Month: March 2018

Today’s Nor’West News includes a column written by Simon, on the importance of community engagement. The digital edition of the paper can be found at https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/59892157/norwest-news-march-13-2018.

Simon Britten works for a Papanui-based youth and community development organisation, and is the founder and curator of the Think Papanui Facebook page. He writes about the importance of community engagement and what’s going on in Papanui at the moment.

WHEN I stood as a Papanui- Innes Community Board candidate in the 2016 local body election I could see there was an opportunity for people to be more engaged with local government if they had better access to information about local issues and the activities of the city council and community boards. There is a lot of detail involved with their meetings and processes. Not everybody will read through the detail of board agendas and minutes, and it can be a challenge keeping track of proposals and opportunities to submit feedback to the city council. Continue reading “Simon’s 13 March column in the Nor’West News”

Environment Canterbury (ECan) and the Christchurch City Council currently have draft Long Term Plans for the 2018 to 2028 period open for public feedback. These plans are reviewed every three years, and set out the what, when, and how, of planned spending.

The ECan plan is notable for the proposal in the public transport section to axe six Christchurch bus routes. The consultation document also outlines revenue and finance policies, and plans including freshwater management and air quality.

The City Council is asking for feedback on spending priorities, and the consultation document includes details on the Council’s financial strategy as well as the infrastructure strategy. Down in the detail, the plan also proposes to give Community Boards more say in prioritising intersection upgrades (the Harewood/Breens/Gardiners intersection gets a specific mention).

Feedback on ECan’s plan can be given until 26 March 2018. You can find consultation information and a link to make a submission on ECan’s website, and more detail specifically on the bus route options on the Metro website.

The City Council plan is open for feedback until 13 April 2018. The online feedback form and a link to the consultation documents is in the ‘have your say’ section of the Council website. All the draft documents and additional underlying/background documents can be found here.