Latest news with #FutureDunedin
Otago Daily Times
06-07-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Letters to the Editor: water, pennies and crocodiles
Today's Letters to the Editor from readers cover topics including the future of water in Dunedin, pensioners pinching pennies, and continuing to feed the crocodile. Surrey St residents keen to understand issues Disbelief at the comments made by Dunedin City Council's general manager Three Waters and transition David Ward that our residents' claims contained "a spectacular amount of misinformation and falsehood" (ODT, 1.7.25). After demanding that he and his support act get up here to see the problems after the 2024 flood he didn't even know the full history of Surrey St flooding being new to the job! I'd like to know what falsehoods and misinformation. Some of us have probably read more engineering reports, cost analysis and expert engineering opinions spanning 20 or more years regarding the Surrey St issue and the South Dunedin-wide problem than he's had time to locate. And just so we ratepayers and residents know he's speaking the truth we'd like to see the detailed engineering plans for the piping network upgrades and pumping station improvements plus the complete costings of the engineering works he stated. Or are they still in the pipeline as usual? Surrey St Flood Action Group Response from David Ward: Thank you for the chance to clarify my comments. The Otago Daily Time s originally asked us to respond to a series of comments from residents that were worse than those eventually published. All the claims were false, which is why I responded as firmly as I did. The ODT then thankfully decided not to publish the worst of the comments, but I was not given the chance to modify my response, which was presented in full and out of context. For the record, the problems in Surrey Str are caused by a known bottleneck in our wastewater system, and we have never denied this. We feel for the residents there, and we have taken interim steps to protect their homes (such as the installation of non-return values, and pipe replacements elsewhere that ease pressure on the network including in Surrey St) while continuing to work hard to progress a permanent solution. The issues involved are complex and the potential solutions expensive, requiring changes that affect our wider network, but we expect to be in a position to provide more information later this year. Future Dunedin's full-page advertisement ( ODT , 11.6.25) includes in its "Policy Positioning" that "Future Dunedin will advocate for immediate action to protect $10b of assets at risk from flooding in South Dunedin." In simple terms, that's equivalent to 10,000 x $1 million assets. Given that 900 South Dunedin properties were flooded in the last severe flooding incident, is Future Dunedin able to share with the voting public how the figure of $10 billion was arrived at? Andrew Simms responds: Two options presented by the South Dunedin Futures Programme describe the widespread retreat from large tracts of land in South Dunedin including housing areas, industrial and retail areas. Homes, factories, supermarkets and car dealerships gone. Various reports estimate the value of this land and the assets upon it at between $7 billion and $10 billion. The social cost of displacing 15,000 people is perhaps far greater. South Dunedin is an essential part of Dunedin and much of the function of South Dunedin cannot be replaced. The effective defence of South Dunedin can be achieved for a fraction of its value. Pennies are only pinched because they have to be I noted the article on "penny pinching pensioners'' (ODT , 2.7.25) doing so because they have to, to ensure they can pay their power bills. I'm in my 70s and live in a small flat on the hill. Like most flats in Dunedin it can be "cool" in winter. My power bill is between $90- $100-plus every month. What! I hear you say, how lucky is he. But take into account there is no hot water charge in that and no heating charge in that (when I did use a heater I couldn't afford to pay that bill every month.) So basically I am being charged for light bulbs (have energy saving ones), cooking a meal and time on my laptop (no TV). The "small user" rate has gone and I am told by my power company to expect more rises in costs. Watching successive governments and their approaches to ever rising costs in everything we need to use to survive there appears to be little interest in actually doing anything. Big businesses like power companies seem to hold sway over all aspects of power generation, not the government. The tail has wagged the dog for too long. It is time for "open slather" to be applied to alternative power sources i.e. wind farms, solar farms, tide-generated energy, geothermal, biomass energy. We all see massive innovations in energy production overseas but here, well, let's wait and see. We have lost our innovative No 8 wire mentality that said "rip into it and get it done" and it's been replaced by apathy based on the fact no government and especially no power company is ever going to act in the best interests of their consumers. A sad indictment that we have allowed this to happen and I believe many pensioners will agree with me. Keeping on feeding the crocodile Gerrard Eckhoff (Letters, 3.7.25) is a regular letter writer and contributor to the ODT . Most of us know pretty much where he is coming from. His latest letter can probably be described as pushback against pushback against a recent tirade opposing capital gains tax, such as "stupid" left-wing "do-gooders" keep agitating for. In doing so he has, in my opinion, shot himself in the foot. It demonstrates how shallow this analysis really is. The astronomical increases in monetary asset values over five decades really bells the cat. Is he really suggesting that this mostly reflects increases in real wealth and productive capacity? Rather it is mostly asset inflation – unearned income (although not, apparently, according to our current prime minister). I would prefer to call it "fake wealth". I'm inclined to agree with Mr Eckhoff that capital gains tax (or a wealth tax) would probably not fix the problem. It is the result of too much easy money for non-productive purposes. For example, if I want to borrow for some relatively risky enterprise I would probably be hit for about 2 percentage points more, than if I was leveraging the (fake) equity in my house to buy a relatively riskless investment property. The deregulated financial system just keeps on feeding the crocodile. And by the way, we all know that the world is not particularly fair. Those camped on the Oval in tents or sleeping in cars certainly do. Whether it is meant to be is another matter. But at the very least we expect those who are handsomely rewarded to do something to justify it. Abridged — Ed. Address Letters to the Editor to: Otago Daily Times, PO Box 517, 52-56 Lower Stuart St, Dunedin. Email: editor@
Otago Daily Times
29-06-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Unelected reps should not vote: Simms
A Dunedin mayoral hopeful says unelected representatives have no place voting in city council processes. Over the weekend, mayoral candidate Andrew Simms lodged his firm opposition to Māori wards and voting rights for unelected representatives. Following social media comments on the subject, Mr Simms told the Otago Daily Times he disagreed with any unelected representatives having voting rights during the council process, regardless of who they were representing. "From my point of view, the community choose the councillors ... to represent them," Mr Simms said. "I see the inclusion of unelected representatives at any level having a vote as being the thin end of the wedge a bit and I don't think that fits with democracy. "At that point, the community loses control of who they have to represent them." Several of the Dunedin City Council's committees or sub-committees have non-elected members. These included infrastructure services and strategy as well as planning and engagement, which each have two local rūnaka representatives with voting rights. Ms Simms said, if elected mayor in October, he would put the matter up for discussion in the council. His preference was for experts to participate in discussions, but not to have voting rights. "It's any unelected representation, it's not a Māori issue whatsoever at that point," he said. "There are numerous people that I could think of within the Dunedin community who are either mana whenua or mātāwaka [Māori from an iwi outside the area] who ... would absolutely waltz in as councillors if they put themselves forward purely on their own merits." Mr Simms said his position on Māori wards was based, in part, on an apparent lack of support for the wards from mana whenua. He said these were conscience issues and candidates on his ticket, Future Dunedin, were free to form their own opinions. Yesterday, other mayoral candidates spoke in favour of unelected representatives. Cr Mandy Mayhem said she had "no issue whatsoever" with mana whenua representatives having voting rights as it was important to have shared responsibility on decision making. Māori perspectives should be incorporated in local governance and steps like developing "culturally appropriate consultation processes" and supporting self-determination could ensure Māori participation. Fellow councillor and mayoral candidate Sophie Barker said she believed in Māori representation and input into council decision-making. "I realise people can be nervous about unelected representatives on committees. However, I think committee representation is useful to ensure we have mana whenua views." Cr Barker said people she had spoken to felt comfortable with the arrangement as committees did not have the same powers as council. "A Māori ward was raised recently by a member of mātāwaka. Some Māori, while respecting and honouring the rights of local iwi, feel that their voices are not being heard in decision making ... it's worth thinking about." Green Party nominee Mickey Treadwell said Māori had "long been under-represented in local government" and committee representation and Māori wards were an important part of addressing the inequity. "Both the DCC and the [regional council] have independent accountants on their audit and risk subcommittees, and this somehow escapes controversy." Other mayoral candidates Lee Vandervis and Jules Radich did not respond to questions.
Otago Daily Times
02-06-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Real solutions before ‘saving the world'
Flooded streets in South Dunedin and Bathgate Park in June 2015. PHOTO: STEPHEN JAQUIERY South Dunedin stormwater issues should be sorted out "before we embark on saving the world", a mayoralty candidate says. However, a city councillor argues shaping a climate-resilient future need not get in the way of local solutions. The differing perspectives came from Cr Steve Walker and Future Dunedin political ticket leader and mayoralty hopeful Andrew Simms, while Crs Sophie Barker and Lee Vandervis — another mayoralty candidate — also weighed in. Mr Simms noted it had been 10 years since a large flood in South Dunedin, and he lamented lack of progress in implementing key recommendations from a 2017 report by Opus about stormwater. The South Dunedin Future programme was set up by the Dunedin City Council and the Otago Regional Council after the flooding and it is principally about responding to climate change and natural hazards through a long-term plan under development. Mr Simms characterised the programme as offering "a long-term, billion-dollar response to gradual sea-level rise and climate change". "But the Opus report focuses on what South Dunedin urgently needs right now: practical, immediate solutions to mitigate flooding caused by an overwhelmed drainage system." Future Dunedin would advocate for Opus to update its proposals for the council, "to ensure decisions are grounded in sound engineering, not just long-term vision", Mr Simms said. He and Future Dunedin council candidate Conrad Stedman had talked to stormwater engineers and South Dunedin residents and "listened to longtime Surrey St residents whose showers back up with sewage during heavy rain". "We acknowledge the challenges of climate change, but Dunedin ratepayers' money should be spent firstly on solving Dunedin's problems, before we embark on saving the world." Cr Walker took issue with the way Mr Simms had framed matters, describing some aspects as misleading. The city council had directed money to immediate issues faced by South Dunedin and there was no agenda to prioritise international climate goals at the expense of local resilience, he said. Cr Walker said work could be done to deal with immediate problems for low-lying communities and shaping a climate-resilient future — "one doesn't have to come at the expense of the other". "While short-term, temporary fixes may look politically attractive, we should caution against knee-jerk reactions if it puts at risk, financially impinges on, or delays the longer-term planning identified in the excellent [South Dunedin Future] programme." Cr Barker said Future Dunedin's position was not greatly at odds with the council's. "While we need to look at the long term and our climate adaptation work, we also need action now to stop people's homes flooding and minimise damage," she said. Dunedin Mayor Jules Radich particularly pushed for a multimillion-dollar package for immediate mitigation and the council voted this year in support of it. Cr Vandervis said sewage erupting in Surrey St without a fix was unforgivable. However, northern parts of the city should not be forgotten and flooding there had historically been more damaging, he said. "Flood events in Dunedin can never be entirely controlled, but having a historically informed overview of all Dunedin flood vulnerability should spread limited resources proportionately to protect the majority of Dunedin residents and businesses."
Otago Daily Times
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Letters to the Editor: Campaign spend, pay equity, rabbits and rail
Today's Letters to the Editor from readers cover topics including campaign spending, pay equity, rabbits and KiwiRail. Meaningful ideas beat enormous ad budgets In response to Mr Bill Southworth's letter (ODT 26.6.25) suggesting that both I and Future Dunedin hold an unfair advantage in the upcoming Dunedin City Council local body elections due to our ability to run a campaign. While the current rules permit each candidate to spend up to $55,000 on campaigning, Future Dunedin's actual budget is well below that limit. What sets us apart is not the scale of our spending, but the strength of our vision - a vision grounded in genuine change, practical ambition, and a deep commitment to the future of our city. We look forward to sharing that vision with the people of Dunedin and inviting their support. Mr Southworth may find reassurance in the fact that, in 2022, the candidate who invested the most in their campaign was ultimately unsuccessful. This underscores a fundamental truth in local democracy: meaningful ideas resonate more deeply than advertising budgets. Future Dunedin has also made a principled decision not to accept any external donations. We are not aligned with any political party, nor are we funded by outside interests. Should we be elected, our councillors will answer only to the people of Dunedin. Andrew Simms Mayoral and council candidate for Future Dunedin Pearl clutching ''Hipkins said he had changed his position on the appropriateness of the column because of the distraction it was causing, which was 'taking away from what is a very fair issue'.'' (RNZ 15.5.25). This was the moment Chris Hipkins showed his complete inability to lead and be the next prime minister. Instead of recognising the juicy open goal presented by the most outrageous egregious pearl-clutching episode ever seen in Parliament and treating it with the kind of derision that Helen Clark would have revelled in, he bottled it, conceding weakly to the disingenuous framing of Brooke van Velden and certain media commentators, and threw Jan Tinetti under the bus. The late Bob Jones once called Bill Rowling the ''shiver in search of a spine'': Hipkins owns this now. Pay equity was and is the issue. Andrew Nichols Kew Freight hub What I consider very good news is the proposed freight hub is to be located at Milburn. This is an ideal location and must result in fewer heavy vehicles coming through Dunedin and using SH88 to and from Port Chalmers. The CEO of Port Otago, Kevin Winders, is very supportive and has indicated this hub will not be in competition with the one to be fully developed in Mosgiel. I suggest Calder Stewart start doing it immediately before all the naysayers get together and act against this plan. John Neilson Ravensbourne Oi. Shhh. Southland Hospital's ban on its staff chatting to each other for more than 5 minutes a day, and never in the afternoon, is brilliant. The management is well aware that talking about the performance of the All Blacks, the Kardashians or Meghan and Harry takes up far too many valuable minutes, and patients may die as a consequence. To have a taciturn but kindly and efficient staff is clearly the aim, and will surely save the taxpayer many millions. Mark Stocker Christchurch We are making rabbits run run run - KiwiRail I was surprised to read comments highlighting issues with feral rabbits in the rail corridor in Otago, and suggesting that land occupiers and Otago Regional Council staff have had limited success engaging with public agencies to enable effective control of rabbits (ODT 21.5.25). KiwiRail is committed to controlling rabbits on its land and has been carrying out targeted rabbit control annually since 2019 throughout sections of the rail corridor in Balclutha, Moeraki, Waihola, Milton and Henley. This has been undertaken in collaboration with both the ORC and the local community. Pests do not respect boundaries, so pest control is a responsibility of all landowners. KiwiRail is absolutely playing its part. Ruth Brittain National vegetation contract manager, KiwiRail Recognition sought Please could the current government at the very least acknowledge the economic cost that the Labour government had to bear with the four disasters it had to finance during its terms. Kay Hannan Weston Somehow not sighting the causal nexus If the Otago University Staff for Palestine group (Letters ODT 26.5.25) are so blinkered by their prejudice against Israel that they do not see the significant causal nexus between the Hamas attacks of October 7, 2023 and the present situation in Gaza, then there is little hope that the group's efforts can actually make any contribution towards their ostensible aims of improving the plight for Palestinians. Before October 2023, 18,000 Palestinians from Gaza held work permits allowing them to cross the controlled border between Gaza and Israel for work each day. After October 2023, all of these permits were revoked. Before October 2023, there were no settlers, settlements, or permanent Israeli forces within Gaza, although Israel still controlled the borders. After October 2023, the idea that Israel should not continue to control its borders is ridiculous. Malcolm Moncrief-SpittleDunedin [Abridged - editor.]
Otago Daily Times
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Unusual backdrop to DCC plan hearing
Walk-outs, insults, political manoeuvring and cackling councillors. It was anything but your usual Dunedin City Council meeting. Ruby Shaw and Grant Miller explore why this year's long-term plan hearing was overshadowed by the drama. As the volunteer driver of Dunedin's campaign ambulance answered questions on his long-term-plan submission, a ''guffawing'' or perhaps a sniggering caught him by surprise. To his left, Mike Waddell saw Dunedin city councillor Carmen Houlahan rolling her eyes and heaving an exasperated sigh, actions he says were mirrored by Cr Jim O'Malley. Their response to his concerns on a proposed Smooth Hill landfill struck him as ''appalling'', and he told them so - ''it's a sad reflection when people are starting to laugh around the table,'' he said. ''Where is the respect?'' Speaking to the Otago Daily Times a few days later, Mr Waddell said the interaction was ''pretty awful''. The council had called for submissions and it was the councillors' job to listen, ''not to belittle people''. The reaction from Crs Houlahan and O'Malley was unprofessional - '''could do better' would be on the school report,'' he said. There were plenty of moments at last week's long-term-plan hearing that suggested more than usual was on the line. On the second day, three councillors walked out in protest, one was ejected and two submitters said they were being disrespected by councillors. By the final day, mayoral hopeful Andrew Simms and developer Allan Dippie were squaring up over the Smooth Hill landfill - airing ''colourful'' emails which disparaged the current crop of elected officials as ''weird'', ''woke'' and talentless. Cr Houlahan apologised if she upset Mr Waddell and Cr O'Malley had apologised for snorting during submitter Sarah Ramsay's presentation, who also opposed the Smooth Hill landfill. Mrs Ramsay stopped her presentation to chastise poor behaviour, saying ''I don't appreciate councillors laughing at me''. Both councillors said they were irked at submitters peddling incorrect information on Smooth Hill put forward by election candidates. So what was different about this year's long term plan hearing? Three councillors have pointed to an unusual set of circumstances, which meant the hearing was held in election year instead of halfway through the council term. In 2024, the Dunedin City Council deferred its long-term-plan a year amid uncertainty about transport funding and Three Waters reform. On top of this, mayoral candidate Andrew Simms launched an early, well-funded campaign for office in January, which was in full swing as long-term-plan hearings began. This meant the usual diet of earnest appeals for council to build more cycleways and improve playgrounds has been spiced up with a healthy helping of political point-scoring. Mr Simms has been vocal in his opposition to the council's planned $92.4m landfill at Smooth Hill, near Brighton - ads from his Future Dunedin campaign have said waste should be sent to an existing, privately operated site in Winton. Mr Waddell and Mrs Ramsay happened to be making submissions about the topic which has so far dominated the election year. Clearly Mr Simms' campaign had hit a nerve and, when his talking points were recounted by others during the hearing, councillors were drawn into debate as they tried to explain the council's position. Cr O'Malley said there was little point in having hearings if ''misinformation and political manoeuvring'' entered the process. ''Having these hearings during an election year has resulted in some presenters coming... armed with positions put forward by council and mayoral candidates that are factually incorrect,'' Cr O'Malley in turn said. ''When those presenters are informed the position is incorrect, some have then doubled down and some have been very casual in their language to councillors.'' Cr Houlahan said she was frustrated at the amount of false information ''being pushed'' by election candidates. Cr Sophie Barker said she was unhappy the long-term plan was being done in an election year. ''There's too much politics entering into the process and too many distractions for people,'' she said. ''It also means that we sign off the plan, then go straight into an election - the next council could quickly change the plan and budget.'' A defining point of last week's hearing came on its final day, when Mr Dippie and Mr Simms butted heads over the Smooth Hill landfill. Mr Dippie called Future Dunedin's ads opposing the landfill ''wild, alarmist [and] extremist'' trying to ''be populist'' ahead of the election. He told councillors he and Mr Simms had exchanged ''colourful'' emails on the matter. In response, Mr Simms read from Mr Dippie's colourful emails. ''Just look at the lack of talent and the general weirdness and wokeness of some of the present councillors - probably the best money they have ever been on and ever will be,'' Mr Simms read, before Cr Bill Acklin raised a point of order, upheld by the mayor. Mr Dippie told the ODThe received unusual responses when he later apologised to councillors. Some of replies to his apology included: ''I totally agree with your weird and woke comment, no apology needed from me'' and ''Thanks for your email. No offence taken. Your submission was so refreshing thank you. It was great.'' Cr Steve Walker said: ''I'm hard to offend Allan, so no issue from me. To be honest, I've begun taking it as a compliment being referred to as woke!'' Mr Simms said he was surprised some councillors had supported Mr Dippie's comments though long-term-plan decisions would ''inevitably'' be impacted by the looming election, he said. ''I can absolutely see that Mr Dippie's personal attack on me will have suited some of them who may feel threatened by my campaign, but that doesn't excuse them condoning that type of language and that type of behaviour. ''I have no doubt that some of the hostility that I received during those hearings... was as a result of being a candidate essentially - it's human nature, isn't it?'' Future Dunedin had no sitting councillors, which gave them the ability to focus on campaigning earlier, Mr Simms said. ''And I guess to try and establish a profile, particularly in respect to the big issues that are facing the city.'' One of those issues he had established a profile on was the Smooth Hill landfill, which he acknowledged he and Mr Dippie had ''very different'' views on. ''I'm still yet to understand why Allan found it necessary to launch a scathing attack on myself and candidates and sitting councillors in order to express that view. Cr Lee Vandervis said the ''spat'' between Mr Dippie and Mr Simms was an entertaining look into how ''some wealthy people viewed elected representatives''. Last year, council chief executive Sandy Graham had found a single word to express a similar view to Mr Dippie's, Cr Vandervis said, referring to an ODT article last year which revealed Ms Graham had referred to the mayor and councillors as ''f... tards''. Hearing chairman Mr Radich was blamed by some councillors for allowing poor behaviour. The hearing's constant obstruction was Mr Radich's ''general incompetence... and the mystery and inconsistency of his rulings'', Cr David Benson-Pope said. ''After a term as mayor things ain't coming together.'' Cr Steve Walker said departure from previous LTP hearings was on Mr Radich. ''Councillor conduct is only EVER as good as the chair's ability to run a good meeting.'' Cr Lee Vandervis said the mayor yielded to ''precious sensitivities of councillors'' by allowing rudeness towards submitters critical of council. Mr Radich said it was disappointing to see some councillors blame him as chairman, rather than taking personal responsibility for their own behaviour. ''But my focus remains on the big issues facing our city. Submitters' concerns raised about councillor conduct were addressed at the time, he said. ''I encourage councillors to learn from this and avoid repeating the types of behaviour that disrupt meetings and erode the confidence our community should have in us all.'' Cr Barker said elected members lack of respect was a low-point and Cr Benson-Pope said there was certainly more poor behaviour from councillors than previous long-term-plan hearings. Cr Kevin Gilbert said despite a few lapses, councillor conduct was broadly fine. ''I am still perplexed at the ease with which points of order get raised from some seats, and with the freedom that opinion and fact can get confused.'' In an email sent to staff after the hearing, Cr Christine Garey commended them and said: ''elected members could well take a leaf out of your book''. Despite being critical of their peers' conduct, several councillors noted the high quality and variety of submissions and speakers who broadly understanding finances were stretched across households, organisations and the council alike. Council deliberations on the long-term-plan will run from May 26-29. The plan is expected to be formally adopted in June.
