Waimakariri council ‘financially sound’ after challenging year
By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter
The Waimakariri District Council is in ‘‘a financially sound position’’ despite a challenging year, says chief executive Jeff Millward.
Flooding, economic uncertainty and high inflation impacted the council, which still ended the year to June with an operating surplus of $21.7 million.
Councillors adopted the 2022-23 annual report at an extraordinary meeting on Tuesday afternoon.
"We’ve had a fair bit of pressure coming on the budget and other councils are saying the same thing," Millward said.
"By all our performance measures we have done pretty well. Overall it has been a good year."
The operating surplus was $9.7 million less than budgeted due to inflation and developers contributions being less than expected.
Development contributions is what developers pay councils to help with the costs of increased services such as libraries, roads and water infrastructure.
The council also borrowed $8m less than the $188m it had budgeted.
Millward said Audit New Zealand had given its endorsement of the annual report, which took into account the change in government and a potential change in Three Waters policy.
He did not anticipate any immediate impact to the council from the change of government.
"It is very much business as usual until we have [the incoming Government's] 100-day plan to respond to."
National campaigned to reverse a number of reforms for local government, including Three Waters and the Resource Management Act overhaul.
Mayor Dan Gordon said the council was in a strong position but he warned of a challenging year ahead.
"We need to look carefully at our budgets as we go into the Long Term Plan.
"Our neighbours are already talking about significant rate increases unless there are significant cuts to services."
Millward said the council was facing ‘‘significant impacts’’ from climate change as it looked ahead to next year’s 2024-34 long-term plan.
Gordon also thanked staff and volunteers for their efforts in responding to the weekend's damaging winds, which brought down trees and cut power to thousands of homes.
"If we had the Three Waters reforms in place now we wouldn’t have been able to perform as effectively as we did, and that is something we have been concerned about.
"Severe weather events are happening more regularly, and the council is seeking to establish a permanent fund to ensure we have budget to maintain, fix, and improve our stormwater, wastewater and roading networks following extreme weather."
Last month, the council approved a plan to establish an infrastructure resilience team to lead flood recovery efforts.
■ Public interest journalism funded through New Zealand on Air.
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Poll: Should drivers retake the theory test every 10 years?
Drivers get where they need to go, but sometimes it seems that we are all abiding by different road rules (for example, the varying ways drivers indicate around a roundabout).
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1.9% Other - I'll share below
Hero
“I was born and raised in war. To be honest, those are not good memories.
I really like Iran, and I really miss it, but I couldn’t be myself there. Even though my family didn’t like my decision, I left Iran. I promised myself that I would do whatever I can for all communities, especially for the kids, so they do not have the same experience I had.
I studied software engineering in Iran and left in 2006. I went to Malaysia and stayed in Kuala Lumpur for seven years. I was admitted to Lincoln University to do my PhD here, but unfortunately, I couldn’t afford the expenses. I requested a scholarship, but they told me I had to be there for six months first. So, I stayed in Malaysia and did my PhD in network security. In December 2013, I came to New Zealand with a work visa.
It took me a while to connect with the Iranian community here. I volunteered with the Multicultural Council, SPCA, and community patrol, and I established the Christchurch Iranian Society in 2017. Before that, I started working on Radio Toranj, the only Farsi-language radio show in New Zealand.
One of the reasons I started organizing cultural events was to showcase Iranian culture. I wanted to show people that we have delicious food, colorful dresses, traditional customs, and our own instruments. My hope was to show people that we are not what you see in the media.
I am working to involve all the communities that celebrate Nowruz, the Persian New Year, in the Nowruz festival in March 2025. We want to share this celebration not only with our community but with the public as well. It’s better when it’s shared.
I remember the first time someone from Dunedin called me and asked, Hero, can you help? Something happened, and they keep declining Iranian visa applications. When I heard that, I felt insulted. We are still human, so how can they do that?
Through this journey, I’ve learned a lot. Every single day, people with different cases call me, and I try to share my knowledge and guide them as much as I can.
I have received several awards, including the Christchurch Civic Award and an Award of Recognition for my contributions to the community during the pandemic. In 2021, I established Canterbury Kia Ora Academy, a charitable trust. Through this charity, I can help other communities as well, not just the Iranian community.”
- Hero
View more stories, or nominate someone: @humansofchch
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