Celebrating 150 years and planning the next 10

Our Council this week celebrates its sesquicentennial noting the first meeting occurred on 30 March 1874. It’s a time to reflect on 15 decades of progress but it is also a time to look to the future. Consultation begins today, 27 March 2024, on Council’s plans for the next decade.

Looking back helps us look forward. The most important contribution Council has made to our city is building the roads, bridges, pipes, footpaths and other infrastructure that we often take for granted. We are forever indebted to those wise Councils that built assets such as the Maitai Dam and the Tantragee Water Treatment Plant.

This infrastructure is expensive and much of it is underground. Many Councils, such as Wellington, have neglected it. Our infrastructure is in much better shape than most Councils but we need to keep investing. Our draft plan has us putting $815 million towards infrastructure upgrades over the next decade.

Council, while celebrating its centenary in 1974, was still grappling with fixing and funding the damage and flood protection improvements from the horrific 1970 storm. We have the same problem today with a net cost to Council of nearly $60 million to fund the recovery work from the August 2022 storm.  We know the $300 extra charge on rates for homes and businesses will add costs at a difficult time but there are no easy answers. We have worked hard to secure Government support that has reduced this cost from $450.

We should take pride in the social capital that has been built in this city over 150 years alongside the physical assets. Nelson has a strong sense of community. We care for each other and for our environment. We are a safe and tolerant city. We should also cherish that our city has been democratically governed continuously for 150 years as this is true for only a small minority of the thousands of cities in the world. We need to hold firm to these values as we navigate the next chapter in Nelson’s story.

My ambition as Nelson’s 30th Mayor is to lead a Council and community that works together, gets good stuff done and spends public money wisely. I’m encouraged that Council last Friday unanimously approved the Consultation Document “Beyond the Storm” and now we welcome your feedback on it by 28 April 2024. Together, we can make Nelson even better.