Localism the council's greatest weakness

Last night I attended the Howick Local Board meeting and Deputy Mayor Bill Cashmore was present to provide an update on regional issues, starting off by noting that localism was the council's greatest weakness. This sums up a lot of the issues that we heard last night but also throughout the city.

We heard again from the Te Uho o te Nikau Primary School who need safety improvements outside the new school to protect their young students from trucks. This conversation started 11 months ago and the process has been very slow but last night funding was approved to start work on addressing these issues. Also approved was funds to help Botany Downs Secondary College who also have safety challenges outside their school.

The fight to save Stockade Hill views continues and Janet Dickson was present to talk to the local board, supported by tireless champions the Defencibles.

I’ve stood with locals to fight for Stockade Hill and will continue to do so

There have been some developments and there are a number of moving parts to this. The original Plan Change 3 will provide a 137 degree protection but we want to save 360 degrees. A new Plan Change 26 will provide clarity on how Special Character Area Overlays work which may help, although Howick's overlay isn't ready and also doesn't include Stockade Hill.

The Board had asked council staff for advice on how to advocate for a solution and received a response last night which was effectively that there was no workable solution. Going against the advice of council staff, the Board unanimously voted to "obtain independent planning and other necessary supporting advice to inform the board on options available to advocate for a change of plan or control development around Stockade Hill" including funds to do so.

This feels like progress, although it's taken far to long to get to this point and there's still a long way to go. What concerns me the most is that the issue has been caused by council failing to listen to locals - the loss of localism.

We need a strong councillor who can take the concerns of our community to council and fight for locals. If elected councillor, I will continue to stand with locals and ensure that East Auckland is heard at the council table.

We've planted a million trees Auckland!

Three years ago the Mayor set a goal for Aucklanders to plant 1 million trees and we reached that target in the last few days .

It was a stunning day for tree planting in Mangemangeroa Reserve on Sunday 16 June when I joined Howick Youth Council who had organised tree planting with support from Friends of Mangemangeroa Reserve.

Plenty of young people turned up to volunteer as well as local board members John Spiller and Adele White. Mike Turinsky also arrived although wasn’t able to plant due to an injury.

Mangemangeroa looks incredible and there were plenty of stories about how people had contributed over the years. Over the years volunteers have planted over 100,000 natives and the progress is incredible. Great to see!

We need more passion, ambition and leadership to make Auckland everything it could be.

Our city is known by many names: Auckland, City of Sails, Tāmaki-makau-rau, but to me it will always be home. I am proud to have lived and worked in Auckland my whole life, seeing the city grow and change.

There is so much to love about our city - we've got some amazing beaches and outdoors, opportunities for entertainment and food, and the people - the incredible mix of cultures that makes our city so diverse. And East Auckland has all of this and more. Our area is one of the fastest growing parts of our city and us locals know why.

I love living in Botany but I’ve also had the privilege of travelling to some of the worlds greatest cities. Understanding what they've done overseas I can see the potential in our city but I’m frustrated by our lack of progress. The greatest challenge facing cities worldwide is leadership and Auckland is no different. Council elections this October are the perfect opportunity to review who is leading our city.

It will come as no surprise to most that I will be standing for one of the Howick seats on the Auckland Council.

I was humbled by and grateful for the support in last years by-election and look forward to building on this. While our city has made improvements, the issues I campaigned on last year remain a problem. My priorities are:

• Fair share of rates. Auckland Council is making an unprecedented investment across Auckland and I'll ensure East Auckland is not left behind. I will challenge reckless spending, put the handbrake on endless rates rises and ensure cost effective delivery of services.

• Deliver on transport. Resolving road safety concerns around our schools must be a priority including ending overcrowding on school buses, ensuring safe road crossings and options for walking and cycling. I will ensure the billions invested delivers on reducing congestion, improving safety and ensuring our transport is fit for a growing city.

• Protect and restore our environment. We must make sure that development does not come at the cost of the environment. I will make sure council takes action to protect our community from climate change, flooding and erosion and work to restore our water quality and biodiversity.

• Strong community voice. We must prevent issues like those surrounding Stockade Hill from happening again by improving communication between council and community. I will ensure that local voices are heard, that council is open, transparent and accountable and we embrace our multicultural and diverse community.

I’ve heard from people across our city that council needs to move faster on delivering change. It’s almost been 10 years since the super city was formed and progress is too slow.

For over a decade I’ve worked as a problem solver for large organisations, helping them improve outcomes for customers, staff and shareholders. This means understanding the issue from all sides, exploring options and working with people to implement meaningful change.

I have the business and governance experience, combined with strong community connections to deliver positive change for our city. With your support, I will provide the vision and leadership to tackle the tough issues, put in the hard work and ensure the people of East Auckland are heard at the council table.

Auckland is a fantastic place to live but we need more passion, ambition and leadership to make it everything it could be.

We can do better.

Ormiston Town Centre is coming (soon)!

We've all seen the residental developments around Ormiston and Flat Bush but it's exciting to see the long awaited town centre happening.

Last night we got an update from the various parts of Auckland Council and the developers Todd Property.

Lots happening but a quick summary of the key parts to the project

• brand new retail, dining and entertainment shopping centre with 100 new shops including Warehouse, Noel Leemings, New World and Hoyts;

• new aquatic and leisure centre complete with 25m pool, spa, children's area and more;

• new library and community centre, community will be engaged on the design;

• further enhancements to Sir Barry Curtis Park, including walking and cycling connections through the new town centre;

• updates to public transport and roads to support new residents, workers and shoppers.

All of this within the next few years! In fact shopping centre will be done by Christmas next year, only 18months away!

Huge thank you to the all the council staff and the developers for making themselves available this evening and especially Howick Local Board for organising it.

We're making progress on transport, but there's a way to go

Auckland has some serious transport issues but there is light at the end of the congested tunnel. And that light is public transport and active modes like cycling and walking.

Cars have their place but we need effective mass transit to support our growing population. All the successful cities around the world have them, we should too.

It's easy to forget the incredible progress we've made recently like HOP cards, integrated ticketing, double deckers, electric trains, bus lanes. A recent Spinoff piece gives a great summary of where we’ve come from and where we’re headed.

It's harder to ignore the massive investment underway now like the Eastern Busway and CRL which are being built at long last.

What's essential is that we deliver these transformational projects while also addressing safety and local issues.

Frequency, reliability and coverage of services (both geographical and time) are still issues as is affordability.

We also haven't cracked the first and last mile, which is always a challenge. Park and ride is part of that, but we need smarter solutions so people don't have to drive if they don't want to or can't.

Auckland's transport system is far from perfect but we're on the right track. We need to maintain discipline, funding and not forget the local voice.

Lloyd Elsmore Skate Park in desperate need of upgrade

Lloyd Elsmore has a skate park but its in desperate need of attention. A small group of us caught up this afternoon to see what can be done.

It doesn't take an expert to see that the skate park is tired. There's big cracks and splits in the concrete, the rails are worn and the surface is rough which wears down tires (and riders if they fall off).

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There were some kids using the park and they all said the same thing - it's boring and old. Many had been down to Barry Curtis Park but Lloyd Elsmore is closer.

We spoke to a mother and local teacher who asked for some basic facilities - there's currently no water, toilets or shade. Even getting access to the skate park isn't easy with no parking or footpath access. She wanted her teenagers to be able to come down and play, but she didn't feel safe letting them do this. There's no lighting around the skate park and there have been issues.

The Howick Local Board is aware of the problems and have some work underway to review all sports facilities in the area. But if we want this to improve we need to show the support for it. You can do this via the Facebook page.

Rail is so worn and sunken it’s no use to anyone

Building CRL is an investment in our future

Getting the City Rail Link built is correctly a top priority for Auckland Council. It will transform transport across our city (even for non-train users). It’s expensive and the project costs have risen by $1B to $4.4B. Auckland Council was asked to cover half of it.

Some of this extra cost ($250m) comes from increasing the size of the stations which will future proof them, absolutely the right choice. There's extra costs due to delays ($152m) but also the rising cost of infrastructure ($327m) which is a good reminder the longer wait, the more expensive this gets.

It's also worth noting that this new costing is far more accurate, now the designs and procurement are done.

Congestion costs Auckland $11B a year, we have to invest to tackle this. CRL is a major part of transforming our transport system to something that's fit for purpose.

However how the council managed to find $500m without raising rates is interesting. It highlights the significant savings that can be made if there's a need or will. Councillors need to push harder to realise more of these savings across the city.

What is definitely concerning is the lack of clarity over who will own and maintain the CRL. There's some suggestion it might be NZTA but councillors aren't clear. Considering the massive size of capital investment, I'm a little stunned that this hasn't been decided.

Ending domestic violence will take a community approach

Domestic violence is a terrible scourge on our communities and families. We've all heard the news, seen the statistics but its ruining lives, destroying futures.

David White is one such person - he lost his daughter, murdered by her husband. Instead of retiring, his wife and him have been raising his grandchildren, dealing with the aftermath.

He's committed to visiting every electorate in the country to share his story. It's a big ask, 71 electorates in 71 days with 120 presentations but he's doing it. I heard him speak last night in his Botany stop and it was powerful. He's very open and honest about his experiences, it's raw and personal. His experiences were devastating, inspiring and always real.

Some of what he said was hard to listen to, especially trying to explain to his 9yo granddaughter why her father had killed her mother.

He's been through some terrible times but he's determined to see change. He had some incredible stories about confronting hardened criminals in prison, communities lifting themselves up and how small interventions can help. He talked about hugging a 37 year old prisoner who'd never been hugged in his life and had never hugged his kids. It's no excuse, but the reality is that we need to break the cycle of violence.

We need to proactively tackle domestic violence as a community, not rely on the Police when it's too late. Those communities don't have to be geographical, they can be work, faith or sports communities.

Domestic violence is not okay. 
Asking for help or asking people if they need help is okay. 
Being the help people need is okay.

I strongly encourage you to get along to hear David, before his tour ends

Auckland's growth needs to be managed so local voice not lost

It's no secret that Auckland has been growing at a tremendous rate, in many cases faster than our infrastructure can keep up with. It's put a massive strain on our housing, transport, water and environment as well as the people who live here.

The good news is that the growth has slowed from 43,000 new residents a year, the bad news is that it's now 30,000 people. This is a significant drop but still represents a massive growth challenge for any city, especially one that has not kept pace with the growth so far.

It's awesome that people want to live in Auckland, it's not perfect but it's a great city. I love it here & understand why others want to come here too. But we need to take deliberate action to plan for this growth, including investing in our infrastructure.

Funding is a significant challenge, endless rates rises is not a sustainable solution to massive long term growth. It's good that the council has identified some alternative funding but we need a significant shift if we're going to see real investment. I've long advocated for rates reform and will continue to do so until we get a step change in how our cities and regions are supported.

Auckland Council has made some cost savings which is positive but there always more to find. Large organisations will always have efficiencies to be uncovered, especially as technology and processes evolve. This article mentions that "total savings over the next decade are estimated at $565m - with a further half billion dollars to be reached "in cost avoidance and savings" through the capital programme." which is good to hear. It's great that the CEO understands that it's essential that they constantly ask themselves "can we do even better". Most Aucklanders would emphatically say "yes, we can do better".

One of the justifications for merging the old councils into one Super City was that we’d get a more efficient and effective delivery of services if it was managed across the region. There’s some evidence that this is working but this quote from the CEO sums up one of the Councils greatest challenges - "The bit that is challenging is the local bit, the local board connection. There's very diverse views over whether that's working or not."

My view is that it’s not working. There are definitely some examples of where it does work, but for the most part it doesn’t.

Too often the local voice is lost in the noise, not maliciously but often disastrously. Stockade Hill is a great example of this – an issue that arose from the city wide Unitary Plan and has been a dreadful experience for the community and council for years since. Something as large as a unitary plan will need broad strokes, but there will always be a need for finer details at a local level. We’re hopefully closing in on a positive outcome, but it could’ve been avoided if the local voices had been heard by council. The same can be said of a number of other issues such as the school bus changes, park maintenance and many more. Too often I hear from locals that they don't both logging issues with council anymore as they never get resolved which is an appalling indictment on the loss of community voice.

This needs to change at all levels which means deliberate leadership from the mayor, council, our councillors and our local boards.

Cockle Bay Domain restored by community

On Saturday the weather was perfect for community planting day at Cockle Bay Domain as volunteers planted around 300 natives.

Led by Matthew Brajkovich, the Friends of Cockle Bay Domain have worked to restore the local environment by removing rubbish and planting natives.

Amazing how far this reserve has come in such a short space, thanks to volunteers and support from local organisations and council. And how much work a dozen volunteers can do in a few hours!

Local Board Meetings great opportunity to hear from community

I make an effort to attend every Local Board meeting. It's a great opportunity to hear from locals, on their concerns and ideas for our community. And tonight was no different.

We heard from Richard Waugh and Laurie Hayward from the Auckland Brit and Euro Classic Car Show. Four years running, the free show had huge turnout in both cars (1077) & visitors (over 10,000), up 20% on last year.

We heard from a local resident concerned about the issuing of a consent for an extension to the Half Moon Bay Marina and the lack of notification to affected parties.

Huntington Park Residents Assoc were present to thank the Council for supporting their recent neighbourhood day. They also raised concerns about how request for removal of privet has been handled by Council, the speed of cars on Huntington Dr and issues with maintenance of curbs.

Another resident spoke about dogs off leads and the challenges they can present to cyclists. Serving to avoid dogs can (and has) led to people coming off their bikes. He's very supportive of a local dog park which we don't have in East Auckland.

And safety around our schools was on the agenda again. A trustee from Te Uho o te Nikau Primary School was back to again request action on safety for their students. This issue was raised 9 months ago, again last month and got some traction tonight. Howick Local Board requested Auckland Transport truncate the normal LBTCF funding process to urgently get detailed designs underway for safe bridge near the school. The costs are estimated at $1m for a temporary bridge or beyond $2m for permanent one. the Community Safety Fund is also to be investigated but seems unlikely given the scale of the project.

More good news on safety Auckland Transport have a temporary solution for 90 Pakuranga Rd which has had cars crashing into their fence. AMETI is arranging for temporary barriers to be installed while longer term solution is implemented.

I find these meetings worthwhile, the minutes only capture the outcomes, not the discussion or debate. The agenda is published online prior to the meetings and anyone can come along. Some times they can be a bit dry, but I've never come away without learning something about the community.

The photo was taken after I was granted special permission to do so (much to the bemusement of some of the board members).

Auckland needs a bold vision for stadiums

I've been critical of Auckland Council's recent decision to give Eden Park $10m in a grant, instead of a loan primarily because it doesn't address any of the underlying issues. It's a lot of public funds to be handing over to a private trust with no chance of return so it's essential that it's being well invested. Time will tell if that happens.

Is a sunken waterfront stadium the answer?

Over the weekend Simon Wilson published two pieces in the NZ Herald on the future of stadiums in Auckland. The first looked at the challenges faced by Eden Park while the second looked towards the future. It has some bold ideas and is well worth a read.

I'm not convinced about the waterside stadium - there are some practical concerns as well as environmental. There has been some vocal (and in my view justified) opposition to expansion of the port into the harbour - an entire stadium would never get traction.

Given the stadium would be over spaghetti junction, perhaps it could be called the Spaghetti Bowl

An alternative that I've seen which might be worth exploring is creating a stadium over the top of spaghetti junction, which might not be as absurd as it sounds. The location is perfect, it doesn't remove any valuable land and it's transport links are undeniable.

Obviously this needs proper investigation as do all the possible options which will take time and money. It's important that we get this underway soon or we're at risk of leaving a bigger problem for future Auckland (much like we have with our transport).

Simon Wilson raises some good points and I agree with his action plan:

1. Get Eden Park functioning as best as it can - focus on maximising the asset we have today

2. Start exploring options for a future stadium - the earlier we start the better.

3. Engage widely to ensure we get this right for everyone and secure the necessary funding - not the current mess we have.

4. Support Te Papa North into Manukau - what a great asset for South Auckland.

5. Move speedway and cricket to a more suitable location that works for all parties in a controlled and fair process.

I don't for a moment think that stadiums are our most pressing issue but leaving issues till we're desperate isn't how we should be running our city (despite our track record).

Being a bit more ambitious and bold wouldn't hurt either...

Massive milestone for East Auckland

As reported in the Times ‘Construction starts on $1.4b Eastern Busway’

The Eastern Busway is a potential game changer for transport in our area.

There's a lot of work to happen before it's finished so it's great to get it underway. The $1.4B project is being delivered over four stages, the second being Panmure to Pakuranga. This includes a new intersection at Panmure, an additional bridge along Lagoon Drive and new bus station at Pakuranga Plaza all connected by dedicated bus lanes.

Once completed, it will be capable of carrying up to 60 buses an hour and enable travel between Botany and Britomart by bus and train in under 40 minutes.

Point View Drive clean up a community effort

On Friday I wore my new gumboots to help fundraise for youth mental health. Today I wore them as part of a community effort to clean up Point View Drive.

This area isn't technically a reserve but is a well known lookout across East Auckland. Unfortunately some people use it as a dump site for bottles, rubbish and worse. So Howick Local Board member Mike Turinsky organised the community to clean up. Awesome to have so many people helping and we removed a lot of rubbish. Disappointed that it was necessary.

Over 30 volunteers helped collect and dispose of a big pile of rubbish in a good mornings work

Residents have been reporting these issues for some time without much success. I know Mike has been working to do what he can. Now we’ve dealt with the symptoms, he's working hard to resolve some of the systemic causes, hopefully with the broad public support we saw today he can get some traction.

Mike Turinsky thanking the volunteers and explaining the next steps

Let's all try to be more like John

Howick locals came together to acknowledge John Sato, a local who has become an inspiration to many. At 95 he caught multiple buses to be at the anti-racism march, setting an amazing example for us all.

Unsurprisingly so many people wanted to meet the man, so local Bo Burns organised a opportunity and I was so thankful to be invited. There were people from all parts of the community, including the Prime Minister but this event was absolutely about John and his message of kindness.

The Prime Minister was present to listen and talk to John.

When I spoke with John, I was impressed by how humble and kind he was. He spoke about how we all have goodness in us and that we can be kind to one another. That events like the awful tragedy in Christchurch can be an opportunity to reflect on what's inside us and how we treat others.

Let's all try to be more like John.

When I spoke with John , I found him so humble yet inspiring.

Celebrating Buddha's Day

Very peaceful time at the Fo Guang Shan Temple to celebrate Buddha's Day. So furtunate to have some a tranquil and welcoming space just on our doorstep.

There were food stalls to enjoy as well as arts exhibitions. Since my trip to Taipei two years ago, I’ve fallen in love with calligraphy and the exhibition was stunning.

The theme of this years celebration was world peace, which sits perfectly with the Buddist beliefs and also the practice of those in the temple. It is definitely one of my favourite places to visit, always so welcoming and calm.

Bathing the Buddha

Have your say on safer speeds in Auckland

Feedback on safer speeds for Auckland closes tomorrow (Sun 31 March) so have your say now.

Too many people are killed or injured on our roads - 749 seriously hurt and 64 killed in 2017 is far too many. We need to improve the road design, driver behaviours and increase enforcement but we also need to set realistic speeds.

Our city has grown significantly and there are places where the current speed limits are not appropriate anymore. It's essential that we review and adjust them to make people safe.

Reductions in speed make a massive difference - someone hit at 50km/hr has a 80% chance of being killed while someone hit at 30km/hr has an 90% chance of survival (although still injured).

There are a few ways to submit feedback - online form, detailed map or contacting AT directly. Providing your thoughts is important, this affects us all. Even just showing support (or expressing concerns) is helpful. Get your feedback in today!

Instead of raising public transport fares, let's fix them

Public transport fares in Auckland have gone up because people are using it more. If you think that sounds backwards, you're not alone.

Generation Zero hosted an event to explain their report into this broken policy and the potential benefits of fixing it. Instead of raising the prices, we could be reducing it and encouraging more people to use public transport which helps reduce congestion for everyone.

Generation Zero is proposing we reduce public transport fares for targeted groups who need it most

We heard about two students who could carpool and drive into the city for less than catching the bus - they choose not to because of the environmental impacts but not everyone has the same choice. Let's make it cheaper for students to do the right thing, not more expensive.

Generation Zero’s proposing we make public transport cheaper for students

We can do better - free weekends, providing cheaper public transport for tourists (like so many cities do), reducing the barrier to Hop cards and making it easier for families to travel together are just some of the ways we can improve access to public transport.

Making off peak services free wouldn’t add additional cost to the network.

Check out this link for more details and ways provide feedback and support.

Giving away money not the solution to our stadium problem

I was very disturbed to see that some councillors - including both of my local - voted to give away $10m of public money to Eden Park with no strings. There was an alternative of making this a loan which would've been paid but this was narrowly voted down.

Mt Eden needed help and consolidation of the loans was necessary. But giving away money wasn't.

It's also unbelievable that many of the same councillors who complained about $900k spent on a stadium report voted in support of a $10m giveaway (instead of the far more sensible loan).

Is this another example of our elected leaders saying one thing but doing another?

We deserve better than this.

Kia kaha Christchurch...

Our little country rocked by terrorism and hatred, it's difficult to think of the words to describe how it feels.

I'm devastated by the loss of life and damage done to so many. My thoughts are with the families and friends of those who have been impacted, especially those who lost someone.

I'm angry at those that committed these awful acts and those that enabled it (directly or otherwise). I will not read, share or accept anything they've posted nor name them - there is no excuse or reason that would make this okay. Do not give them the publicity or fame.

I'm disturbed to see that some are using this tragedy to push their hateful agenda. This just aligns them with the appalling hatred that took 40 lives and hurt so many more. Blaming the victims is unforgivable.

I'm saddened that many Muslims feel unsafe in our country, that the police recommended they do not attend their local mosque. Our country is far from perfect, but we cannot become that country. Religious freedom is one of the many reasons people come to New Zealand and we must protect it.

I'm determined that we must give nothing to racism. We will only prevent this by rejecting hate, coming together to support and care for each other. This is already happening across Aotearoa and it's heart warming. It's critical that this outpouring of support and aroha does not drift away.