Shrewd politician

NPDC mayor Neil Holdom is a shrewd politician.

He’s declared an infrastructure emergency, saying it will cost hundreds of millions to fix (TDN, Feb 27). Why is the NPDC’s infrastructure so badly run down?

According to Holdom ‘‘previous councils were driven by political imperatives ..... and tried to keep rates down’’.

Since water infrastructure is council’s core function it’s hard to argue against him. I see Neil Holdom more as a chief executive and a crusading MP than a mayor (it’s always the government’s fault). This is not a bad thing.

He also knows about crisis management thanks to his time at Powerco. Declaring an emergency will unite the new council.

It also gives them the moral high ground. Objecting to infrastructure maintenance is like objecting to motherhood.

Admitting publicly the council’s infrastructure is run down, while expressing a preparedness to remedy the problem, hopefully will impress the TRC and the Environment Court.

It may even lessen some of the expected fines coming the council’s way for unintentionally polluting some our waterways due to faulty infrastructure.

Ten years ago the STDC ‘‘bit the bullet’’ and spent $90m improving their water infrastructure. They haven’t had water restrictions since. It’s time the NPDC followed suit.

Also, John Rae was gutted the NPDC didn’t tell him Ben Harper was doing a show at the TSB Bowl of Brooklands during Americarna.

There’s no smoking gun evidence, but the Harper concert affected Americarna. Car numbers were down: 680 compared to last year’s 800. Americarna is good for Taranaki, bringing $3m into the economy.

I’m sure John will ‘‘let rip’’ when he meets with the NPDC chief executive and the mayor.

He’ll probably demand an assurance there be no future event clash (during Americarna) organised by the council. But he won’t get this guarantee.

Why? The NP Event Venues Team is tasked with bringing big acts to the Bowl.

To do this they’ll have to fit in with the itinerary of the stars. There will be future clashes. John also needs to temper his frustration.

There would be no Americarna without a supportive NPDC. They are also a funding partner. Bryan Vickery, New Plymouth

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