Latest news with #FutureDevelopmentStrategy
Otago Daily Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Jim O'Malley claims he's been targeted by council boss
A war of words has erupted between Cr Jim O'Malley and Dunedin City Council boss Sandy Graham amid claims of a "hostile work environment". Cr O'Malley says he is being targeted by Ms Graham and quit a senior role at the council because he does not feel safe. Council chief executive Ms Graham fired back this afternoon and labeled Cr O'Malley's claims "outrageous". The three-term councillor launched a broadside at Ms Graham today in a resignation letter as he quit his role as chair of the hearings committee. In the letter sent to Mayor Jules Radich, Cr O'Malley said he was resigning because he believed basic principles of democracy and representation were not being met by the council ''and I personally am operating in a hostile work environment.'' ''I do not feel safe in this position.'' Resigning from the role was ''no light matter'', he said. ''However, I feel that that is the only mechanism by which I can raise these issues and ask for a robust open comprehensive assessment of what has happened in the processes named above and to the role of the chief executive of the Dunedin City Council in these processes.'' Cr O'Malley believed he had become the focus of Ms Graham with the intent of bringing an employment complaint against him. He referenced the temporary removal of footage of two council committee meetings earlier this year. Those meetings included Cr O'Malley criticising staff for the way government Three Waters ''Better Off'' money was initially allocated before some was redirected to align more clearly with the new government's expectations, as well as with what Cr O'Malley said were councillor intentions in the first place. The council at the time said the footage was temporarily pulled ''due to potential legal concerns''. ''I have been informed that the video was taken down by the [chief executive] who had written a letter complaining of my behaviour but could not get additional signatures from the executive leadership team. ''I acknowledge that until it is verified by an external enquiry this must be treated at hearsay. ''However, there has never been a plausible explanation as to why the video was taken down and such an action has not occurred at the DCC in the nine years I have been on the council.'' Ms Graham said in a statement she had "no idea why Cr O'Malley would not feel safe in his role. "I have never previously considered lodging an employment complaint of any sort against him or any other elected member." It was "not correct to suggest" that she decided to remove the video of the meeting. "The DCC provided public comment at the time (which was shared with councillors and reported by media) that the video was taken down temporarily due to potential legal concerns. "Once checked by our legal advisors, it was reinstated in full." Mr O'Malley said events over the past two years — involving the council's Future Development Strategy, local alcohol policy and events surrounding the hearings for the Albany Street Connection Project — had ''cast doubt on the DCC's commitment to following due process and adhering to the principles of natural justice to the extent that I do not believe I can perform my function properly.'' Cr O'Malley earlier announced his resignation at this morning's hearings committee meeting. His resignation as chairman of the panel comes after he recused himself from considering proposed parking changes as part of the Albany St Connection Project — which aims to provide a safe walking and cycling connection between the shared Te Aka Ōtākou harbour path, Dunedin's tertiary area and the CBD. He recused himself after property developer Greg Paterson said his ''ill-judged outbursts'' showed he was biased and not fit for the job. Ms Graham said it was her job to manage the process for the DCC and she made no apologies for doing tjhat. "In relation to Albany Street, a submitter involved in the hearing process wrote to DCC seeking Cr O'Malley recuse himself due to public statements reported that he made about the process and submitters engaged in it. "Having received that request, I sought independent legal advice, which I provided to Cr O'Malley. "As a result of that advice Cr O'Malley did recuse himself and did not participate in the hearing held today."
Otago Daily Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Council responds to nine-year submission
The Dunedin City Council has responded to the Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board's submission during the draft nine-year plan process. A possible heavy-traffic bypass to move trucks out of the town centre will be considered within a transport investment profile being prepared with New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi. Pedestrian and road safety matters, including crossings, footpaths, lighting and speed reductions, will also be addressed through that process. The council said the study might or might not recommend a bypass. The board stressed the need to strengthen cycling and walking links, naming the Dunedin Tunnels Trail, Taieri Trail and Outram loop track. The council said there was no new funding for the full Tunnels Trail, but it was working with the Dunedin Tunnels Trail Trust to maximise the Chain Hills tunnel phase within existing budgets. A destination playground for Mosgiel Memorial Garden will be designed, with construction expected in 2032 or 2033. The board sought funding for public toilets at the Brooklands/Seddon Park precinct; the council said that funding had been removed due to budget constraints. Noting growth in housing, aged care and industry on the Taieri, the board asked for supporting infrastructure. The council said its Future Development Strategy identified Mosgiel as a growth area and included some projects within the nine-year plan. The board also highlighted floodbank and river channel maintenance, especially on the Silverstream, and upgrades to Mosgiel's stormwater network, including pumps at Reid Ave and Centre St. The council said funding in the first two years would enable some upgrades, followed by further assessment and public engagement. Nominees Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board Nominees • Malcolm Anngow • Austen Banks • Rose Finnie • Brian Peat • Alexis Robin • Rebecca Shepherd • Andrew Sutton • Kimberlee Wallace • Steve Wilson Postal votes need to submitted by Tuesday, October 7. After this date votes must be returned to the council's secure ballot boxes before noon on Saturday, October 11.
NZ Herald
09-06-2025
- Business
- NZ Herald
Richard Gaddum: The 3000 homes Hawke's Bay doesn't need to build
The Future Development Strategy (FDS) in Hawke's Bay is basically setting a plan now to house our people, while catering for the growth of our region for the next 30-plus years. It has involved an extensive (and expensive) process of an Auckland consulting company giving the three councils (HDC, NCC
NZ Herald
27-04-2025
- Politics
- NZ Herald
‘Economic vandalism': Harvests not homes on our fertile soils
So what does this mean? While there are sufficient resources to meet everyone's basic needs, the world's resources are limited and insufficient to satisfy the insatiable desires and greed of those that accumulate wealth beyond what is necessary. At a local level and in many ways, we are seeing this happening in our own region. We, in New Zealand, are in the midst of a plan for growth for the next 30-plus years and this is being done through a process called the Future Development Strategy (FDS). In Hawke's Bay, this FDS sets the blueprint for how we accommodate for the growth of our region for the next 100 or 200-plus years ahead. Just as 'Right Tree; Right Place' pertaining to the proliferation of the scourge of pine trees blanketing some of our best farmland, we believe in the 'Right House, Right Place'. We have plenty of unproductive land for planting houses so surely we should be growing them on these areas? Over many decades we have seen the ever increasing cancerous growth of urban and industrial sprawl creeping over some of our best soils in the world, initiated by council officer planners and agreed to by elected city councillors. This lust for more is unsustainable, especially for our future generations who will one day look back on these councils and say 'what were they doing?' The FDS process has brought to the surface many instances for 'the lust for more' whereby land owners are pushing hard to cover and destroy forever our most precious soils with concrete and asphalt. Some examples include many areas in and around the Hastings city fringes. This FDS replaces the disastrous old Heretaunga Plains Urban Development Strategy (HPUDS) document, however, this FDS Draft document basically just follows the same old blueprint that was in the HPUDS documents; more of the same pattern and policies of Greenfield developments on highly productive land. By just adding on a little bit here and a little bit there, they call this 'just tidying things up' and successive councils have been 'just tidying things up' for far too long. Then there's an area in western Havelock North where there is a push by landowners to rezone Plains Production zoned land to Urban Residential zoned land. There's even a Mr Apple plan on the corner of State Highway 51 and Te Ara Kahikatea, in the Whakatū area, for an 'industrial park'. Whakatū is an interesting case as it caters for 'wet industry'. Just 30% of the industry in Whakatū is 'wet industry'. The other 70% actually doesn't need to be there. In my opinion, the majority of the people who live in this region don't want highly fertile food producing soils destroyed forever. We need to stop this economic vandalism and focus on not growing houses and industry on our best food-producing land but rather preserve them for food production for our future generations. The FDS process is the opportune time to have a comprehensive 'reset' of how we grow our region into the future and stop this wilful destruction of our golden goose.
