Broad public support for a standalone unitary Coromandel Council was demonstrated in black and white when a petition bearing more than 1,500 signatures was re-presented to all TCDC councillors and staff last week.
The petition submission followed the close of a TCDC online public opinion survey that asked respondents to pick one of three proposed options for amalgamation with other Waikato or Bay of Plenty councils. Council’s two-week snap “engagement” poll did not offer the option to reject all three short-listed merger suggestions and to express instead support for a single-tier unitary Coromandel Council structure. Unlike TCDC, other New Zealand councils, including neighbouring Western Bay of Plenty and all three Northland Region districts, did give residents the opportunity to reject amalgamation and express their preference for a standalone council.
The Petition for a Unitary Coromandel Council was formally submitted to TCDC in support of the district’s original efforts to take on regional functions under the leadership of former Mayor Glenn Leach. An initial 56-page tranche of more than 1,000 signatures was presented to the council on November 7, 2012. A second 29-page tranche of more than 500 additional signatures was presented in June 2013. Petitioners represent every district town and settlement from northmost Port Jackson to Whangamatā and Matatoki. Every signature is accompanied by the petitioner’s home address.
The re-submitted petition seeks “To ensure improved local government service based on:
- decision-making by locally elected and accountable officials;
- policy development appropriate to our district;
- affordability of rates;
- increased council efficiency and elimination of waste;
- more public service jobs and economic development opportunities for our communities;
- responsiveness to the unique concerns, aspirations, and wishes of district residents;
- provision of local benefits and value for every rates dollar.”
While some years have passed since original presentation, there are individuals who will have moved away, and several will have passed away. But Coromandel community members perusing the 85 pages of line-by-line signatures today will recognise, in addition to themselves, hundreds of neighbours, friends, relatives, workmates, and local acquaintances among those urging formation of a unitary council. A small number of residential addresses appear to be those of visitors or bach owners.
In contrast to an anonymous and unsecure online “tick one” contest, with programming that may have skewed results, the petition re-submitted last week demonstrates solid, hard-copy evidence of the depth and breadth of public opinion supporting the Coromandel Council option from residents willing to put their names on the line publicly. As a gauge of long-term, sustained public opinion in support of a standalone unitary council for the peninsula, the significance of the petition for next week’s Council decision would be hard to overstate.
The petition was retrieved in response to an Official Information Act request by The Informer. Council members and senior staff have been asked to post all signature pages online (with link) in conjunction with related Simplifying Local Government information and the results of the council’s other “public engagement” activities.
