Our community really pulled together these last three years. It has been incredibly tough but to see what our community did to support each other is something I will never forget. Thank you all for all you did for each other over this time.
It is a privilege to be a councillor for the North Shore, thank you for your support of me and for working with us to get positive outcomes for our community. I feel lucky to meet so many great people through this role and I look forward to working with more of you in the future.
This term I was appointed Chair of the Environment and Climate Change Committee and led important plans such as the Auckland Water Strategy to improve water quality, ensure sustainable use of water and prepare for future droughts. I also led Te Tāruke ā Tāwhiri – Auckland’s Climate Plan which received unanimous support from councillors and local boards. This puts us on a path to reduce our emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Through the plan we secured funding for initiatives such as electric buses, new EV and low emission ferries, shoreline adaptation plans for our entire coast and approved budget for the largest ever urban tree planting plan and 200ha of native forest in our regional parks and more.
Water quality has been a big priority for me again. Chris Darby and I heard loud and clear from you that cleaning up our beaches is important, so we have dramatically increased spending in these areas.
This term we ensured the Takapuna wastewater pipeline and manhole upgrades were completed; pipe replacements are underway in Shakespeare Road, Alma Road pump station upgrade and significant stormwater upgrades happening at Kitchener Road. This is nearly $13m of investment into our water infrastructure in Milford which will make a significant difference to water quality and capacity.
The extensive work done prior allowed us to remove permanent no swim warnings at the Wairau Estuary/Milford Beach, which had been in place since the early 2000s.
Our $14m stormwater and street upgrade at Hurstmere Road is complete and the business association reports significant uptick in retail and hospitality spending, recent data shows retail spending increased twice as much as other similar centres. Many events and markets have taken place in the new space, with Takapuna Winter Lights being the largest, 35,000 locals celebrated in the space when it was closed at night.
Our $100m Northcote and Takapuna town centre upgrades are much-needed and are a big investment for the Shore. It will make those areas more people-focused, will create new public spaces, community facilities, homes and jobs. The Lake Road upgrade is currently in detailed design, and we look forward to that kicking off soon too.
There has been a lot done this term under tough conditions but I hope you can support and vote for me again at the end of the month so I can continue to be your voice for the Shore on Council and get things done for our community, with our community.
Make sure you vote and encourage others to vote too. You can take your envelopes to the library, any Countdown Supermarket or send it back through the post before October 8th.
