Have your say: Representation Review - what does it mean for Hāwea?
Update 15/8/21: Submissions have now closed. WanakaApp report on results.
QLDC’s Representation Review is open for submissions with Friday 6th August the closing date. Should Wanaka Community Board be abolished? Should Arrowtown remain as single councillor ward? If Arrowtown takes this route, should Hāwea do the same?
Wanaka Community Board
There has been lots of talk about representation with the current proposal talking about disbanding the Wanaka Community Board (WCB). Currently, Jude Battson is a Hāwea local who has been representing the our Community on the WCB along with Ed Taylor, Chris Hadfield and Barry Bruce. We also have our three Councillors Calum MacLeod, Quentin Smith and Niamh Shaw who sit on the board.
How do we feel about potentially losing this in favour of an alternative system? Whatever the outcome, we'd like to thank all of the board members for stepping up to help represent the district.
Further reading:
Wanaka App, 8th June 2021
The News, 10th June 2021
ODT, 9 July 2021
ODT, 30 July 2021
ODT, 24 July 2021
Arrowtown & Hawea; Similar in Population
Is it better to be part of a larger ward and have the option to vote for 4 councillors; or is it better be a single councillor ward with only one councillor to vote for, but one who will be focused on our needs and issues?
The experts tasked with suggesting best options for the Representation Review suggested 3 wards with 4 councillors each, each with similar populations and similar projected populations.
Representatives from the Arrowtown community spoke against this at the relevant council meeting, leading to the council to amend the proposal to 4 wards, re-drawing boundary lines to enable Arrowtown to remain as its own ward with one councillor, leaving a Kawarau ward with 3 councillors; and the Whakatipu and Wānaka-Hāwea wards still to have 4 councillors each.
Going by the most recent census, this proposal still gives each ward similar population per councillor stats, however, with the Arrowtown population unlikely to grow at the same rate as the other wards, by the time the next review comes round, Arrowtown will again have a lower population per councillor ratio than the other wards.
The Hāwea area (Lake Hāwea and Hawea Flat) has a similar population size to also warrant being its own ward with one councillor. Is this something our community wants? Is it better to vote for one councillor dedicated to us, with the possibility that the pool of potential candidates may be small (Arrowtown’s councillor frequently stands unopposed), or it is better to have option to vote for 4 councillors and hope amongst them will be councillors that do a good job at representing Hawea’s interests?
Further reading
Crux, 1st July
Previous HCA Article on the topic
QLDC - Advisory Group recommendations, 4th June
Have Your Say
To date, Hawea Community Association (HCA) has received little feedback from the community on these issues. We hope this is because you have all got onto QLDC’s Let’s Talk page to have your say. If you haven’t already done so, please make a submission before closing date, Friday 6th July 2021.
HCA has not received enough community feedback on these issues to make a submission on the community’s behalf.
