Mayoral recommendations 2024

Introduction

Our 10-year plan represents the single most significant piece of work this council will complete during this triennium.

We have had 20 months as a team to prepare for this series of decisions which will allocate more than $4.2 billion of public funds over the next decade.

We agreed to a set of high-level objectives we refer to as our strategic framework.

We use our strategic framework to make decisions about the allocation of public funds across a wide range of different infrastructure classes and service lines along with the corresponding taxes, fees and charges that are employed to fund our activities.

We are taking a long-term view, thinking about what life in Taranaki will be like beyond 2050.

We are asking ourselves important questions. Many of them related to intergenerational equity

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Questions including how we should act now to ensure future generations flourish with access to sufficient resources to thrive?

How do we restore and balance our ecosystems with the impacts of development and population growth?

How do we truly capture and clean our waste, reliably and efficiently to achieve credible sustainability?

How do we ensure our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren have access to quality infrastructure, a healthy environment with thriving biodiversity, have opportunities to create wealth, to gain meaningful employment and are able to build satisfying and enjoyable lives here?

How do we ensure our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren have access to quality infrastructure, a healthy environment with thriving biodiversity, have opportunities to create wealth, to gain meaningful employment and are able to build satisfying and enjoyable lives here?

How do we build on the work of previous councils and organisations who have set Taranaki up so well by focusing on retaining and growing community assets and wealth?

How do we build improved relationships with Mana Whenua and help close the appalling gaps that exist between Māori and non-Māori New Zealanders in terms of average life expectancy and standard of living?

Rate increases during a cost of living crisis.

We are acutely aware that our community is concerned about significant rate increases. As a result we have undertaken an organisation-wide restructure focused on ensuring our teams are designed to deliver more effectively and efficiently.

By making these changes we have reduced our operating expenditure by around $10 million a year, generating cost reductions of $100m over the next decade. We realise that the restructure has been challenging for our people and has resulted in a significant number of roles being disestablished. Our goal in undertaking this process has been to treat our people with respect, to work through changes fairly and to seek to minimise the amount of time people are dealing with uncertainty.

We will start the 2024/25 financial year with a changed organisation, a new structure and new teams focused on operational excellence.

Our focus has led us to invest in planning and infrastructure. We will invest around $1 billion in water, wastewater, storm water and transport infrastructure over the next decade. These investments form the core of our long term plan.

But as most people realise the cost to build and maintain infrastructure has increased significantly following the COVID pandemic

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To understand just how this has impacted us refer to the attached report prepare ?for Local Government New Zealand by Infometrics.

The report highlights cumulative inflation since 2020 (when our Long Term Plan was last assessed) is more than 25% across the capital costs that local government invests in. Civil construction costs are up 27% over the last three years (compared to 19% for consumer price inflation).

Capital cost escalation accelerated substantially over 2021-2023, with the overall capital goods price index peaking at 13%pa, and civil construction costs at 15%pa. In greater detail, transport capital cost escalation peaked at 19%pa (with bridges peaking at 29%pa) and water systems peaking at 15%pa.

In dealing with these price increases along with significant increases in interest costs we have had to balance our requirement to be prudent stewards of our community’s asset base with the community’s desire to minimise rate increases.

Our proposed rate increases over the next decade will be challenging for some households and reflect the huge level of investment required to maintain our asset base to meet community expectations. We will work to support those who struggle to pay rates through a range of initiatives including the rates rebate scheme and payment programmes.

We have made changes to our rating model to ensure it is fair, equitable and fit for purpose for the coming years.

We have reduced our uniform annual charges to develop a rating system which is more progressive, meaning properties with lower land values will experience lower than average rate increases and properties with higher land values will experience higher than average rate increases. These changes will reduce some of the financial pressure for our lower income households.

We have also changed the way we allocate rates between households, small holdings, farms, commercial and industrial land, addressing some of the criticisms of our old system that saw farms, commercial and industrial properties facing rate increases significantly higher than average.

Relationship with Central Government and its agencies.

We continue to work with our peers in other Councils to lobby central government to change the way public infrastructure is funded noting Councils are required to provide more than 25% of New Zealand’s public infrastructure whilst we receive just 8% of general taxation while central government’s policies see it collect the other 92% of general taxation and often provide councils with unfunded requirements to take on new responsibilities.

We will push hard for a share of the GST paid to central government on new housing developments to help us reduce rate increases. As a council we are focused on supporting responsible development and growth however the current model where Councils fund growth infrastructure and central government receives all the financial benefits is neither fit for purpose nor sustainable over the long term.

We also note that the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) has set a financial assistance rate of 51% for our district which means that in theory central government funds 51% of our transport costs. However the reality is that each year NZTA has reduced the actual funds provided to NPDC to an average of 30% over the past three years.

We will continue to work hard to adequately fund our public infrastructure and support NZTA to do the same, given its poor performance both in Taranaki and nationally due to a combination of underfunding, political mismanagement, immature asset management and suboptimal contract management.

Our draft 10 year plan

Having agreed to our strategic framework, updated our rating system and commenced our organisational realignment we developed our draft long-term plan late in 2023.

In developing our draft we planned to invest $1.5 billion in capital expenditure and $2.7 billion in operating expenditure over the next 10 years.

Where are we proposing to invest?

Roads, water, wastewater, stormwater, pathways, parks, footpaths, public reserves, investment management, libraries, economic development, working with Mana Whenua, our museum, art gallery, building and alcohol regulation, planning, policy development, rubbish, composting and recycling, playgrounds, swimming pools, lifeguards, parking, cemeteries, animal control, Emergency Management, events, parking controls, procurement, the airport, housing, arts and culture, property management, financial management, information systems, art in public places, people and training, environmental regulation and creating amazing public spaces.

New Plymouth district has fallen behind its peers in terms of the information systems which underpin our ability to manage assets and deliver services and we are embarking on a project to bring our systems up to date.

The majority of rate increases reflect our commitment to lifting investment in our roads, water, wastewater, storm water, parks and public spaces and our asset management systems.

We are also planning to invest for growth and to deliver improved services to our community including building the walkway between Bell Block and Waitara, increasing the covered courts for our sports people through the Tūparikino Active Community Hub at the racecourse and upgrades to ageing facilities at Pukekura Park.

What our community had to say about our plan

We took our draft plan to our community earlier this year and received 3,222 submissions. We also commissioned Key Research to undertake a survey of a randomised sample of members of our community to ensure we had two data sets with views and ideas to review when considering the decisions we need to make to finalise our plan

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When summarised the submissions largely supported the preferred options documented in our draft plan as outlined in the following table.

Having reviewed the submissions, we held five days of hearings, listening to members of our community outlining their views and ideas.

I wish to publicly acknowledge members of our community for the depth and quality of their ideas. I also wish to thank our team within Council for working so hard to communicate complex information to the public and elicit and analyse the huge amount of feedback we received to enable us to make quality decisions.

Following this process I have determined that there are a range of opportunities to refine and improve our draft plan.

The following suite of recommendations reflect the feedback our community provided.

Part 1 – Caring for our people and environment

As a council we need to future proof our district, investing more in our infrastructure with $688 million on water, wastewater and storm water infrastructure and $315 million into transport over the next 10 years. We also need to complete our water meter rollout and develop a volumetric pricing model.

The recommendations in this section reflect the wide range of feedback and requests we had during the LTP process covering projects large and small aimed at improving our infrastructure, environmental performance, social cohesion, improving the experience at Puke Ariki and boosting our trials in transport and social housing development.

Big Call 1:1 – Option 2.

Recommendation 1: Increase funding for our roading infrastructure to $315 million over 10 years.

Recommendation 2: Include a further $500k capex within the drinking water budget year 1 for the delivery of a safe non-fluoridated water supply at the racecourse to be available for members of our community as well as an emergency back-up if the city loses reticulated water supply, subject to viability.

Big Call 1:2 – Option 3

Recommendation 3:? Disaster recovery – boosting our self-insurance by $500,000 per annum with an additional $100,000 per annum from our Perpetual Investment Fund dividends as we prepare to support our community through a disaster and into recovery.

Our environment sustains us but as our population has grown, we have caused damage to our land, rivers, streams and coastline. We must work to green our urban areas, work towards our zero waste goal, support investments in solar energy, implement a targeted emissions reduction programme, trial a high frequency public transport pilot, build community gardens, and develop a regional energy strategy, and low emissions vehicle strategy.

Big Call 2:1 – Option 3+

Recommendation 4:? Accelerate our Climate Adaptation with an additional $250k of operational expenditure in year 1 to implement the climate action framework.

Recommendation 5:? Allocate an additional $100k per year for three years from the sustainability accelerator fund to boost our public transport high frequency trial to a total of $200k per annum.

Big Call 3:1 – Option 2

Recommendation 6:? Lifestyle Capital Reserve – paying something forward for the next generation with a fund to cover the costs of future capital projects for our community paid for through the growth in dividends from the Perpetual Investment Fund. $250k in year 1 increasing by $250k each year to generate an accumulated total of $13.75m by year 10.

Recommendation 7:? Housing Funding – continue to pursue alternative delivery options and central government funding and expand working capital to enable delivery of more new units – increased opex of $100k in year 2 and an additional $100k in year 3 to take the working capital to $6m over three years.

Recommendation 8:? Additional youth funding of $65k per annum over 10 years to help deliver youth engagement and services for our district.

Recommendation 9:? Undertake a process to rename the of boat shed lawn in Pukekura Park – name to be determined by Pride Taranaki in conjunction with NPDC and Ngati Te Whiti (NTW) supported with appropriate signage from existing budgets.

Recommendation 10: Invest in refreshing the Puke Ariki Life Gallery. Capex of $100k in year 1, $200k in year 2 and $500k in year 3.

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Part 2 - Partnerships with Mana Whenua

Council has been working with Mana Whenua on a wide range of projects from our spatial planning to three waters, our airport, our coastal reserves, our economic development strategy, Te Pae o te Rangi (the Bell Block to Waitara walkway), the Te Rewa Rewa working party and Tūparikino Active Community Hub.

We have already budgeted for building capacity within Māoridom to help speed up the processing of resource consents and help to deliver quality developments in our district but there are opportunities to further grow the work we do together and the following initiatives reflect a desire to evolve our relationship, working in good faith to be a reliable partner.

Note that during the Covid Pandemic NPDC established a pandemic underwrite of $1.9 million for the Taranaki Arts Festival Trust to ensure they remained solvent in the event of further pandemic related cancelations of WOMAD. Within these recommendations it is proposed to cancel the underwrite agreement and allocate those funds across a range of activities outlined in this report.

Recommendation 11:???????????????? Revoke the WOMAD pandemic facility and provide an additional $150k of support for Te Matatini 2025 to be funded from the WOMAD Pandemic underwrite reserve.

Recommendation 12: ?????????????? Co-fund Rohutu block coastal retreat at Waitara with opex of $100k a year over years 1, 2 and 3 of the plan.

Recommendation 13:???????????????? Partnerships with Mana Whenua.? $300k opex year one then increasing $100k per year, each year through the LTP until it reaches $1m. Decisions relating to the application of unallocated funds to be delegated to Te Huinga Taumatua with input from Iwi chairs and management. Initial funds to be split between the Ngāti Te Whiti Marae and Pukerangiora Pā over years 1 to 3. $700k to NTW Marae $500k to Pukerangiora Pa.

Part 3 - Investing in our public places and spaces

Our district is growing and the communities we serve expect us to evolve. New Plymouth is our primary population centre and is transitioning from a big town into small city.

Our people want to see investments in our parks and facilities to support the lifestyle they live here for. They want our public facilities to be fit for purpose, flexible and designed to encourage activity, whether that be physical, recreational or commercial.

We also need to deal with some serious safety issues like the old landfill at Waitara which is at risk of washing into the sea as well as our city’s worst traffic black spot at the intersection of Northgate and Lemon St, given both NZTA and the Ministry of Transport have steadfastly refused to support NPDC’s request for a speed camera despite the support of our local Police.

We need to invest in our CBD to encourage investment and show we can work with the private sector to bring change and renewal into the centre of our city, creating people-friendly spaces and encouraging more people into the city to live, work and play along with accompanying private sector investment into our buildings.

Big call 3:2 – Option 2

Recommendation 14:???????????????? Tūparikino Active Community Hub – $ 35 million for a 6-court facility adjacent or adjoined the existing TSB stadium. Seek external funding for enhancements and fit out.

Big call 3:3 – Option 2-

Recommendation15: ??????????????? Brooklands Zoo – invest up to $9m to ensure facilities are maintained to meet compliance requirements and improve the customer experience – detailed programme of work subject to Council approval.

Big call 3:4 – Option 2-

Recommendation 16: ?????????????? Bellringer Pavilion – Invest up to $8m to build a new pavilion to meet first class cricket requirements as well as provide a quality hireable venue. Seek external funding to cover any costs over and above Council’s budgeted expenditure.

Recommendation: 17: ????????????? Trees CBD – removal of half the trees at ground level with a focus on low cost removal for those causing pavement damage or showing signs of deterioration. Trees to be replaced with planter boxes or suitable alternatives to a maximum average cost of $5,000 per tree including appropriate replacement species to fit with our CBD vision, minimise maintenance costs, reduce the property damage and trip hazards – opex from existing parks budget to be completed by December 2025 – capex of $250,000 in year 1 and $250,000 in year 2 to implement.

Recommendation 18: ?????????????? Fast track West End Precinct improvements to year 1 and delivery of the Huatoki plaza refresh in year 3 and development of Metro Plaza plans in year 3 funded out of the existing CBD budget lines. Allocate additional $250k opex per annum years 3-10 to grow available capex for the City Centre Strategy work.

Recommendation 19: ?????????????? Entrance to the city – apply 10% of planting our place budget to enhancement of the entrances to the city for years 1 to 3.

Recommendation 20: ?????????????? Allocate an additional $100k per annum for the duration of the LTP for mowing to improve service levels around our cemeteries.

Recommendation 21: ?????????????? Allocate $1m to implement the Waitara Landfill solution to address coastal erosion in year 3.

Recommendation 22: ?????????????? Allocate $150k in year 1 for a speed camera for Northgate to Lemon Street black spot following the repeated failure of NZTA to deal with this critical safety issue for our community.

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Part 4 - Supporting growth and economic development

Our economy is changing and with the oil and gas sector historically representing 40% of Taranaki’s GDP we will need to adapt or the standard of living of our people will diminish as the sector winds down.

We need to take a long-term view of the way we plan and develop our city starting with transport but also making it easier and faster to undertake quality developments.

We need to support new economic development initiatives to find the opportunities to diversify our economy and find new markets for the incredible skills Taranaki people and businesses have to offer.

Part of our diversification strategy must be to support the arts and events sector, recognising those investments improve the quality of life here by providing amazing experiences for our people whilst also creating employment and business growth opportunities.

While a number of these projects may seem a long way off it is critical we develop plans now to lay solid foundations and ensure our way of life is truly sustainable.? Through these investments we are working to ensure future generations have access to jobs and wealth-creating opportunities in a well-designed district with quality infrastructure, a healthy economy and exciting and interesting events and activities for everyone.

Recommendation 23: ?????????????? Work with NZTA to explore ring road options to facilitate economic growth and move heavy vehicles out of built-up areas. Confirm exploration of Waiwhakaiho river crossing to link SH3 to Smart Road around Burgess Park to open up land for housing.

Recommendation 24: ?????????????? Planning Review – fast track changes to the New Plymouth District Plan to efficiently facilitate housing and development. Changes to be funded through existing budgets. This recommendation is a public recognition that our district plan in its current form is an impediment to growing land available for housing and requires urgent attention.

Recommendation 25: ?????????????? Additional funding for economic development to refresh our strategy, increase our impact and drive the next phase of regional economic growth.? $500k in year 1 and $500k in year 2 funded from the WOMAD Pandemic underwrite reserve - any funds unspent to be made available for out-years.

Recommendation 26: ?????????????? Create $750k TAFT arts and events reserve to drive economic development funded by the WOMAD pandemic underwrite reserve. Continue to provide the cashflow facility for TAFT to support WOMAD. Funding allocations to TAFT from the reserve subject to Council approval.

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Part 5 - Listening to our community boards

New Zealand has one of the most centralised systems of taxation and control of any country in the developed world.

While we advocate for central government to devolve funding and autonomy for more functions to local communities we are walking the talk by supporting our community boards with funds to make their own decisions as well as ensuring the projects they have identified as important are included in our plan.

Recommendation 27: ?????????????? Lift discretionary funds to $150k per community board per year - indexed to inflation.

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Recommendation 28: ?????????????? Ensure the following projects are included in the LTP:

1.????????????? Clifton - Hutuwai Transfer Station retain and improve

2.????????????? Clifton – carparking to address safety risks at Umukaha Point lookout at the end of Pilot Road

3.????????????? Kaitake - Mace Terrace to SH45 walkway

4.????????????? Kaitake Refuse station upgrade – confirm timing

5.????????????? Kaitake - footpath Beach Road to School

6.????????????? Kaitake - footpath Hickford Place to Pedestrian Crossing

7.????????????? Kaitake – bring playground sunshades to year 1

8.????????????? Waitara – confirm $1m budget for Waitara landfill soltiuon in year 3

9.????????????? Bell Block - safety cameras

10.?????????? Bell Block – work to intersection improvements with NZTA

11.?????????? Kohanga Moa - Inglewood Swimming pool accessibility

12.?????????? Kohanga Moa - Review Tarata Road plan and emerging risks and report back to council before making material changes on the route.

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Part 6 - Improving Council’s performance and growing non rates revenue

One of the key themes of the feedback from our community related to the need to minimise rate increases.

We have made good progress with changes within the organisation but we have more work to do to improve our efficiency and leverage our position and scale to generate new sources of non-rates revenue and capture a share of the money we invest into our infrastructure.

Just because we are a non-profit organisation does not mean we cannot think and act more commercially to benefit the people we serve. These recommendations aim to position council to support growth in our district, reduce our reliance on rates and prepare for a changing future.

Recommendation 29: ?????????????? Water services delivery – explore options to create a water cooperate with neighbouring councils to seek efficiencies and prepare for economic regulation and related reform.

Recommendation 30: ?????????????? Development contributions – modify the catchments and methodology and apply smoothing principals to reduce price shocks whilst ensuring growth still funds growth and we significantly reduce the level of public subsidisation of new private developments. Ensure developers have the option to fund their own infrastructure requirements if they can do so at a lower cost than council as long as the assets are developed to the appropriate scale and standard.

Recommendation 31: ?????????????? Capacity – help grow our future workforce by investing in our young people through scholarships, cadetships and similar initiatives to help them into work $100k per annum ongoing.

Recommendation 32: ?????????????? DevCo – develop a commercial arm of NPDC to explore investments in traffic management services, property, contracting, signage, housing and development to grow non-rates revenue and improve our investment efficiency. Provision of an initial $2.5m for working capital in year 2.? Final investment decisions subject to council approval. Opex reduction or new revenue in year 3 onwards of $200k.

Recommendation 33: ?????????????? Undertake a review of our procurement strategy and contracting arrangements to improve performance across both capex and opex.? Rates savings of $300k in year 2 and $500k in year 3. Initial focus on transport and water services.

Recommendation 34: ?????????????? Fountain lake dredging – remove altogether and seek alternative methodologies to reduce cost of works.

Recommendation 35:? ????????????? Accelerate Tech One information system core upgrade – management to provide advice on timing and financial implications.

These recommendations are outlined in the following reports with related information from our consultation material and feedback from our community.

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