The debate between the Otago Peninsula community and the Otago Regional Council over the provision of bus services for school commuters has been a long and arduous one. Recently, local parent Jason Graham and I presented a petition of nearly 1000 signatures seeking three very simple things; A timetable change An additional bus to create a half hourly service like the rest of the city A minor route change that caters for all users. Over the course of the bus…
The announcement of the review of the Dunedin City Council Book Bus service is a pertinent reminder to all Otago Peninsula residents of the importance of local services. The review should be treated as an opportunity by the community to consider modernising the services that the Book Bus can supply. These should include WiFi, online services and wider Council customer services. Submissions close on the 27th May 2017 and can be done online or on hard-copy from clicking the link here….
One of the main themes of the Dunedin City Council Economic Development Strategy has been the notion that Dunedin is an affordable city. That’s an admirable idea and one that every person would naturally support. However, when looking at the annual fees and charges that the City Council ask citizens pay for services it becomes clear that our affordability is rapidly being eroded away. These types of costs hurt our community and our economy. What’s new you might ask? Well…
I was a little whakama (shy, nervous) about putting out an election sign in Te Reo Maori. However, living on the Peninsula and working in Dunedin has taught me to look deeply at the nature of our community and how we can support one another.Language is one of those ways, and through it we can learn a deeper understanding of the world and place we live in. I’ve been very fortunate to receive much support and guidance from many Maori…
In the last few months we’ve seen the knotty problem of freedom camping in areas like Warrington raised by the community. Having spent the last three years on the Otago Peninsula Community Board dealing with this issue its become clear that we must act far more decisively than we have done to date. That means investment, dialogue and looking at innovative ways to control the effects of the activity on local people and local areas. In the Peninsula example the Dunedin…
This has been an issue that the City Council has not engaged with or supported the community. Protest over changes to food contracts have been met with deaf Council ears. The future of the hospital for the community, University of Otago Medical School and employment is a crucial issue for Dunedin. While its true that the City Council has no control over the management of healthcare in Dunedin, hospital services impact on the well-being of the city on social, economic…
I recently attended the protest regarding the standard of food on a wet Friday afternoon outside of the Dunedin Hospital. I went because a lady from my Community Board area has been seriously ill in hospital and her family have been bringing in meals from home to help build up her strength. Her grandson plays rugby with my son so I’ve been hearing from the family about how her treatment and care has been going on the sidelines lately. To…
The Otago Peninsula deserves better service from public transport provided by the Otago Regional Council. However, we are not the only community that are not having the appropriate service delivered in the community. Its not about asking for special treatment, but asking for what is fair and reasonable to get our kids to school, people to work and our elderly to essential services.
The recent gale force winds that ripped through the city last week were a bleak reminder of just how vulnerable we all are in the face of natural storm events. With damage to infrastructure, power outages and road closures our ability to be resilient in the face of such events was sorely tested. On the Otago Peninsula the storm saw Portobello Road lashed with surging seas that caused flooding and minor slipping. The miracle was that the road was kept opened…
The Tomahawk Community have expressed long-term concerns over the removal of sand from the beach. In 2015 I met with the Otago Regional Council to discuss those issues and to ask them to provide more information on the issue. One of the things they have agreed is to make their monitoring reports available to me at the Board and the community. For the benefit of the community I have provided the relevant documents here for people to view and disseminate….