Councillor Comment

Amalgamation:
So that everyone has a chance to have a say on our future, Wairarapa Voice have petition forms at a number of places in Martinborough. I would urge everyone to sign this, so that going forward it is a democratic decision on whether we stay as we are or move to a combined Wairarapa Council.
We have had so much debate to date, firstly Local Government put forward the Wellington Supercity and this was defeated. Local Government then went back to the drawing board and looked at the concept of having a Unitary Authority to cover the Wairarapa, as put forward by Masterton, Carterton and South Wairarapa, this was also put aside and they have come up with the Wairarapa District Council.
There will be some parts of the proposal that people like and parts that they don’t like, so instead of just accepting this, we need to sign the petition to enable a vote to take place. This will allow us all to really get down to the nitty gritty and work out exactly what we would like and put pen to paper (voting paper) and then the majority will make the decision, rather than having this forced upon us.
The petition papers are located at Kitchener Street Dairy, Pain & Kershaw, Martinborough Medical Centre and Pirinoa Country Store. The closing date will be towards the end of September to enable this to be lodged prior to the 11th October.
MAKE SURE YOU HAVE YOUR SAY………….
Long Term Plan:
Council is reviewing the long term plan this year and instead of having a 10-year plan, we are looking to extend this to be up to a 30-year plan. So, thinking caps on….

What does your town and surrounding district look like in 30 years.
What would you like to see in your area?
What do our visitors want to see or be able to partake in.
Will public transport meet our needs both around the region and over to Wellington?
Ensure that the infrastructure keeps up as our towns expand
The list could go on forever, so please have your say, put in a submission to Council NOW so that we, as Councillors, can incorporate this in the plan and so ensure our future is secure in having everything (well almost everything) that is on our wish list.
Council will be having sector meetings prior to adopting the Long Term Plan. If anyone would like to talk to their councilors about the future then there would be an opportunity to do this at these meetings. If you would prefer to discuss this on a one on one basis then Pip, Jeppy and myself would be available to put forward your suggestions or answer any questions you might have.
Contact details are
Pip on 021683638 or Pip.Maynard@swdc.govt.nz
Jeppy on 0275026198 or Brian.Jephson@swdc.govt.nz
Pam on 0274414892 or Pam.Colenso@swdc.govt.nz

Pam Colenso