A lot on final board agenda

Aquiet and speedy meeting was had for our final community board meeting of 2023.

The board approved funding of $2000 for the Kainga Aroha Kids Summer Camp. I had a conflict of interest as that is my place of work, so was not involved in the discussion or decision.

We had an update on service levels from transport manager Bryan Hudson which was interesting. It was helpful to understand how they maintain the contracts to clean and service our streets, etc.

We also set our next year’s meeting dates and then had a good half-hour discussion on the areas of town and Kihikihi that have liquor bans in place. We do not plan to suggest any changes at this stage. If you know of any areas that are a concern or have any issues please reach out.

The Holmes Garage Community Events and Market Space concept was presented to the Finance and Corporate Committee on December 5.

We did not quite get this over the line due to further information being needed for the proposed walkway/ open paved area alternative. Once this is achieved both options will be considered and hopefully, we can get approval to have it added to the Long Term Plan.

We understand there is a cost to repurpose this building, however, it has the potential to be a great community asset and bring economic benefit to our town as well as being a space we can all use and enjoy.

I attended the Long Term Plan budget workshop and the proposed rate increases are not good news. It is going to be a tough few years and I wish it could have been different. I think though we have done pretty well compared to other councils. We are also very lucky with the effort staff have gone to, to get to where they did.

The proposed cut in discretionary funding from $49,000 to just $20,000 is also a concern. Each year the applications are three or four times this amount which would indicate there are a lot of not-for-profit groups and organisations that this fund makes a real difference to. Any feedback on this would be much appreciated and help us provide community sentiment when we do our submission next year.

I would like to congratulate Te Awamutu Rotary on once again providing us with a super Christmas parade. Despite some slightly inclement weather, there was a great turnout and people were treated to a fun event.

Finally, a big thank you to the community board which has worked very hard this year through some trying times. They have been dedicated to listening, considering your views and advocating on your behalf. We can only be as good as our information so keep talking to us and telling us what you want for your community.

I’d also like to thank the staff for their ongoing support. They do a lot of work behind the scenes that enables us to do our work for you, the community.

On behalf of your community board, we wish you all a safe and happy festive season, a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Our next community board meeting will be on Wednesday, February 28 at 6pm. Everyone is welcome.

Please contact any of the members if you have a topic you would like to discuss or bring them to the community board table.