Hastings District Council
Hastings District Council Te Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Heretaunga | |
|---|---|
| Territorial authority | |
Coat of arms of Hastings and council logo | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| History | |
| Established | March 6, 1989, 35 years ago |
| Preceded by |
|
| Leadership | |
Deputy | Tania Kerr |
CEO | To’osavili Nigel Bickle |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 16 seats (1 mayor, 15 ward seats) |
 | |
Political groups |
|
Length of term | 3 years, renewable |
| Elections | |
| First-past-the-post | |
Last election | 8 October 2022 |
Next election | 11 October 2025 |
| Meeting place | |
 | |
| Council building on Lyndon Rd E in Hastings | |
| Website | |
| hastingsdc | |
Hastings District Council (Māori: Te Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Heretaunga) is the territorial authority for the Hastings District of New Zealand.[1]
The council covers the urban areas of Havelock North, Hastings and Flaxmere, and the surrounding settlements of Clive, Te Awanga, Haumoana and Waimarama. It was formed in 1989, through the merger of Hastings City Council, Havelock North Borough Council and the Hawke's Bay County Council.[1]
The council is led by the mayor of Hastings, who is currently Sandra Hazlehurst.[1]
Composition
[edit]Council
[edit]Hastings District Council is made up of one mayor and 15 councillors representing five general wards and one Māori ward.[2]
Currently the council has 15 councillors, and 1 mayor.[2] All councillors are currently unaffiliated with any political party or group.
| Mayor: | Sandra Hazlehurst |
| Mohaka: | Tania Kerr (Deputy) |
| Flaxmere: | Henry Heke |
| Hastings-Havelock North: | Malcolm Dixon |
| Michael Fowler | |
| Damon Harvey | |
| Eileen Lawson | |
| Simon Nixon | |
| Wendy Schollum | |
| Heretaunga: | Alwyn Corban |
| Hana Montaperto-Hendry | |
| Kahuranaki: | Marcus Buddo |
| Takitimu: | Ana Apatu |
| Kellie Jessup | |
| Heather Te Au-Skipworth |
Rural Community Board
[edit]The council also has a Rural Community Board, made up of four members elected from four rural community areas:[1][3]
- Kaweka subdivision: Isabele Crawshaw
- Maraekakaho subdivision: Jonathan Stockley
- Poukawa subdivision: Vicki Scoular
- Tutira subdivision: Abby Morley
- District councillors representing Mohaka, Kahuranaki, and Takitimu wards are also members.
Wards
[edit]
Flaxmere
[edit]The representation review for the 2022 local elections described Flaxmere ward's community of interest as the urban community of Flaxmere Village.[4]
Hastings-Havelock North
[edit]The representation review for the 2022 local elections described Hastings-Havelock North ward's community of interest as the urban communities of Hastings City and Havelock North Village.[4]
Heretaunga
[edit]The representation review for the 2022 local elections described Heretaunga ward's community of interest as the villages of Clive, Haumoana, Te Awanga, Whakatū, and the Heretaunga Plains (excluding the urban areas of Flaxmere, Hastings, and Havelock North).[4]
Kahurānaki
[edit]The representation review for the 2022 local elections described Kahurānaki ward's community of interest as the rural area of the district south of the Ngaruroro River and south and east of Havelock North and the Heretaunga Plains.[4]
Mōhaka
[edit]The representation review for the 2022 local elections described Mōhaka ward's community of interest as the rural area of the district north of the Ngaruroro River and west of the Heretaunga Plains.[4]
Takitimu
[edit]The representation review for the 2022 local elections described Takitimu ward's community of interest as the Māori population of the district.[4]
History
[edit]
2022–2025 term
[edit]By-elections
[edit]Hana Montaperto-Hendry and Heather Te Au Skipworth were elected to the council following by-elections in May 2024. Montaperto-Hendry was elected to the Heretaunga general seat, which was vacated by the previous councillor Ann Redstone due to illness. Te Au Skipworth was elected to the Takitimu māori ward following the resignation of councillor Renata Nepe.[5]
Cyclone Gabrielle recovery
[edit]In the 2024 budget, the government gave the council $1,470,000 towards road infrastructure affected by Cyclone Gabrielle. Mayor Hazlehurst welcomed the move.[6] The Napier-Taihape Road required major repairs which were green lit by central government in July 2024, work commencing in August. Locals called on NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi to make the road part of the state highway network, with the mayor voicing her support.[7]
Councils in Hawke's Bay established voluntary buyout schemes following the devastation of the cyclone, with 153 properties in the Hastings District deemed to be unsafe for continued human residence ("Category 3"). 24 of these were bought out right, with the owners of the rest of the land agreeing to receive relocation grants but retaining ownership. The costs for these buyouts was split evenly between council and the central government.[8]
In the councils Long Term Plan, $17 million per year for 16 years was forecast to be put towards the cyclone recovery programme. Council CEO Nigel Bickle described the Long Term PLan as "...the most challenging..." the council had ever dealt with.[9] Mayor Hazlehurst said in April 2024 that the council had spent in the past year "close to $155 million" in response to the cyclone.[10]
Youth council
[edit]The Hastings District Youth Council is made up of 17 young Hastonians, ranging in age from 15 to 21, who work, live, or are educated in the district.[11]
The district council made the unprecedented move to give youth councillors voting rights on council committees, in a 7–7 decision, with the mayor's vote acting as the tie-breaker. The move was controversial because youth councillors are unelected, though it is within the powers of councils to appoint unelected officials (such as topic experts or iwi representatives) to committees. The council also agreed to pay them.[12]
Councillor Simon Nixon, who opposed the move, said the decision "breach[ed] the very basis of our democracy."[12] Ana Apatu, a councillor who supported the change, said it was "a no-brainer".[12] Mayor Hazlehurst supported the move, saying it was about "...visionary thinking for the future."[11] Hazlehurst clarified on RNZ's Checkpoint that the move did not apply to the main council meetings, only subcommittees.[11]
The Taxpayers' Union protested the proposal before it went to a vote, setting up a bouncy castle outside the council building, with TPU founder Jordan Williams (a native of Hastings and also a former youth councillor himself) in attendance.[13]
 For
|
 Against
|
Absent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sandra Hazlehurst (mayor) | Alwyn Corban | Kellie Jessup | |
| Tania Kerr (DM) | Malcolm Dixon | Kevin Watkins | |
| Ana Apatu | Michael Fowler | ||
| Marcus Buddo | Damon Harvey | ||
| Hana Montaperto-Hendry | Henry Heke | ||
| Heather Te Au-Skipworth | Eileen Lawson | ||
| Wendy Schollum | Simon Nixon | ||
| Total | 7 (mayor tiebreak) | 7 | 2 |
Māori wards
[edit]The council had introduced the Takitimu Māori ward at the 2022 local elections. Following the decision of the Sixth National Government to force local councils to either abolish Māori wards or hold a referendum on their continued existence, the council voted unanimously to retain them and thus to hold a referendum, to occur alongside the 2025 local elections.[14] Deputy Mayor Kerr called the Government's decision a "farce", and Mayor Hazlehurst said it was "disheartening" that the Government did not trust local councils on the issue.[14]
Crime
[edit]The council unanimously voted in September 2024 to close an alleyway connecting Oliphant Place and Bledisloe Street due to incidences of people using it to evade police and other illegal purposes. Councillor Damon Harvey said the alleyway had a "hide point" and was poorly lit.[15]
Infrastructure and amenities
[edit]The council won a court case against two anti-fluoridation groups in July 2024, after the groups applied for an urgent injunction against the fluoridation of district water. The groups were ordered to pay court costs of $20,470 to the council. The district's water was fluoridated from 1954 to 2016, but was stopped in 2016 because the council could only add one chemical to the water at the time, and they were required to chlorinate it following the Havelock North gastroenteritis outbreak.[16] The council voted in April 2024 to re-introduce fluoridation.[17] A public vote on the issue in 2013 showed 63.5% public support.[16]
The council purchased the Tōmoana Showgrounds in April 2023. Following building assessments, it was decided to tear down the grandstand within the showgrounds due to structural issues.[18]
Finances
[edit]The council announced that from July 2024 rates would increase by 25%, compared to the national average increase of 15%.[9]The mayor defended the council's decision to increase property rates by this amount in an op-ed for the Hawke's Bay Today, stating that the council had "no other funding options" for maintaining infrastructure, pointing to the aftermath of Cyclone Gabrielle.[19] The council had a debt of almost $400 million, and projected in the Long Term Plan that by 2030 that number would be $700 million.[9] The average homeowner had paid $3000 in rates per year, which would increase to $3750 following the introduction of the new rates.[9]
Rainbow Storytime
The council cancelled a Rainbow Storytime event in March 2024, after a large number of "threatening and intimidating" messages from Destiny Church protestors. Mayor Hazelhurst said she was deeply disappointed that the council had to resort to cancellation, but concerns for the saftey of children and other community members made it necessary.[20]
Coat of arms
[edit]
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References
[edit]- ^ a b c d "About Council". hastingsdc.govt.nz. Hastings District Council.
- ^ a b "Mayor & Councillors". Hastings District Council. 7 March 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
- ^ "Rural Community Board". Hastings District Council. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f "Representation review". Hastings District Council. 6 April 2022.
- ^ Laing, Doug (24 May 2024). "Hana Montaperto-Hendry and Heather Te Au-Skipworth win Hastings byelections". Hawke's Bay Today via NZHerald.
- ^ "Budget 2024: $17 million to support councils recover from Cyclone Gabrielle". Radio New Zealand. 20 August 2024.
- ^ "Major repairs given green light on troubled Napier-Taihape Rd". Hawke's Bay Today via NZHerald. 28 July 2024.
- ^ "Hawke's Bay Councils say buyouts of homes destroyed during Cyclone Garbielle almost completed". Radio New Zealand. 12 November 2024.
- ^ a b c d Hamilton-Irvine, Gary (18 April 2024). "Hastings facing one of highest rates rises in country - council could hit $700 million debt". Hawke's Bay Today via NZHerald.
- ^ "Hastings homeowners may face 25% rates increase". Radio New Zealand. 16 April 2024.
- ^ a b c "Hastings youth councillors given voting rights on committees". Checkpoint via Radio New Zealand. 27 September 2024.
- ^ a b c d Hamilton-Irvine, Gary (27 September 2024). "Hastings: Unelected youth given decision-making powers on council committees". Hawke's Bay Today via NZHerald.
- ^ Hall, Linda (4 November 2024). "'Twerps' or trailblazers? Youth council stays resilient". Radio New Zealand.
- ^ a b Hamilton-Irvine, Gary (27 August 2024). "Hastings District Council opts to keep Māori ward triggering referendum at 2025 election". Hawke's Bay Today via NZHerald.
- ^ Hall, Linda (27 September 2024). "Crime-riddled Hastings alleyway to be permanently shut". Radio New Zealand.
- ^ a b Stevens, Ric (12 July 2024). "Court orders anti-fluoridation groups to pay Hastings Council and Government $41,000 in costs". NZHerald.
- ^ "Fluoride to be reintroduced to Hastings' water supply after 8 years". Radio New Zealand. 2 April 2024.
- ^ "Hastings: Tōmoana Showgrounds grandstand to be demolished". Hawke's Bay Today via NZHerald. 6 December 2023.
- ^ Hazlehurst, Sandra (20 May 2024). "Hastings Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst: On the district's Long-Term Plan". Hawke's Bay Today via NZHerald.
- ^ "Hastings council cancels drag queens' Rainbow Storytime after Destiny Church protest". Radio New Zealand. 26 March 2024.
- ^ "Coat of Arms". www.hastingsdc.govt.nz. Hastings District Council. Retrieved 15 June 2024.
- ^ "HASTINGS' 50TH: Coat of arms tells a story". Hawkes Bay Today. New Zealand Herald. 7 February 2006. Retrieved 13 July 2024.