Balancing the books

If you had $202 million to spend, what would you do?

The Queenstown Lakes District Council has been thinking about that this week.

On Monday, the council spent all day in Wanaka listening to more than 50 verbal submissions about the 2023-24 annual plan.

People from all over the district spent a precious five minutes delivering humble or huge wish lists to mayor Glen Lewers and his team.

Mr Lewers ran a tight ship. No-one went over time. Many had practised their speeches to finish on the last second. Some gabbled, others were stopped mid-flight.

Only those who had written one of more than 1000 submissions before the April 26 cut-off date had speaking rights.

It was not the type of forum to leap from the public seats and make a passionate plea.

A woman in a purple hat had driven over from Queenstown. She sat listening over an hour before unexpectedly interjecting to demand the council respond to her concerns. She had not written a submission so was stood down.

Friends of Bullock Creek and their colleagues were pretty grumpy. I believe they were the only ones not to thank the council for anything. They made the best points, in my opinion.

It was refreshing to hear such decent, curmudgeonly criticism.

They have weathered eight years of pollution in their beloved creek and just when a solution seemed in reach, the council suggested deferring the $6 million dollar Stone St stormwater budget for another seven years.

What a bonus for the Otago Regional Council coffers, joyfully fining our community every time it rains between now and 2030, causing floods and sedimentation in Bullock Creek.

I’m interested in how the council is going to balance its legal and environmental priorities and how it is going to explain its reasons.

I get that budget deferrals have been made because council must stump up $106 million in leaky home settlements. But unless we do something for Bullock Creek now, our children and a future council will be liable for cleaning up a bigger, filthier mess.

There’s good arguments to reinstate the $6 million now plus add $4 million on top, as the Friends have requested.

Or another $100,000, as suggested by Touchstone principal and fresh water scientist Chris Arbuckle, who was quite the curmudgeon during his five minutes.

He’s collected enough evidence of stormwater damage being done every time it rains in Wanaka and the council should not need any more, he said. But he gave them the pictures from his slide show anyway.

Spokeswomen for the Albert Town and the Lake Hawea community associations protested the average 13.6% rates increase for every ratepayer so the council can settle leaky homes liabilities.

Both Heather Thorne (Albert Town) and Cheryl Walthew (Hawea) were seeking tiny amounts, a few thousand dollars here and there for community projects — ‘‘total bargains’’, as Ms Walthew said.

They have real concerns their residents and ratepayers will pull the pin and leave if community projects can’t happen, the costs of living continue to increase and housing remains in crisis.

It is the council’s responsibility to balance the books. It must also have a social conscience.

Where will it all end up? What will the council do?

The council has scheduled June 29 to adopt the final annual plan, taking effect on July 1.