Hollyer's hoping for ORC seat
Queenstowner Matt Hollyer's hoping to enter politics.
The 51-year-old, who's lived in the Whakatipu for the past 30-odd years, is announcing his run for Otago Regional Council (ORC), standing for one of four seats in the Dunstan regional constituency.
While much of his background's in tourism, Hollyer's been more sharply focused on conservation over the past five or so years, and it's sparked his desire to help "on a larger scale".
His experience includes management roles at Tourism Holdings Ltd, almost 15 years as Shotover Canyon Swing's general manager, and six years as Destination Queenstown's board chair.
Since 2019, he's been AJ Hackett Bungy NZ project and innovation manager and, since 2020, ops manager for GSD Workforce, a subsidiary of Bungy, created during Covid to support community conservation groups through Jobs for Nature funding.
He's also been ops manager for Southern Lakes Sanctuary since mid-'21 and has been working with ORC, including through the Catchment Action Plan (Cap).
He also helped "get the ball rolling" for a targeted ORC rate to assist large-scale conservation projects throughout Otago.
"I realised through Covid when we got involved in helping out community conservation groups there are awesome people that are making a great difference to the environment, but it's all boot strapping.
"It's sausage sizzles and trying to keep themselves ... volunteering, but you really need to have scale ... to actually make a big difference."
He believes there's huge opportunity for ORC to work more closely with community groups and businesses "for the good of everybody".
"What I've seen with the people and the engagement they're trying to do through the [Cap], the connections they're making and wanting to [build] with the community, I think is really impressive.
"Now it's about starting to deliver that stuff ... we can do better, we can make a difference, and if the community works together, that's possible."
Hollyer also thinks should the regional deal eventuate, involving Queenstown and Central Otago district councils and ORC, it's important to have local voices around the ORC table.
"I think I can bring a really good understanding of tourism, and what it takes to get conservation projects done."
He notes, too, Queenstown, in particular, has a "big responsibility" as it pertains to the headwaters.
"What we do up here, that goes into the water and ... goes into much of Otago.
"We need to step up and acknowledge that, and get better connected with the whole region."
Nominations trickle in
As of yesterday afternoon, Glenorchy's John Glover remains the only official Queenstown mayoral candidate, while first-term councillor Melissa White's officially seeking re-election in her Arrowtown-Kawarau ward.
Fellow first-termer Gavin Bartlett's again been nominated for the Queenstown-Whakatipu ward, as has local lawyer Stephen Brent, who's seeking election for the first time.
Nominations close on August 1.
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