EXTRAORDINARY COUNCIL MEETING on Monday 29 October
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EXTRAORDINARY COUNCIL MEETING on Monday 29 October 2012 at 9am Council Chamber District Council Building King George Place Timaru TIMARU DISTRICT COUNCIL Notice is hereby given that an Extraordinary meeting of the Timaru District Council will be held in the Council Chamber, District Council Building, King George Place, Timaru on Monday 29 October 2012 at 9am. LOCAL AUTHORITIES (MEMBERS’ INTERESTS) ACT 1968 Councillors are reminded that if you have a pecuniary interest in any item on the agenda, then you must declare this interest and refrain from discussing or voting on this item, and are advised to withdraw from the meeting table. Peter Nixon CHIEF EXECUTIVE TIMARU DISTRICT COUNCIL EXTRAORDINARY COUNCIL MEETING 29 OCTOBER 2012 AGENDA Item Page No No 1 Apologies 2 1 Representation Review 2012 – Initial (Draft) Proposal Hearing and Final Proposal Decision Timaru District Council Extraordinary Council meeting Doc # 792738 29 October 2012 TIMARU DISTRICT COUNCIL FOR THE MEETING OF 29 OCTOBER 2012 Report for Agenda Item No 2 Prepared by Mark Low Electoral Officer Representation Review 2012 – Initial (Draft) Proposal Hearing and Final Proposal Decision (File E2/3) _______________________________ Purpose of Report The purpose of this report is: • to advise Council of the feedback from the formal submission period on the Initial Proposal for the Representation Review; • to advise of the hearing programme for the submissions on the Initial Proposal; and • for Council to adopt a final proposal for representation arrangements for advertising under Section 19N of the Local Electoral Act. Initial Proposal Hearing and Submissions Submissions on the Initial Proposal closed at 5.00pm on Monday 8 October 2012. There were 817 submissions either in favour or opposed to the proposal. As the submissions are on a single topic, they have been treated slightly differently to other submission processes. Where submissions are extensive, a full copy is provided in the Submissions Volume and a summary is provided in the Submissions Summary reports. The Summary reports are included in this agenda. All other submissions have been typed verbatim into these reports. A full index of all submitters can be found in the Submissions Volume. The two boxes of submissions are available for anyone interested in viewing them. Enclosed with this agenda are: • Hearing Schedule - submitters to be heard on Monday 29 October 2012. It can be cross referenced to the Submissions Volume by the submission number and page numbers shown in the columns on the left hand side of the table. The page numbers refer to either the full submission in the Submissions Volume or the verbatim typed submission in this agenda or where applicable both. 39 submitters have requested to speak to their submissions. Timaru District Council Extraordinary Council Meeting Doc # 792738 1 29 October 2012 • Submission Summary Reports – document summarising individual submissions by those in support or those opposed. • Submissions Volume - this includes the following: • Full copy of extensive individual submissions. • Submission Index of Full Copy submissions provided (by submission number). • Submission Index of all Submitters (by submission number). Summary of Submission Feedback Submissions were received from across the district. A high proportion were received from rural areas. Submissions in Support Around 95% of submissions were in support of the proposal. The main reasons noted for support were: • Retains local voice • Guarantee of geographical rural representation • Better understanding of local area by local people • Retention of the ward structure guaranteed under 1989 amalgamations • Fairer system of representation • Reduces risk of party politics in Council • Well established communities of interest • System has worked for 23 years/works well • No need for change/not broken • Fair, balanced and simple system • Less change for the community • Access to local representative • Cost of campaigning for candidates across the district. Submissions Opposed Submissions opposed to the proposal generally fall into two categories: 1) Those who support retaining a ward system but would like some other combination of electoral options. For example, these include retaining the wards but also electing some at large, splitting Timaru ward into more wards, combining the rural wards or retaining the existing structure. 2) Those who support an at large system The main reasons noted for supporting other options were: • Retaining the same number of Councillors as currently exists • Desire to vote for all Councillors being elected • Councillors accountable to the whole district • Wards return unopposed candidates, which is undemocratic • At large enables higher calibre and wider variety of candidates • At large most democratic option • At large would support workings of Council • Communication opportunities means ward system no longer necessary • Need to continue to break down the rural/urban divide • Lack of or misleading information about other options • Concern about an even number of Councillors and the Mayor having a casting vote Timaru District Council Extraordinary Council Meeting Doc # 792738 2 29 October 2012 Options Following the hearing and consideration of submissions, the Council needs to finalise the 2012 representation proposal. Once this is confirmed, the Proposal is again publicly advertised as open for Appeals or Objections. If the proposal is unchanged , under legislation, appeals can only be made by anyone who has submitted on the Initial Proposal. If the proposal is changed, anyone can appeal or object to the proposal. The following options are available: • Option 1 Confirm the Initial Proposal as the Final Proposal, as stated below: Timaru District Council Mayor elected at large 9 Councillors as follows: Geraldine Ward (based on current Geraldine Ward Boundary) – One (1) Councillor Pleasant Point – Temuka Ward (based on current Pleasant Point - Temuka Ward Boundaries) - Two (2) Councillors Timaru Ward (based on current Timaru Ward Boundary) - Six (6) Councillors. Community Boards Geraldine Community Board Six (6) elected members from the Geraldine community as a whole and one (1) appointed member, (the appointed member being the Geraldine Ward Councillor). Pleasant Point Community Board Five (5) elected members from the Pleasant Point community as a whole and two (2) appointed members, (the appointed members being the Pleasant Point- Temuka Ward Councillors). Temuka Community Board Five (5) elected members from the Temuka community as a whole and two (2) appointed members, (the appointed members being the Pleasant Point-Temuka Ward Councillors). Boundaries Geraldine Ward and Geraldine Community The Geraldine Ward and community is the area delineated on S.O. Plan No. 19948 deposited with the Chief Surveyor of the Canterbury Land District, (this is the same as the current Geraldine Ward). Timaru District Council Extraordinary Council Meeting Doc # 792738 3 29 October 2012 Pleasant Point – Temuka Ward, Pleasant Point Community and Temuka Community The Pleasant Point – Temuka Ward is the area delineated by S.O. Plan 19946 and 19949 deposited with the Chief Surveyor of the Canterbury Land District, (this is the same as the current Pleasant Point - Temuka Ward). The Pleasant Point community is the area delineated by S.O. Plan No. 19946 and the Temuka community is the area delineated by S.O. Plan No. 19949 deposited with the Chief Surveyor of the Canterbury Land District, (these are the same as the former Pleasant Point and Temuka wards). Timaru Ward The Timaru Ward is the area delineated on S.O. Plan No. 19947 deposited with the Chief Surveyor of the Canterbury Land District, (this is the same as the current Timaru Ward). • Option 2 Confirm some other proposal as the Final Proposal. The representation review timetable from this point forward is summarised below: 2012 Date Task Week 29-31 October Council Hearing on submissions and Final proposal confirmed 10 November Final proposal advertised via public notice (via Council Noticeboard) Appeals/Objections to final proposal open 10 December Appeals/Objections to final proposal close 2013 15 January Latest date that Appeals/Objections can be forwarded to the Local Government Commission 11 April Latest date by which the Local Government Commission can determine Appeals/Objections Identification of Relevant Legislation, Council Policy and Plans Local Electoral Act 2001. Local Government Act 2002. Assessment of Significance The representation review decision is significant under the Council’s Significance Policy and has been extensively consulted upon with the community. Confirmation of the Final Proposal is the final task that Council must complete before Local Government Commission involvement, (if appeals or objections are received). Consultation Extensive consultation has been undertaken, including: • Advisory Panel • Pre-consultation • Community Boards discussions • Formal consultation under Section 19M of the Local Electoral Act. Timaru District Council Extraordinary Council Meeting Doc # 792738 4 29 October 2012 Other Considerations The Council’s final representation proposal will be publicly notified. Any person or organisation that has made submissions on the initial proposal may appeal in writing against the Council’s decision adopting the final proposal. Where the Council’s final proposal is based on changes to the initial proposal, any interested person or organisation may lodge an objection in writing to the final proposal. All eligible