again.”

Local elections will be held on Saturday, October 11.

Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily the Whanganui District Council.