It has been a very busy few weeks since the local government elections, and I’d like to thank everyone who was engaged and involved this year.

In particular, all of those who stood for their local communities as candidates for council and the Coast Community Board.

We had such a high calibre of candidates and competition for all seats, which is very healthy for our local democracy.

Our voter turnout was nearing 50 percent which is well above the national average of just 32 percent, so thanks again to everyone who made the time to vote.

Don’t forget that your engagement with council doesn’t stop with voting. The council is a “participatory democracy”, so you continue to have your say through conversations with your representatives, staying up to date, providing feedback and submissions across all sorts of issues.

Council works best when the diverse parts of the community are engaged and involved.  

Our new council for the current triennium (the three-year term from 2025 to 2028) is an exciting mixture of experience and new voices.

Four councillors have been elected to general ward seats and we have three new Māori ward councillors joining us in our new arrangements.

We have all been incredibly busy at induction workshops, national and local training sessions (I think of it as “Mayor School”), and enough reading and notes to fill several bookshelves. There is a lot to learn and refresh our memory on.

Council business is already under way with a first Extra Ordinary meeting to set up the Risk and Assurance Committee, and we have our first full meeting next week.

I have also met with the committee pulling together the Fatigue Stop this year to provide an opportunity for the young people returning from Rhythm and Vines to stop and stretch their legs.

In the meeting there were representatives from both the Lions Club and the volunteer firefighters.

I am constantly struck by how much both these groups do around our community, and I’d like to again recognise their work.

And if you are looking to find a way to give back to the Ōpōtiki community this coming year, both the Lions and Volunteer Fire Brigade are always keen for new volunteers and fresh faces to carry their vital work forward. I’d really encourage some of our locals to find out more about it.

It has been great to watch the weather warming into the summer months, so don’t forget to keep an eye out for the annual summer calendar of events and activities that usually comes out in December.