Politics

Kāpiti Coast resident and district councillor Gwynn Compton has launched a new podcast dedicated to the world of local government in New Zealand – Local Aotearoa. The podcast, which will be published on a semi-weekly basis, will take a high-level look across the local government sector in New Zealand, exploring its history, structure, role, funding, and future, as well as taking on topical issues and current events.…

“Councillors should be asking questions about the delays to the Gateway project consent process for reassurance that the entire project agreed to by council is consentable,” says Kāpiti Districtwide Cr Jackie Elliott. “The design and consenting process which started in April this year remains incomplete with consent only granted for initial stream works and the Gateway project start timeline already rescheduled twice in the past two years.…

Mana MP Barbara Edmonds and Ōtaki MP Terisa Ngobi were visitors this week at the Kāpiti Vaccination Centre in Paraparaumu. “So good to be up on the Kāpiti Coast to see how our vaccination roll out is going. Terisa Ngobi – MP for Ōtaki and I popped into the Tū Ora Kāpiti Vaccination Centre to see the awesome team who have been busy right through the lock…

Kāpiti Coast District Council is now operating under its Alert Level 4 service levels reports Mayor K Gurunathan. “Our main priority during this event is to support the national response, and the health and wellbeing of the Kāpiti Coast community and Council staff,” says Mayor K Gurunathan. Our Alert Level 4 service levels are designed to deliver essential services while keeping our community and staff safe.” Service…

Major restoration work has begun at Queen Elizabeth Park (QEP) and Kaitoke Regional Park to provide a permanent carbon sink for the region that will cut Greater Wellington’s carbon footprint by 2.5 percent in the first decade of its creation. The work is part of Greater Wellington’s planting programme which will see 400,000 trees planted across the region this winter, but these two restoration projects are unique because they…

Kāpiti Coast residents want their diverse communities represented on council, and more direct access to councillors who do what’s best for the district as a whole, according to research released today by Kāpiti Coast District Council ahead of public consultation on council representation. The Council is carrying out a review of how its ratepayers and residents should be represented at the 2022 local body elections. Under the…

Fifteen Kāpiti volunteer groups and individuals have been honoured for their part in keeping our communities connected and strong throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. This year the annual Kāpiti Coast Civic Awards were once again paired with the Wellington Airport Regional Community Awards to honour the outstanding people who make our neighbourhoods and communities the special places they are. Mayor Gurunathan said that last night’s awards event was…

Kāpiti Coast District Council has taken steps to control the population of Canada geese currently in the Kāpiti area. Canada geese have been a growing issue at some Kāpiti locations including Awatea Lakes and Otaraua Park. Their droppings can carry diseases such as avian influenza, campylobacter, Escherichia coli, and salmonella, and large populations can foul waterways. Kāpiti District Mayor K Gurunathan says Council has heard the call…

In an unprecedented move, a public meeting in Waikanae on Sunday called for the resignation of the Kāpiti Council’s chief executive Wayne Maxwell. The meeting, attended by over sixty locals, was called to discuss the recent Council decision to close the Waikanae Recycling Centre on August 1. Apart from strong opposition to the decision itself (passed on the casting vote of the Mayor) there were strong arguments…

Councillor Jackie Elliott is waging a campaign to keep the well used Waikanae Recycling Centre open after a move by Council to close it down. “As Portfolio Leader for Sustainable Waste Management I have noticed how much better small communities like Ōtaki and Paekākāriki do minimising waste and finding creative ways to re-use and re-purpose resources,” says Cr Elliott. Cr Elliott says at a recent Council workshop,…

A lively and humorous analysis of the 2021 Budget by Act leader David Seymour drew an engaged crowd at a Kāpiti Coast Chamber of Commerce event on Monday evening. Around 60 people, including former Governor General Sir Jerry Mateparae, came to hear Seymour’s perspective at the event, where attendees had the opportunity to quiz him on a range of different topics. Seymour said he believed the Budget,…