Whanganui mayoral candidates (from left) Peter Oskam, Josh Chandulal-Mackay and Andrew Tripe. Photo / Mike Tweed
Sparring was kept to a minimum as Whanganui mayoral hopefuls faced the public during a meet-the-candidates evening.
Incumbent Andrew Tripe, and councillors Josh Chandulal-Mackay and Peter Oskam, took to the stage at the Whanganui War Memorial Centre on September 9.
Fellow candidate Greg McPhee was absent.
The event was organised by the Whanganui Residents and Ratepayers Association, with Warwick Funnell as moderator.
Each candidate gave a 90-second elevator pitch before taking pre-submitted community questions, with topics including the council’s commercial investments, its use of consultants, and its debt.
Oskam said debt was “our enemy”.
There was a 2.2% rates increase for 2025/26, but the council also had an unbalanced budget,“ he said.
“You need to understand that debt costs lots of money, and that money should be spent on community stuff.”
Tripe said the debt was manageable, and an additional $590,000 was being paid off each year.
“Debt used wisely is good debt, if it’s used for infrastructure and the things we need in our community.”
Chandulal-Mackay said he supported the council’s self-imposed debt limit of 200% of revenue, lower than the maximum of 280%.
“It’s prudent and ensures we are always operating within our means.”
Oskam said consultants should not be used at the first hurdle.
“We should go where the local knowledge is, because they are the ones who are dealing with it.
“Consultants are good when you don’t have that local knowledge, that’s when you bring them in.”
Chadulal-Mackay said consultancy costs made sense “when they make sense”.
One example was finding appropriate expertise for the council’s resource consent planning team, which had been understaffed in recent years, he said.
Tripe said consultants were there to provide time-limited expertise, not to run council business.
Part of the council’s six-point plan to keep rates down was to build in-house capability, he said.
“Sometimes, having a consultant there to provide expertise on a particular subject is the right thing to do.”
Chandulal-Mackay said the NZ Commercial Pilot Academy was “the white elephant in the room”, and all councillors were disappointed with recent events at the facility.
Earlier this year, the facility was investigated by the Civil Aviation Authority and the NZ Qualifications Authority for safety and quality of training, respectively.
An example of a positive investment was the planting of a forestry portfolio in the 1980s, which was sold in 2018, he said.
“Council should be pursuing similar investments going into the future.”
Tripe said the council was not responsible for what happened before the current triennium.
It needed to get the right information, consult the community, and use consultant expertise where required, to make the right decisions, he said.
Oskam said that unless the business case gave a return on investment of greater than 10%, the council was better off paying debt.
“You have to treat that money as if it’s your own, and it is your own money.”
Another question was how the council would ensure assets such as the Sarjeant Gallery would run at a surplus and not a cost.
Tripe said some facilities were for community good and came at a cost.
“It’s a matter of which has a cost and which doesn’t, and that’s the argument at the Sarjeant Gallery.”
Chandulal-Mackay said the gallery would never make a profit.
“It is a public service, a public facility, and it is there for public good.”
That did not mean the Sarjeant could not maximise its revenue, and its shop and cafe were performing incredibly well, he said.
Association chair Rachael Woodhead asked the candidates if there were any votes they had made or policy they had supported but now regretted.
Oskam said he attended all council workshops and worked through all strategies.
“I always went in with an open mind, and when I made the decision, it didn’t contradict any of my values or priorities.
“There wasn’t a vote in the last three years that I regret.”
Tripe said his answer was the other way around, because he had brought the issue of the district’s kerbside food scraps service back to the table, and councillors voted to cancel it.
“We saved 1.5% on rates with that, and it’s an example of listening to the community.”
Chandulal-Mackay said nothing was coming to mind, but he wanted to emphasise that elected members were open to listening and changing their views as part of the public consultation process - a proposed hotel being one.
“The feedback that came back from the community was that this was something the council should not be getting into.”
Voting in this year’s election runs until midday on 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 Whanganui District Council.