Voting and slipping on the agenda
Plans to stage an $80,000 referendum on the way New Plymouth elects its councillors have been ditched in favour of a switch to the Single Transferable Vote (STV).
It means voters will rank their favourite council candidates in the 2019 and 2022 district council elections rather than simply ticking boxes.
The New Plymouth District Council decided to scrap the current First Past the Post method of voting in favour of the method used by the Taranaki District Health Board.
The council’s Te Huinga Taumatua and planning committees recommended the council have a binding referendum, costing at least $80,000, to let ratepayers decide on whether it wanted to change.
But at their full meeting on Tuesday, councillors decided to make the decision themselves.
Mayor Neil Holdom, who had been keen on the referendum idea, said he had changed his mind after talking to people.
‘‘They have said ‘you’re going to spend $80,000 on that?’.’’
In its simplest form, STV is described by the Department of Internal Affairs as allowing voters to rank candidates in order of preference. Candidates need to reach a quota of the votes to get elected.
Councillors had a robust discussion on the issue, with a lot talk around whether the community would understand STV.
Councillor Harry Duynhoven put that to rest by pointing out STV was used across the ditch.
‘‘If Australians can understand it I’m sure we can.‘‘
Deputy mayor Richard Jordan said: ‘‘STV is the most democratic system for electing councils. If you can count to 10 you can understand STV.’’
Councillor Stacey Hitchcock said she didn’t think it was a big enough issue to spend $80,000 of hard-earned ratepayers money on a referendum.
Councillor Richard Handley said the issue was serious and important and the council should have the courage to have a poll.
‘‘I feel very strongly such a fundamental change should be supported by the community.’’
Meanwhile, councillors also discussed the issue of slippery pavements in New Plymouth city centre. Were the trees or pavers to blame, or had the problem been solved by regular cleaning?
The council spent $1m on bluestone paving slabs in 1996, at the same time as established alder trees were planted along Devon St.
Twenty years later, the stones and the leaves from the trees and the council’s 2013 decision to cut street cleaning from seven days a week to four have resulted in people falling over.
Councillor Harry Duynhoven blamed the bluestone pavers,but Councillor Murray Chong blamed the trees. Councillor Marie Pearce said now the streets were being cleaned every day the problem was under control.
In June street cleaning returned to seven days, plus a deep clean every three months.
There had been no reported accidents since, the council was told.
Duynhoven said they needed to find a treatment for the bluestone pavers. Chong said the trees were getting bigger and bushier.
But Pearce was having none of it. ‘‘This has been the wettest August, but we have had no reports of any accidents.‘‘
Councillor Sean Biesiek wanted council officers to talk to the building and business owners who were affected by the slippery footpaths and consider how it could be managed. He called for an update when the council debated the 10 year plan.
On that the councillors agreed. As a youngster Todd Hunter would spend hours horsing around in New Plymouth’s Brooklands Park. Now, four decades on from forming the band Dragon, the musician will return to his old stomping ground to perform.
The iconic Kiwi hitmakers were today announced as the first act for next year’s three-day music festival Womad, held at the TSB Bowl of Brooklands.
Australasian rock legends Dragon rose to fame in the early ‘70s and despite tragedy, fallouts and adversity have been continually celebrated for hits such as April Sun in Cuba, Rain and Are You Old Enough?
The present-day lineup comprises bassist Hunter - the only remaining founding member - vocalist and guitarist Mark Williams, Pete Drummond on drums and Bruce Reid on guitar.
Since reforming in 2006, the group has staged almost 1000 shows but Hunter said playing Womad had always been high on their performance hitlist.
‘‘When we were asked we didn’t have to think about it at all,’’ he said.
Hunter said festival-goers could expect to hear all of the group’s timeless anthems and to lose themselves in a goodtime atmosphere.
Coming to New Plymouth for the March 16 to 18 festival would also be a poignant visit for Hunter, who was born in Waitara.
The rocker, now based in Australia, and his late brother Marc Hunter, who joined the group a couple of years after its conception in 1972, relocated to Taumaranui in their younger years but often returned to Taranaki to visit family.
The boys’ aunt lived across the road from Pukekura Park, adjac- ent to the Bowl of Brooklands, and Hunter has fond memories of playing in the grounds.
‘‘Marc and I would just disap- pear into the park in the morning and then come back at night, it was great.’’
While Dragon have before performed in the region throughout the years it was the first time the band would play at the amphitheatre.
Womadians will have to wait until September 21 for the second lineup announcement.
Early bird tickets to the event went on sale in July and were snatched up within a record 22 days - less than half the time it took for them to sell out in previous years.
The official launch of Womad 2018 will be held at Parliament in Wellington on Wednesday, October 18 with the full lineup being released the following day.
Festival tickets are on sale now. For further information head to www.womad.co.nz