With public outreach over, it’s time for councils to put their cards on the table.
Hastings City and Napier Councils will take up the options at their meetings on Thursday the 16th. As I write, neither has yet posted their agenda paper on the matter.
But c’mon, what’s the mystery?!
Councillors will be hung in town squares if they choose to let the Government write their reorg plan.
And the North/South option is a joke. It’s not even an admissible option under the Government Head Start guidance rules.
Here’s why. An acceptable plan must come from at least two councils that: 1) are a majority of councils in the region, OR 2) have a majority of the region’s population.
Look at these two examples from the Head Start rules for guidance:
Here’s the population of our four territories per Stats NZ:
Hastings District: 88,300
Napier: 66,400
CHB: 15,950
Wairoa: 8,940
Total: 179,590
50% of total: 89, 795
Obviously, per Example 2 above, HDC could submit a plan with any other council, with the result being more than half the HB population. And that plan could encompass all four councils, happily or otherwise. The NCC + WDC combination holds less than a majority of the population and is not a majority of HB’s councils. Hence, per Example 3 above, no sale! Why was it even consulted on?
So, unless HDC falls apart at the seams (or even more improbable, CHB+NCC+WDC form a ludicrous DEEP South/North alliance), there can be no North/South split of the region.
With Hasting and Napier slated to place their chips this week, we must then anxiously await Wairoa (slated to consider options at a workshop on 21 Jul, with a council decision on the 28th) and CHB (last to show their hand on 5 August).
Other issues
While you wait for the amalgamation outcome, you can catch up with current thinking on dams at a forum Monday, 13 July, 7:30pm sponsored by Wise Water Use at the Hastings Baptist Church.
