Our wrap-up: Hearing your feedback, adopting the Annual Report & more

Published on 28 April 2023

The latest from Mayor Len

In the last few weeks I’ve had the pleasure of being involved in several events or community functions that have positive implications for the economic and social development of our district.

The Waka Ama Long Distance Nationals in Whitianga brought more than 1,100 paddlers plus their whānau and supporters last weekend. The event passed off well and I had the honour of presenting gold medals at the conclusion. Well done to the Council staff who worked hard to bring this major event to our district, and to the Waka Ama organisers for staging a very successful weekend.

Also in Whitianga, a couple of weeks ago the upgraded marina was officially opened. On the same footprint, new berths to accommodate 31 larger, top-end cruising vessels have been built. This work has been self-funded by the marina, at no cost to ratepayers, and is a great illustration of private sector investment into the district’s maritime infrastructure that will be good for businesses and create jobs in the community.

On the other side of the district, in Kōpū outside Thames, our Council’s elected members were shown around the Marine Precinct, which has hit a significant milestone with construction of the commercial wharf now underway. This is largely government funded and also promises to bring significant long-term job creation.

Earlier in April I attended the launch of the Mahakirau Hub/Field Base. It’s on the crest of the Coromandel ranges in an area of outstanding wildlife value. The Hub will function as a research base and learning centre for conservation and biodiversity and includes short-stay accommodation and facilities for visiting researchers and students. It has been funded by a huge array of supporters, including businesses, local community groups, Waikato Regional Council, Department of Conservation, Auckland Zoo, funding organisations and many others.

All of these events and projects show that investment in our district is possible from a variety of sources, for a variety of purposes – but they all drive diversified job creation.

This is good for the long-term wellbeing of our district. In the short- to medium-term, our Road to Recovery work continues. Coromandel Cyclone Recovery Minister (and Minister for Transport) Michael Wood was back to Thames this week and met with the Cyclone Recovery Advisory Group – composed of local community leaders and iwi representatives. The CEO of Waka Kotahi/NZTA Nicole Rosie was also there. She said that once the option to restore SH25A has been identified in May, the work will be fast-tracked. Procurement has already begun, to alleviate construction delays.

On another note, I wanted to provide an update on an emergency alerting tool that our Council is testing. It uses a platform called Whispir and it can be used to send SMS text messages, emails or landline phone calls. Some points of clarification:

Whispir is the same platform used by the National Emergency Mobile Alerts on mobile phone devices. When our Council triggered one of these on 12 February this year ahead of Cyclone Gabrielle, it reached 96 per cent of Spark and 100 per cent of Vodafone mobile phone users in the target area – our district.

Our Council will roll out emergency alerts for the Coromandel using Whispir when we are 100 per cent satisfied it is ready and will perform as the community wants. We are satisfied Whispir is fully functional except we need to be sure it can reach all landline phones of subscribers without issue. We are in the final stages of testing this functionality. Our work on this has been delayed since late last year by successive extreme weather events when staff have been diverted to work on emergency response and recovery.

In the meantime, there are many other alerting tools to notify people:

•             National Mobile Emergency Alerts on mobile phone devices

•             Red Cross and Geo Net apps

•             Growing use of other social media and digital platforms

•             Improvements with the cellular and rural broadband network and satellite technology

•             Radio and television coverage – which includes local stations like CFM, Nga Iwi FM and Coromandel More FM

•             Community Response Plans – where communities work together to help each other with support from our Council.

I am also aware that the available technology and costs of tsunami sirens has changed significantly in recent times.  Other councils in New Zealand are installing modern siren systems in coastal areas.  There needs to be more research done and I made a pre-election commitment to follow this through. That work is ongoing and will be done in collaboration with our communities. 

Stay up to date by visiting this website regularly or by subscribing to our e-newsletters.

Council meeting highlights

This week our Council heard from submitters with their feedback on the proposed Annual Plan, ‘Rebuild and Recover’ budget for the new financial year (1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024).  We had over 180 submissions, on topics including storm recovery and how it has affected our budgets; deferring the Pollen Street Infrastructure replacement to help our businesses recover, our updated capital works and operational programmes, and Kerbside collection pricing options for our new rubbish wheelie bins and food waste bins. See the submissions report in the hearings meeting agenda.

Council will deliberate on submissions at its 17 May meeting. The 2023/24 Annual Plan is scheduled to be adopted on 27 June, and this will set the agenda for the projects and priorities of the coming financial year.

Councillors also considered and adopted the Annual Report for 2021-2022. Normally we adopt this report before 30 October, but this year Audit NZ were running late with their audit due to staff shortages. The Annual Report is our Council's key mechanism for discharging its reporting obligations as to what it has achieved over the previous financial year. As such, it forms an integral part of Council's planning and reporting cycle. While Council's Annual and Ten-Year Plans set out and communicate to its stakeholders what the Council intends to do, the Annual Report closes the loop by conveying whether the Council did what it said it would do within a specific financial year. Some projects were finished later than planned, while others had to be delayed into 2022/23. Despite these challenges, much has been done. Here are just a few of the highlights:

The final audited 2021/2022 annual report can be viewed here.

The design plans for Tairua Skatepark were also approved by Council at its meeting, which also authorised the project team to proceed with procurement and construction. Read more here.

Community Board meetings

The next round of our Community Board meetings start next week:

• Mercury Bay Community Board meeting - Wednesday 3 May at 9am.
• Thames Community Board - Wednesday 10 May at 10am.

Due to lack of business the Coromandel-Colville, Whangamatā and Tairua-Pāuanui Community Board meetings have been cancelled.

Copies of agendas, reports and minutes are available online on this page or at Council offices by request, two days before the meeting.

A week of wind and rain lies ahead

MetService this morning issued a Severe Weather Watch for the Coromandel. 

An active front associated with a subtropical low moves over the upper North Island between 6:00am Sunday 30 April through to 3:00pm Monday 1 May, bringing periods of heavy rain that may approach warning criteria, and easterly gales.

Heavy Rain Watches are now in force for Northland, Auckland and Coromandel Peninsula.

Following this a period of unsettled weather continues through the week with strong north easterly winds included.

For the latest weather updates, visit the MetService website.

Keep up to date with our Council and Waka Kotahi, especially if travelling, as our roads are still undergoing extensive repairs.

We are in week nine of our road to recovery since Cyclone Gabrielle hit the Coromandel, you can find out how we’re working on our rebuild here. 

Waka Kotahi/NZTA update on SH25A

Waka Kotahi has sent us the following information on the Kōpū-Hikuai Road (SH25A):

Why cant Waka Kotahi build a temporary road/short term fix for Kōpū-Hikuai SH25A?

The steep topography in this location – both above and in the slip area - requires considerable earthworks and retaining work to form traversable slopes for regular vehicles. It is not possible to do a '“quick fix”. The access tracks that have been formed are very steep and only suitable for vehicles with tracks. Because the ground conditions are so poor even the tracked geotechnical drilling equipment requires a digger to assist them when they are shifting location, particularly if rain has fallen recently and softened the surfaces further.

Temporary staging can be built across the face of the slip, however this too is not a quick fix as it would take several months with a considerable amount of piling work required to support it.  More importantly it is very likely to be in the way of construction of the permanent solution., but Waka Kotahi are committed to reconnecting Coromandel communities and working through options for a long-term solution.

Waka Kotahi are focused on getting this highway open as quickly as possible, while prioritising the safety of crews and the community. There are three options being explored for a permanent fix, with a decision made in May.

Find out more by reading their frequently asked questions.

NEMA's Cyclone Recovery weekly update

The Government continues to work closely with regions worst affected by the North Island floods and Cyclone Gabrielle in their recovery efforts. Government agencies, the Cyclone Recovery Unit and the Cyclone Recovery Taskforce continue to work closely with local authorities and communities across the motu. Read their weekly update here.

Kauaeranga Valley closed for cyclone repair work

Kauaeranga Valley in Thames will be closed for the month of May 2023 for urgent storm repair work, with plans to re-open at the beginning of June (weather dependant). The Department of Conservation administered road will be closed just past the Visitor Centre, which will remain open as will Kahikatea campsite. Everything else is closed.

You can find the full list of closed camps, walking and biking tracks on the DOC website here link. This includes biking and walking tracks and trails. 

DOC will be allowing camping at Kahikatea during the closure period which is normally only for self-contained vehicles. People camping there will need to use the 24-hour toilets in the Visitor Centre car park.

Rubbish and recycling changes ahead

Household kerbside collections are changing from 1 September 2023.

• Instead of blue bags you’ll get a new 140-litre wheelie bin for rubbish which’ll be collected fortnightly.
• You’ll also get a new 25-litre bin for food scraps which’ll be collected weekly.
• Recycling will be collected fortnightly from your glass crates and mixed recycling wheelie bin.
• All Council Refuse Transfer Stations will be open seven days a week.

More information

What's on in the Coromandel?

The public are invited to commemorate the coronation of His Majesty Charles lll and to celebrate the many volunteers who have contributed to tree plantings in the district. Mayor Len Salt will be hosting a tree planting ceremony at Victoria Park, Thames on Saturday 6 May at 10am. 

You can find out about upcoming events here.

We need your help in caring for our Coast

This summer has been a reminder that the coastal area is very dynamic. The dunes did their job, acting as a sacrificial barrier between the ocean and the land. We need volunteers to help with upcoming dune planting days across the district.

Find out more here.

Lucky loop winners

Thank you to everyone who drove the Lucky Loop last weekend and supported the Coromandel. Winners have now been announced.

See here for details.

The pedestrian/cycle path running alongside State Highway 25 in Whitianga approaching Joan Gaskell Drive, behind the Mobil petrol station, will be realigned soon.

The path crosses land owned by Whitianga Waterways Ltd at that point and they will realign the path at their cost to allow development of the site behind the petrol station.

The new path alignment (in blue above) will link the path on Reweti Drive with the existing path next to SH25 (in green), and will be constructed and open to use before the old path is removed (in orange). Pedestrians and cyclists should take care in the vicinity as construction vehicles will be operating.

Network resealing programme

The resealing was delayed this week following plant issues. The programme for next week (weather dependant) is in Puriri:

• Corbett Rd – Wednesday 3 May
• Station Rd - Thursday 4 May
• Old Maratoto Rd - Friday 5 May

See tcdc.govt.nz/roads for further details.

Are you local government material? Start your career at Council

We're looking for people with ability and passion to create sustainable change in our community. As one of the largest employers in our district, we offer a diverse range of career opportunities.

Why choose Thames-Coromandel?

The Coromandel offers breath-taking scenery, golden beaches, and remarkable rainforests. Our district offers a peaceful, restorative atmosphere with plenty of opportunities for adventure. Our district is only 90 minutes from the big cities: Auckland, Tauranga, and Hamilton. Close enough for a regular commute, but far enough for a complete change of pace. That sets our district apart.

Building Control Officer - Inspections: The key focus of this role is undertaking building works inspections ensuring the right things are happening for our homes and buildings in our district.  You will use your practical technical knowledge and high attention to detail to ensure the construction meets the consent at varying stages of construction. This is a permanent, full-time role based in our Thames Office working with a team of highly skilled professionals.

Process Development and Improvement Business Partner: You will be working across multiple teams within Council reviewing the current processes, identifying and implementing improvements while taking into account security, operational and organisation reputational risks. With the support and coaching of a skilled and experienced team, this is an opportunity to make a real impact within and across the organisation.

Social Navigators: We have an opening for two Social Navigators to provide our iwi, communities, and organisations with support in navigating their way through recovery after the recent extreme weather events. This position is for two full-time, 12-month fixed term roles, based on the west and east coasts of the Coromandel, to ensure our most at-risk communities are supported.

See more here.

Dogs looking for new homes

We have two dogs available for adoption:

1. 12-month old male pup (pictured left), neat, playful nature, but gentle as well.  
2. An adorable brindle female (pictured right) around 2 years old, who has a quiet gentle temperament, extremely patient, loves a pat and affection.

More information. 

Age Concern Hauraki Coromandel

Age Concern Hauraki-Coromandel is a Charity that has a focus on serving the needs for older people in our district.

Their latest Autumn 2023 quarterly newsletter is out now.

Read it here.(PDF, 2MB)

There is still time to do the Census

Census collectors will be in communities until Wednesday 3 May in most parts of the country, and to 1 June in areas most impacted by Cyclone Gabrielle, including our district. Census Community Engagement teams will also be holding census support events.

Find out more here.