Latest news with #WellingtonCityCouncil
RNZ News
5 hours ago
- RNZ News
Graphics reveal what Wellington's waterfront could look like with safety balustrades
New graphics reveal what a $7 million project to put safety balustrades on parts of Wellington's waterfront might look like. Photo: Supplied / Wellington City Council Wellington City Council papers reveal what a $7 million project to put safety balustrades on parts of the waterfront might look like. The Environment and Infrastructure Committee will meet on 7 August to discuss installing edge protection on sections of the Kumutoto and Queens Wharf waterfront precincts, an area spanning approximately from the Maritime Police Station to Shed 6, to address safety risks in the high traffic areas. The effort to improve safety at one of NZ's 10 worst drowning spots follows recommendations made to Wellington City Council after a coronial inquest into the death of 30-year-old Sandy Calkin . Coroner Katharine Greig found Wellington's waterfront lacked adequate measures to prevent Calkin's death and recommended installing permanent edge protection. Council officers recommended installing the balustrades without community consultation to give urgency to the recommendations the coronor made. A public consultation process was expected to be undertaken for the remaining precincts, which would cost an additional $11m. The council's council's Environment and Infrastructure Committee will discuss whether to install the edge protection next month. Photo: Supplied / Wellington City Council Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
NZ Herald
4 days ago
- Politics
- NZ Herald
Wellington City Councillors more complained about than elected officials in other main centres
The council confirmed the complaints relate to city councillors, not community board members. Wellington City Councillors meeting at their chambers on The Terrace. Photo / Mark Mitchell. The council said complaints are handled with 'strict confidentiality, ensuring that employees feel supported and empowered to raise concerns without fear of disclosure'. Further requests for more detail on the complaints, including the names of the councillors involved, was denied by the council because of privacy. While different authorities record complaints in different ways, Wellington councillors received twice as many complaints as their Christchurch counterparts, the council with the second highest number. None of the three complaints raised by council officials about elected members at Christchurch City Council this term was escalated further. Christchurch City Councillors meeting at their premises on Hereford St. Photo / George Heard 'All three of these complaints never made it past notification, with staff choosing not to continue with the formal complaint process before they could be formally investigated and the claims substantiated.' Christchurch City Council would not provide any detail on the nature of the complaints. Auckland Council recorded two official complaints initiated by staff, both against local board members. A complaint was laid against Rodney Local Board member Geoff Upson by an Auckland Transport staff member regarding alleged offensive comments made about staff online. The council said it was resolved through mediation and no breach of the council's code of conduct was recorded. Auckland Council. Photo / Newstalk ZB Matt Winiata, a Manurewa Local Board member also faced a complaint by a parks staff member regarding alleged 'offensive comments in correspondence to staff', Auckland Council said. 'One aspect of the complaint was upheld and determined to be a non-material breach of the Code.' Other elements were not upheld as Winiata had already apologised. 'The Conduct Commissioner's recommendation was directed to the Chief Executive and staff, and no further action was required from the member', the council said. Why is Wellington City Council the worst? Tensions at Wellington City Council reached boiling point last year during a controversial debate on the proposed sale of its 34% share in Wellington airport. Traditional party voting blocs were broken and the council ultimately voted against a sale – upending the Long Term Plan (LTP). The Long Term Plan process also saw tensions rise between councillors and staff, with some around the council table questioning the quality of advice supplied by officers. Former Local Government Minister Simeon Brown intervened with the appointment of Crown observer Lindsay McKenzie. Mayor Tory Whanau said the process had brought out the worst behaviour of council members. Since his appointment, McKenzie has noted tensions in the relationships between councillors and staff. Lindsay McKenzie. Photo / Supplied. In his first report in December last year McKenzie said some elected members were concerned about the quality and timeliness of information they received ahead of making decisions. He said a few were concerned about biases in officers' reports and advice. McKenzie noted the way the council provided information to elected members was 'as thorough as one could expect'. He said his own appointment as a Crown observer had 'moderated' much of the conduct that has called the council into question. Mayor Tory Whanau also said at the time McKenzie's presence had helped her colleagues work more collaboratively. Mayor Tory Whanau at a Wellington City Council meeting. Photo / Mark Mitchell. Responding to the fact her council has recorded the most complaints, Whanau acknowledged she had seen instances of poor conduct from councillors. 'There is no doubt that the conduct by some councillors this term has not been what Wellingtonians would expect. Both to each other and staff', Whanau said. Whanau would not say whether she was the subject of any staff complaints. Reports of anti-social behaviour towards the council's frontline staff increased by a reported 323% in the past five years, rising from around 400 reports each year pre-covid to almost 1000 annually, the council announced in May. Ethan Manera is a New Zealand Herald journalist based in Wellington. He joined NZME in 2023 as a broadcast journalist with Newstalk ZB and is interested in local issues, politics, and property in the capital. Ethan can be emailed at
Scoop
7 days ago
- Politics
- Scoop
Cr Chung Code Of Conduct Complaints
Wellington City Council Chief Executive Matt Prosser has today responded to a number of Code of Conduct complaints against City Councillor Ray Chung – relating to his circulation of an email about Mayor Tory Whanau. Mr Prosser has told the 10 complainants that he has decided to draw the matter to a close after speaking with Cr Chung and the Mayor. In his message to the complainants and elected members, Mr Prosser wrote that, as the Mayor was involved in the matter, it fell to him as Chief Executive to consider the complaints as required under the Council's Code of Conduct. 'I have spoken to Councillor Chung who has told me that he understands that the email constituted a lapse of personal judgement and failed to show respect for others in his role as Councillor. As a result, Councillor Chung has issued a personal apology to the Mayor to acknowledge this and the harm caused. 'The Mayor advised me that she has accepted the apology from Cr Chung, and that she does not wish for a Code of Conduct investigation to be undertaken and to instead focus on working as a cohesive council to deliver for the city for the remainder of the triennium. 'On that basis I have decided to draw this matter to a close. 'I wish to be clear that, in doing so, I am respecting the wishes of the Mayor and that personally I do not condone this behaviour,' he said. Mr Prosser said that after the upcoming local body elections in October, elected members will receive an induction highlighting the importance of good conduct in their role as an elected member of the Council. 'I am working with senior members of my team to ensure that this onboarding is as thorough as possible.'
Scoop
7 days ago
- Politics
- Scoop
Candidate Nominations For Wellington City Council Local Elections Close Next Week
Nominations for candidates to stand in the 2025 Wellington City Council local elections have had a strong showing to date – but the clock is ticking down on the deadline for applications being accepted. The Council's Deputy Electoral Officer Jennifer Parker says Mayoral and Ward Councillor candidate nominations are still being received, and currently looking set to be more than previous years, but with just a week to go, other interested parties are encouraged not to wait until the last minute. 'It's great to see people wanting to represent their community in the local election process, and we expect quite a few more to come in, as the last week is always the busiest for our team. 'There's already a strong showing for Pukehīnau/Lambton General Ward, and a few candidates have officially thrown their hat in the ring for the Mayoralty, but the clock is ticking and applications won't be accepted if they miss the deadline of midday Friday 1 August.' Information is available for voters and candidates at including the pre-election report, nomination forms, candidate handbook, key dates, FAQs, ward maps, and details about the Māori ward poll. To be eligible to stand, prospective nominees must be New Zealand citizens, 18 years and over, and on the electoral roll. Candidates don't have to live in the area in which they want to stand. A candidate cannot nominate themselves. Two people who are enrolled in the area or ward they want to stand in must nominate them. A nomination deposit of $200 is payable for each position candidates wish to contest. As part of the election this year, Wellington City candidates will also have the opportunity to have a video recorded and uploaded to the website alongside their written information. The local elections are conducted by postal vote, and people who are enrolled can expect to receive their voting packs in the mail from 9-22 September. Voting closes at 12 noon on Saturday 11 October. Key dates for the 2025 local elections: 4 July – Candidate nominations open and roll opens for public inspection. 1 August – Candidate nominations close at 12 noon. From 4 August – Public notice of candidates' names available. 9-22 September – Voting documents delivered. 9 September – Voting opens. 7 October – Last day for posting vote by mail. After this date votes must be returned to the Council's secure orange voting bins, available at 50+ locations around the city. 11 October – Election day – voting closes 12 noon. 11 October – Progress results released. 15-22 October – Final results announced. Late October – Elected member inauguration and swearing-in ceremony. For more information about standing, enrolling and voting, visit
RNZ News
24-07-2025
- General
- RNZ News
Clean up of Wellington beach toxic dump site cost nearly $1 million
Te Raekaihau Point in Wellington. Photo: RNZ / Nick James Cleaning up an old toxic dump site on a Wellington beach has cost nearly a million dollars. In late 2021, a member of the public told local authorities they could see asbestos on a bank at Te Raekaihau Point, which sits between Lyall Bay and Princess Bay, an area popular for walkers, runners and cyclists. The council did investigations of the site in July 2022 and August 2023 which found evidence of asbestos, oil, heavy metals, zinc, arsenic and lead. They said it appeared the area was used for sand extraction in the 1930s, with it being back filled with waste likely in the 1950s or 60s. Earlier this year RNZ reported that the council would excavate, wrap and move to the material to the southern landfill, due to the area being at risk of erosion and storm surges that could have led to it leaking. Over three weeks in May that work was done, which also included the relocation of native lizards called Mokomoko and digging up 2,200 tonnes of waste. Wellington City Council has confirmed to RNZ that the work costed nearly $1 million with half of it being paid for by the government through the $30 million Contaminated Sites and Vulnerable Landfills Fund announced in October. A council marine and coastal project manager Joel De Boer told RNZ he was aware that there may be more sites like this around the city. "A lot of them will already be covered, some of them may already be capped over and it may not be until you know a point in time when they become exposed that action will be taken." De Boer said it was not a not cheap job to clean these dumpsites up so the council's job was about reacting to them when it could. He said that from his conversations with the Ministry of Environment there were many sites like this across New Zealand. A site validation report which would determine the final levels of any contaminants was being finished and would be peer reviewed over the next few weeks. The council expected it to show the area was safe. Throughout the Wellington region there are more than 100 closed landfill sites, many of which lay under popular parks and reserves. When RNZ first reported on the South Coast site in January environment scientist Dr Jeff Seadon said it was not surprising. "What we've got is something in the order of hundreds if not thousands of these sites around New Zealand. A lot of these sites are known by councils, but there are also a lot that are still unfound or undetected." Seadon said during the 19th and 20th centuries, waste was often dumped because it was convenient and created some extra land. He said with larger storm surges and sea level rise, these dumps were being swept out and exposed.
