Being a community-minded person I had always thought that at some stage in my life I would serve a term or two on the local board or local council. I reckon it is healthy for people from different walks of life to play a part in the way our city is run. I stood once before and just missed out being elected. In mid-2019 I was concerned about the way our local board was operating, but was hesitant to stand and be rejected once again. Then I ended up bumping in to then Devonport Business Association Manager Toni van Tonder, while filling up the Channel Mag bin at Devonport Wharf. We got talking. We were both concerned about the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board attracting activists, and generally members who were very focused on preventing things happening, rather than making them happen. We both agreed that the local board needed a fresh approach. Members who could work with all sectors to preserve our fantastic lifestyles but also make the bold calls to prepare for the future. As a result of that 10-15 minute chat we decided to stand. From memory we even came up with the name of our ticket during that conversation – ‘A Fresh Approach’.
This led to both of us being elected. Fast-forward three years and we have both learnt a great deal about the rough and tumble of local body politics and how the slow wheels of democracy go round. Being the highest polling candidate in 2019 I pushed to be the chair of the board. Being a split board – three of us being for progress and three elected on the back of a campaign against progress – we couldn’t reach an agreement on that point. So the fall-back agreement was to have a split chair. With me taking the role for the first 18 months of the three year term and another new member, fifth-polling Ruth Jackson (who actually lives out of the area in Beach haven), taking the role for the second 18 months. It wasn’t ideal, but as I now know – that’s democracy!
While I have enjoyed representing my community as a local board member and have learnt a great deal, I have decided that I won’t be standing for a second term in 2022. I was only ever going to do two terms anyway, but the past two years have changed things dramatically for me. As most will know I have had some health challenges and after the business disruption of Covid-19 my business needs me as well. I plan to keep contributing to the community in other ways, but it won’t be as an elected member of the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board.
The good news however folks is Toni van Tonder is indeed standing again. And what has made my decision easier is she's bringing with her four fresh new candidates on our ‘A Fresh Approach’ ticket. These people all share our desire of seeing the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board operate in a better way.
I knew Toni reasonably well prior to our election to the local board in 2019 and have been hugely impressed with her efforts over the past three years. The young mother of three is a formidable person who really does bring fresh thinking to what has been a stale old board. It would be great to see her elected with her five-strong team in 2022, she would make a fantastic chair and would get things done for the community. I’m excited and will support her campaign in any way I can.
I sat down and put these questions to Toni in late June, just as the full A Fresh Approach team was being launched.
AIDAN BENNETT: So Toni, first of all I am sorry I am not standing. I have enjoyed the past three years and will miss working with you. I’m thrilled you are sticking with it. What made you decide to run again?
TONI VAN TONDER: To be honest Aidan, it was a big decision to make. I’ve found Local Board work to be challenging. The politics and entrenched behaviour continues to get in the way of progress and I’ve felt incredibly frustrated and at times impotent because as you know, the current balance of power hasn’t been in our favour. But, when people I respect in the community seek me out to give thanks for the work I’ve done and the perspective that the two of us have brought to the table, I feel dutybound to continue. A fresh approach to getting things done in our community is still absolutely needed. I see that my job now is to bring new leaders to the table so that when I leave, I’ve left behind a Local Board the community can be proud of. By the way, I’m glad you’re sorry! It definitely won’t be the same without you.
AB: What made my decision easier is seeing the quality of the team you have running with you in 2022. They are all good people, represent a cross-section of the community and cover the whole of the local board area as well. You must be thrilled?
TVT: Yes, that’s the greatest news I can share. I have an amazing team of five (one more place with your name on it Aidan, if you change your mind!). The Devonport-Takapuna Local Board covers Devonport, Bayswater, Belmont, Hauraki, Takapuna, Milford, Castor Bay, Forrest Hill and Sunnynook. It’s actually a larger geographic area than simply Devonport and Takapuna. These northern suburbs haven’t had great representation before and so I made it my mission to find the best leaders from each of those communities and bring them into the team. Obviously I’m in Narrow Neck/Devonport, but I also have Zane Catterall from Bayswater. Zane will be known to locals as the tikanga and cultural advisor for Restoring Takarunga-Hauraki. One of the things our local board lacks is cultural competency and our relationships with mana whenua are really poor. Zane will be the first candidate standing for the DTLB who speaks te reo māori fluently. He’s a wonderful public speaker and knows so much about ecology and the environment, and he understands the importance of community. He’s going to be a huge asset to the leadership team and I know the people of Bayswater and Belmont will be delighted to hear that he’s standing.
Representing both Takapuna and our local economy is Terence Harpur. Terence is the CEO of the Takapuna Beach Business Association and he really does an amazing job. It was interesting for me to step into the Local Board role after having been the Manager of Devonport’s town centre, because I got to see how each town centre Manager does their job and compare it to my own efforts. Terence is remarkable for the passion, professionalism and strategic approach he brings to his role. He understands what drives the local economy and following what has been an incredibly difficult time for local businesses, this is an increasingly important perspective to have on the Board. Not only has he been an active member of the community for many years, he's also produced loads of community events and is the current Deputy Chair of Eventfinda Stadium and a founding board member of Project Employ, a disability charity. He’s a father to two beautiful young children and has another on the way, so this is going to be an exciting year for him.
My next team member Peter Allen, is also going to bring an awesome perspective to the Local Board, and he will be the first Milford representative the Board has seen for many years. I first met Pete when he assisted me to deliver major events in Devonport town centre. Pete’s business Seven Events has been delivering iconic events in our community for a very long time. You might know him from the hugely popular Christmas by the Lake. He was first recommended to the Milford Business Association by Sir Stephen Tindall, as he had been working for the Warehouse group for years and is so highly respected. Pete’s a genuine good guy. He’s an amazing listener, he’s thoughtful, practical and unflappable. I’m pretty keen to see if working on the Local Board will get a rise out of him, because I’ve never, ever seen him lose his cool. His wife Kirsten teaches at Westlake Girls, and they’ve lived in the area with their two children for 12 years. He’s looking forward to advancing some of the key issues Milford has been raising with us for some time.
Finally our last team member is a well known person in the Sunnynook Community, Melissa Powell. Mel is so qualified for this role with a Master’s in human rights and a long experience working in the not-for-profit, youth and disability sectors in Management roles. She has a real passion for making spaces safer and accessible for all. I’m going to learn so much from her and can’t wait to have her at the table beside me. Mel’s got two teenage children, one at Westlake Boys and one at Uni. She and her husband have been in the ‘nook’ for many, many years, so I know that community will feel so delighted to have one of their own at the table.
So you’re right, we’re an awesome team of local leaders who bring real world experience in governance, finance, community development, environmentalism and an understanding of matauranga māori. Importantly, we represent the whole of the local board area, so I’m excited about moving ahead with these great people.
AB: You must agree that the 3-3 split of the local board has been pretty frustrating this term? You will obviously be keen to see a majority of like-minded people elected with you for this term so you can work constructively with local board and council staff for the good of the community?
TVT: The 3-3 split is impossible and my observation is it’s impossible for Council staff to navigate. We really need seven members on the Local Board so that decisions aren’t always made with the casting vote of the Chair. It’s important to remember though Aidan, that even in my team we have different ideas. You and I had different ideas on occasion over these last few years. That’s ok. We all bring different thinking and world views to the table. The one thing that always united you and me, and now also my new team, is that we’re future focused. Auckland is changing rapidly and we’re not here to pretend we can keep things as they are forever. We want to usher in the change and find the opportunity. We want the best outcomes we can get along the way. We also have the same rules of engagement – open, honest dialogue and an understanding that we’re not the experts. We’re all willing to shift our stake in light of the facts.
AB: What has frustrated me is the old thinking of members around some of the key issues in our area. Lake Road, the redevelopment of our town centres and unwillingness to think creatively around key infrastructure investment for the future. I know you have some great ideas about these things?
TVT: I’m not really one to bury my head in the sand and ignore the facts. Council is cash-strapped. Our Local Board area is not set to get any additional funding for a very long time. Yet the list of capital improvements our community wants to see continues to grow. I’m totally pragmatic and understand the need to optimise assets that are no longer serving our community. Selling those assets to release the funds to deliver future projects is an ideological perspective that I favour. Why have empty buildings that are growing dilapidated when we can instead put the money towards capital investments like the Wairau Estuary Boardwalk Project, or the Francis-Esmonde walking and cycling link? We are so lucky in our local board area that we have generous residents who also want to see an improvement in our facilities. By creating private-public partnerships, we’re able to expediate these improvements. It takes good relationship skills and creative thinking to do this and I can think of two really great opportunities where this might happen if we do it right. The problem is, with the wrong thinking on the Board, barriers start to go up and the private part of the partnership gets lost. Then we all lose.
AB: During this term I have discovered aspects not being well looked after by Auckland Council. Despite being huge contributors rate-wise to the city we’re not always getting our fair share. It is an issue that needs to be addressed by the local board. What will your approach be to ensuring this problem is tackled?
TVT: Sadly I think that due to our history of thumping our fists on the table saying ‘don’t sell anything (even dilapidated vacant buildings that bring no community benefit), but invest in this, this and this, oh and this…’ our message is being ignored. We’re sounding a little entitled. We have two ward Councillors and they have the hard task of trying to convince the other 18 Councillors that we’re being reasonable. Again, I think we need to be more pragmatic. We need to strongly advocate for the most important things our community has been asking for (and these need to be about future proofing our area), and find our own solutions to problems when we can. We also need to build relationships around the Governing Body table. If you don’t have your two Councillors on your speed dial, then there’s a problem.
AB: You have expressed a desire to be the chair if elected again. So what will the key focus Chair van Tonder led board be?
TVT: As an aside, I hope my husband doesn’t read this, I haven’t shared this part of the plan with him! There’s quite a few focus areas for my team. The joy of bringing a team to the table is that we can divide and conquer rather than work separate to one another and spread ourselves thin. We’re keen to look closely at Sunnynook and investigate whether the town centre can be put forward for urban regeneration to prepare it for the huge amounts of intensification and growth it’s experiencing. We’re concerned with the impacts covid has had on Takapuna and Devonport town centres in particular and want to support them on their journey to economic recovery. We are passionate about the natural environment and want to find more opportunities to connect community through volunteering and restoration. Three years ago we were offered the opportunity to fund bike hubs and sustainable neighbourhood programmes. I’d like to see this revisited. The Milford estuary boardwalk project has been sitting there for years waiting to be funded. Again, if we can find a way to release some capital, we’re keen to get that one over the line. We want to restore our relationship with local iwi and I feel so grateful that Zane on our team will be able to bring his skills and understanding to help us do this. I personally have a passion for sport and am keen to help the Devonport based Rugby and Cricket clubs fully realise their aspiration to increase female participation, create indoor cricket wickets and open up the Devonport Domain. I’m working on a private-public partnership to create a future-fit sports hub at Woodall Park and there’s another opportunity to improve the facilities at the Takapuna Football club alongside locals there. After years of lockdown, the best thing any one of us can do, whether young or old, is participate in sports and recreation. The physical, social and mental wellbeing associated with physical activity is undeniable. I want to see more people outside, enjoying our environment and using their bodies, connecting with each other and enjoying our natural assets.
AB: I know you get a kick out of seeing projects you have pushed and advocated strongly for come to fruition. That is something that’s very rewarding about being a local board member. What DTLB projects excite you going forward?
TVT: Yes, that’s the stuff that makes you want to stay in the job! I’m so, so happy to have approved the development of Waiwharariki, Anzac Square. This is going to be a game changer for Takapuna and I know when my kids are grown up and hopefully living and working in that square, they’ll tell their mates that if it hadn’t been for their mum, they wouldn’t be living this awesome life in this incredible location. I’m super delighted that over the last three years Healthy Waters have massively improved the water quality at Milford Beach and Castor Bay. This was such a giant election issue in 2019 and it’s been the one thing all local board members were unified in improving. Last Christmas the permanent long term water quality warning was removed from the Wairau Estuary Outlet on Milford Beach. It had been in place in 2010! Because of our advocacy and because of our amazing Healthy Waters staff who understood the importance of this issue for our community, we’ve done excellent work in this space.
I’m in love with the new Milford toilet and changing room block and am equally delighted that the parents of Sunnynook won’t be sending their kids into the bushes for an emergency wee at Tonkin playground for much longer. I’m most looking forward to seeing the Lake Road corridor improvement. You and I did a lot of advocacy behind the scenes, along with our Councillors, to ensure the money remained in place to deliver this. Our Local Board didn’t support the proposed upgrade that had been consulted on and following the emergency budget, we were pretty close to losing the funding to the Glenvar Road improvement because that project had strong political support, whereas ours didn’t.
AB: What do you love about the local board member role?
TVT: Having a position of influence is a huge privilege. It’s also a massive responsibility and it requires a lot of listening and learning. I love having the opportunity to be constantly learning. Learning from different members of the community and learning from our expert staff. The last three years has been a huge learning curve for me and I’ve shifted my thinking on a number of issues because of it.
AB: What does Toni van Tonder do to relax?
TVT: I’m an active relaxer, which is good news because our three school-aged children don’t give us much opportunity to put our feet up. I ensure I get an hour each day to exercise, and if I can carve out 30 minutes of reading before bed time, I’m living my best life.
