Andrew von Dadelszen Former Regional Councillor

Don't get me wrong – I am a strong believer in the Western Bay of Plenty's Smartgrowth philosophy, and especially the way that a collaborative approach has benefited the amount of central government funding coming into this sub-region. However that doesn't mean that all aspects of Smartgrowth are working in our ratepayers' best interests.

Thankfully there is a Smartgrowth Strategy Review underway and this is an opportunity to iron out the ‘wrinkles' and get Smartgrowth back on track. The bureaucrats within the three councils (Tauranga City Council; Western Bay of Plenty District Council and Bay of Plenty Regional Council), combined with tangata whenua interests, have managed to expand Smartgrowth to try to cater for everything and everyone. It has lost its way and has ballooned out into just another bloated bureaucracy. It is time to redefine its boundaries (and areas of significance) and reshape it so that it is a working/living strategy that will carry this sub-region forward positively for the next 50 years.

One of the biggest issues constraining the economic viability of Tauranga City is housing affordability. Setting tight urban limits, while having valued ideals, has done nothing to help home affordability. This issue needs to be seriously researched before locking in a Western Bay strategy that is likely to constrain this sub-region for years to come.

Smartgrowth is too important for our bureaucratic councils to brush over these important issues with a plethora of reports from council staff that just reiterate the status quo. We in the Western Bay are better than that, and our local politicians need to step up and insist on quality research to ensure that we have it right. The future growth strategies for the Western Bay are just too important to all our ratepayers.

If you have a view on these or any other local government issues, I invite you to email me at [email protected] or visit www.vond.co.nz