Latest news with #Heatley
Scoop
16-07-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Northpower Trust 2025 AGM Bound For Whangārei
Northpower's electricity consumers throughout Kaipara and Whangārei are being encouraged to attend the Northpower Electric Power Trust (the Trust) Annual General Meeting on 30 July, 2025. Chair Phil Heatley says all Trust consumer beneficiaries connected to the Northpower electricity network can attend. They will hear from Trustees, along with the Northpower Board and Executive members about the company's performance the past year. Northpower Limited is owned by the Trust () on behalf of consumers connected to Northpower's electricity network in the Kaipara and Whangārei districts. Mr Heatley says he is looking forward to welcoming people to the AGM at Northland Events Centre on July 30. 'It is a good opportunity for Kaipara and Whangārei residents connected to the Northpower electricity network to meet Trustees, Northpower Directors and Management over a relaxed lunch. 'With more than 1400 employees stretching from Northland to many other regions throughout the North Island, Northpower is a significant home-grown success story we can all be proud of,' says Mr Heatley. 'An example of this success is the efforts of the team responsible for designing and building Northpower's first grid scale solar farm - Te Puna Mauri ō Omaru - at Ruawai. 'Stage one of solar project is now fully commissioned with the 16.8 MW solar farm capable of generating enough electricity to power over 3,000 average residential homes.' The Trust Deputy Chair Sheena McKenzie says in addition, phase two of the project was commissioned this month, delivering an extra 2.5 MW of clean energy, enough to supply a further 450 homes and businesses. 'Together, these milestones represent real progress in our commitment to a more sustainable and resilient energy future,' says Ms McKenzie. She says on behalf of Northpower consumers, Trustees continue to maintain a thorough overview of electricity sector and regulatory matters throughout the year. The Trust AGM will be held at Northland Events Centre, 51 Okara Drive, Whangārei. A light lunch will be served at 12:30pm.
Scoop
15-07-2025
- Business
- Scoop
$3.8M Of Regional Sporting Facilities Rate Funding Allocated
Ruakākā Wahitakaro and Northland Regional Volleyball Arena will receive up to $2.6 million and Sportsville Dargaville Stage Two up to $1.2M in the latest allocations from the Northland Regional Council's Regional Sporting Facilities Rate. The council's Strategic & Commercial Projects Manager Phil Heatley says the GST exclusive sums will go to Ruakākā Wahitakaro and Northland Regional Volleyball Arena in the current financial year and to Sportsville Dargaville Stage Two in 2026-2027. Stage One of Ruakākā Wahitakaro was a community centre completed in 2024. The estimated total project cost for Stage Two is $8.5M and will include a multi-sport indoor facility featuring two indoor courts and supporting meeting spaces. It will also include 'Northland's Home of Volleyball', a regional facility for volleyball providing training and competition opportunities and the ability to host regional, district and community events. Mr Heatley says Sportsville Dargaville Stage One was completed in December 2018 and involved six multi-purpose outdoor courts with a supporting multi-sport facility. "The estimated project cost of Stage Two is $9M and will include a multi-sport indoor facility featuring two indoor courts and supporting meeting spaces." "It is designed to provide opportunities for training and district competitions and the ability to host regional, district and community level events." Mr Heatley says the NRC struck the targeted $14.07 plus GST Regional Sporting Facilities Rate (per SUIP/Rating Unit) in its 2024-2034 Long Term Plan to provide funding support to assist in the development of Northland sporting facilities that are of regional or district-wide benefit. A working group made up of representatives from the NRC, Northland's three district council's and Sport Northland had recommended the funding for the 2024-2027 financial years. Regional councillors had confirmed the group's recommendation at a council meeting late last month. "This will give those overseeing the projects a degree of certainty to plan and a platform to apply for third party funding." Mr Heatley says potential recipient projects are identified through a regionwide consultation process, initially to inform 'Kokiri ai Te Waka Hourua', a strategy for play, active recreation and sport. The strategy was produced in partnership by the NRC, Sport Northland, Northland's three district councils and Sport New Zealand. "A proposed project is presented to Sport Northland in the first instance, by a regional or district not-for-profit sporting focussed group, for consideration and prioritisation." "Substantial work by the working group sees the prioritisation of regional sporting facility projects. Mr Heatley says for this allocation, 16 projects had been in varying states of readiness with six being advanced enough to be able to be scored and benchmarked against council-approved criteria.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Resignation of Crater Lake head leaves Oregon congressional delegation concerned
Crater Lake on a hazy afternoon Aug 4, 2021, caused by wildfires in southern Oregon. (Photo by Alex Baumhardt / Oregon Capital Chronicle) While Democratic members of Oregon's congressional delegation expressed alarm at the sudden resignation of the leader of the state's only national park, the Republican who has the park in his district declined to take a position Friday. Kevin Heatley, the new superintendent of Crater Lake National Park, resigned from his post May 30 over staffing concerns after just five months on the job. Heatley, who had previously worked at the Bureau of Land Management, told Oregon Public Broadcasting, KGW, The Washington Post and several other news organizations that staffing was already lean at Crater Lake, and layoffs of probationary employees President Donald Trump ordered, followed by hiring freezes, mandates to leave vacant positions unfilled and new federal incentives from the Office of Personnel Management and the office known as the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, to resign or retire were making it worse. Oregon's congressional delegation met the news with differing levels of concern. U.S. Rep. Maxine Dexter, representing Oregon's 3rd Congressional District, wrote Wednesday to Doug Burgum, secretary of the Department of the Interior, demanding to know if he or the agency had undertaken any analysis of what staffing levels were like there or how bad it had gotten. Dexter is also a member of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. On X, formerly known as Twitter, Oregon's U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, a Democrat, said it is clear to him that Trump is 'hellbent on destroying natural treasures like Crater Lake.' U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz, who represents Oregon's 2nd District —his district includes southern Oregon's Crater Lake — said on the phone Friday he'd 'look into it.' 'The person's (Heatley) concern may be well founded. It may not. Until I know the facts better, I'm not going to take a position on it, but now that you've raised an issue, we'll look into it,' he said. The national park in southern Oregon, famous for its vibrant and translucent volcanic lake that is among the deepest in the world, typically sees about half-a-million visitors each year. But this summer, 60 to 65 seasonal positions will need to be filled, Heatley told journalists in several reports, and just eight ranger positions have so far been filled to keep visitors in the 286-square-mile park safe. 'I mean, the train is still running on the tracks, but it's not heading in the right direction,' Heatley told OPB on June 2. 'I cannot, in good conscience, manage an operation that I know is moving in the wrong direction.' Spokespeople for Crater Lake did not respond to Capital Chronicle requests for staffing and hiring data. The federal jobs portal USA Jobs does not list any current vacancies at Crater Lake. The Kansas-based company running Crater Lake's lodging, concessions, retail and boating operations had 18 vacant positions listed on its site as of June 5. The National Parks Conservation Association, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit conservation group, called the staffing issues at the 63 National Parks a 'full-blown staffing crisis.' They report that the Department of the Interior's own workforce database shows that as of May 13, the Park Service had just over 18,000 employees across all parks, a more than 16% drop from 2023, the previous fiscal year — a decrease equal to that of the previous ten years combined. The association said the recent sharp drop was driven by Trump-incentivized buyouts, early retirements, deferred resignations and leaving vacancies unfilled. Interior Department data also shows 39% of seasonal and temporary staff at the national parks have been hired so far — about 3,300 employees. That's less than half the number of seasonal employees Park Service officials said they'd hire in a February memo. In her letter to Burgum, Dexter called Heatley's resignation a 'flashing red warning sign that something is very wrong,' in a news release Wednesday. This article was first published by the Oregon Capital Chronicle, part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oregon Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Julia Shumway for questions: info@
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Resignation of Crater Lake head leaves Oregon congressional delegation concerned, clueless
Crater Lake on a hazy afternoon Aug 4, 2021, caused by wildfires in southern Oregon. (Alex Baumhardt / Oregon Capital Chronicle) While Democratic members of Oregon's congressional delegation expressed alarm at the sudden resignation of the leader of the state's only national park, the Republican who has the park in his district declined to take a position Friday. Kevin Heatley, the new superintendent of Crater Lake National Park, resigned from his post May 30 over staffing concerns after just five months on the job. Heatley, who had previously worked at the Bureau of Land Management, told Oregon Public Broadcasting, KGW, The Washington Post and several other news organizations that staffing was already lean at Crater Lake, and layoffs of probationary employees President Donald Trump ordered, followed by hiring freezes, mandates to leave vacant positions unfilled and new federal incentives from the Office of Personnel Management and the office known as the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, to resign or retire were making it worse. Oregon's congressional delegation met the news with differing levels of concern. U.S. Rep. Maxine Dexter, representing Oregon's 3rd Congressional District, wrote Wednesday to Doug Burgum, secretary of the Department of the Interior, demanding to know if he or the agency had undertaken any analysis of what staffing levels were like there or how bad it had gotten. Dexter is also a member of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. On X, formerly known as Twitter, Oregon's U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, a Democrat, said it is clear to him that Trump is 'hellbent on destroying natural treasures like Crater Lake.' U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz, who represents Oregon's 2nd District —his district includes southern Oregon's Crater Lake — said on the phone Friday he'd 'look into it.' 'The person's (Heatley) concern may be well founded. It may not. Until I know the facts better, I'm not going to take a position on it, but now that you've raised an issue, we'll look into it,' he said. The national park in southern Oregon, famous for its vibrant and translucent volcanic lake that is among the deepest in the world, typically sees about half-a-million visitors each year. But this summer, 60 to 65 seasonal positions will need to be filled, Heatley told journalists in several reports, and just eight ranger positions have so far been filled to keep visitors in the 286-square-mile park safe. 'I mean, the train is still running on the tracks, but it's not heading in the right direction,' Heatley told OPB on June 2. 'I cannot, in good conscience, manage an operation that I know is moving in the wrong direction.' Spokespeople for Crater Lake did not respond to Capital Chronicle requests for staffing and hiring data. The federal jobs portal USA Jobs does not list any current vacancies at Crater Lake. The Kansas-based company running Crater Lake's lodging, concessions, retail and boating operations had 18 vacant positions listed on its site as of June 5. The National Parks Conservation Association, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit conservation group, called the staffing issues at the 63 National Parks a 'full-blown staffing crisis.' They report that the Department of the Interior's own workforce database shows that as of May 13, the Park Service had just over 18,000 employees across all parks, a more than 16% drop from 2023, the previous fiscal year — a decrease equal to that of the previous ten years combined. The association said the recent sharp drop was driven by Trump-incentivized buyouts, early retirements, deferred resignations and leaving vacancies unfilled. Interior Department data also shows 39% of seasonal and temporary staff at the national parks have been hired so far — about 3,300 employees. That's less than half the number of seasonal employees Park Service officials said they'd hire in a February memo. In her letter to Burgum, Dexter called Heatley's resignation a 'flashing red warning sign that something is very wrong,' in a news release Wednesday. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Crater Lake superintendent steps down amid staffing cuts under Trump admin
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The superintendent of Crater Lake National Park announced his decision to resign from the post — citing concerns over staffing shortages after the Trump administration's efforts to slash the federal workforce. Sixty-four-year-old Kevin Heatley took on the superintendent role in January, he explained in an interview with the Washington Post, published Monday. But less than five months later, Heatley accepted a buyout offer from the administration to leave the position. 'It is really not an easy decision and not something I take lightly to walk away from Crater Lake,' Heatley told the Washington Post. 'But I'm tired of waking up at 3 in the morning and not being able to fall back asleep because I'm concerned about how I'm going to navigate the latest staffing communiqué.'Heatley explained that staffing shortages have persisted for years at Crater Lake National Park, but issues have intensified since President Donald Trump took office and implemented a federal hiring freeze, even though some seasonal workers were later exempted from the freeze. The former superintendent noted that low staffing almost led Crater Lake to cancel its annual cycling event, Ride the Rim, but at the last minute, regional travel bureau Discover Klamath offered 40 volunteers for the event. 'That's not a sustainable model for running an organization — or a park,' Heatley told the Washington Post. Retired football star Jason Kelce gives shoutout to 'incredible' Oregon restaurant In the meantime, Heatley told the Post, 'I'll still stay involved in natural resources,' adding, 'And I'll continue to support Crater Lake however I can, even if it's just as a volunteer.' Heatley's resignation comes after Interior Secretary Doug Bergum directed national parks in early April to 'remain open and accessible,' as reported by the Associated Press. Park advocates, on the other hand, questioned how parks could comply with the directive after workforce reduction efforts under the Trump administration. The AP reported in April that the park service has lost around 1,500 permanent employees since the beginning of 2025, noting the Trump administration initially restored 50 positions and hired some seasonal workers 'following an uproar over an aggressive plan to downsize the agency.' Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now According to AP, more workers were offered their jobs back in March, following a judge's order, but some workers decided to leave their government jobs, and others were placed on administrative leave. In a statement to KOIN 6 News on Friday, a National Park Service spokesperson said, 'We are working closely with the Office of Personnel Management to ensure a prioritization of fiscal responsibility for the American people. While we do not comment on internal personnel matters, we remain committed to ensuring the continued success of Crater Lake National Park and to providing a world-class experience for all visitors. Our focus remains on protecting our public lands, supporting our staff, and upholding the mission of the National Park Service. A transition plan is in place, and we are confident in the team's ability to maintain high standards of stewardship and service during this period.' As reported by the Washington Post, Interior Secretary Bergum previously reassured Congress that national parks are adequately staffed. Tillamook opens first owned-and-operated facility outside of Oregon However, the Park Service's workforce has seen a sharp decline since Trump's inauguration, the Post said, citing internal Interior Department data from advocacy group National Parks Conservation Association. On May 21, in the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on interior, environment and related agencies, stating that around 26,500 people work in the park system. However, as of May 13, the Park Service employed 18,066 employees, the Washington Post reports. The staffing level marks a near-16.5% decrease in Park Service staff since fiscal year 2023, the Washington Post reported, noting the decrease includes staff who accepted buyout offers, deferred resignations, early retirements and fired probationary workers who chose not to return after a judge reinstated their positions. A spokesperson for Crater Lake National Park told KOIN 6 News they cannot comment on personnel matters, noting Deputy Superintendent Sean Denniston — who has been with Crater Lake since 2015 — is now in charge of the park. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
