Auckland region must stay intact through Super City reforms

30 July 2009

The call by the Northland Regional Council and others to slice bits off the Auckland region’s boundaries makes no sense, ARC Chairman Mike Lee said today. 

“The Auckland region comprises only two per cent of New Zealand's land mass and one third of the country lives here.  What’s more, we are the fastest growing region in the country and that growth puts intense pressure on our rural areas. 

“For example, the growth the national highway from Puhoi to Wellsford will catalyse needs careful management and planning.” 

Mr Lee said a key objective of the Super City reforms is to ensure the Auckland region develops and grows in a more cohesive way. 

“Talk of slicing bits off the Auckland region flies in the face of this key objective.  It is just plan silly when greater coordination of development and growth across the entire region is what everyone is after.” 

Mr Lee said people have no idea of the cost of running public amenities like regional parks. 

“For example, there are 10 regional parks in the Rodney area.  They include Te Arai, Pakiri, Tawharanui, Scandrett, Mahurangi, Wenderholm, Shakespear, Muriwai, Atiu Creek and Te Rau Puriri.  In 2008-2009, Auckland ratepayers contributed $6,418,561 to their running. 

“Northland Regional Council planned to collect $11,324,385 in rates in 2008-2009.  Rates in the Northland region would need to increase by more than half their current level to run the parks alone.” 

In its submission the Auckland Governance Legislation Select Committee, the ARC recommended the Auckland region be extended in the south to include the area of Franklin that is north of the Waikato River. 

This was supported by Federated Farmers, who in its submission said the new Auckland Council ‘should, generally, govern all of the area that forms the present Auckland region, as well as that part of the Franklin District that is within the present Waikato region’. 

The ARC also strongly opposed to the provision in the Local Government (Auckland Council) Bill that requires the Local Government Commission to exclude from the Auckland region the Mangatawhiri and Mangatangi dams and water storage lakes, and the area between them and the Firth of Thames. 

“Deliberately placing vitally important infrastructure outside the jurisdiction of the new Auckland Council is just plain nuts.  It flies in the face of the rationale for reforming local government in Auckland,” said Mr Lee. 

For a copy of the ARC’s complete submission, please follow this link to the ARC website:

http://www.arc.govt.nz/auckland/our-auckland/regional-governance.cfm

ENDS

© Scoop Media