Wainui's view changing on reticulation project
Friday, 29 Feb 2008
By John Jomes

PUBLIC opinion at Wainui has now swung against reticulating the area, councillor Andy Cranston told Gisborne District Council yesterday.

The comments from Mr Cranston, a council member who lives at Wainui, came after the council debated strongly whether the rest of the district should contribute to the cost of having water and sewer services at Sponge Bay, Okitu and Wainui.

The council decided to accept a formula that would see 10 percent of the cost met from outside the district but only as a means of getting it included for consultation in the annual plan process, with several councillors saying they were opposed to the district sharing the cost.

Before the council was a recommendation from the finance and monitoring committee that a 10 percent contribution be made from district rates, at a ratio of two to one between city and rural residents.

Committee chairman Craig Bauld acknowledged they had been divided.

Brian Wilson favoured putting the formula out to "test the water", saying there would be a lot of submissions. Pat Seymour said she had a lot of feedback already from rural residents and would have to change her position after earlier voting for it.

Atareta Poananga said people in Matakaoa did not want to have to contribute when they were not getting adequate infrastructure services.

Alan Davidson said he would be voting against this. There were many people in the city and also at Wainui who were on fixed income and in no position to pay more. Forty years earlier, when the city's sewer pipeline was put out, people from Wainui were not asked to contribute.

Engineering and works manager Peter Higgs referred to indicative figures in the draft annual plan that showed the contribution for a city ratepayer ranging from $17 if there was a lump sum payment to $1.70 per year over 20 years. The figures for other ratepayers ranged from $8.50 to 85 cents a year.

Bill Burdett said he was opposed to a district contribution, asking where would it stop.

Roger Haisman said he voted against the proposal at the committee and had been fully supported by people who contacted him, including some in the city.

Graeme Thomson said the subject should go out as part of the annual plan so the council could hear from the floor and not just a noisy minority.

Alan Hall said there would be a variety of views and it should be put out for consultation.

Nona Aston said she was concerned things were getting out of hand because there was so much conjecture. Mayor Meng Foon said with the Taruheru and Waipaoa systems, the council had paid for the investigation work and after that it was user-pay. The same would happen with the Waiapu River.

The resolution to include the issue in the annual plan consultation process was carried.

Later in the meeting the council received a report detailing the feedback from the open day held at Wainui in December.

Mr Higgs said the feedback would be invaluable when preparing for public consultation.

Mr Cranston said the view of people was swinging because of the dollars involved.

Some people at Wainui were in a bad situation.

On a 20-year mortgage a person would pay $52,000.

"I think we are going to have some problems," said Mr Cranston.

"The majority has swung back the other way."

Alan Davidson said he was aware there were a lot of people at Wainui on fixed incomes and wanted some sort of rates postponement system included.

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