Future in Focus - Arotahi ki Anamata

Our District offers many opportunities for economic development and job creation. The opportunity, working alongside Iwi, Central Government, Eastern Bay of Plenty Councils, and other partners, is to find ways to unlock our potential and support much needed economic and social uplift. The impact of COVID-19 on our economy increases the urgency to focus on this priority for both the immediate and longer term future.

Our communities consistently report that they have a very good quality of life overall. At the same time, for a number of social wellbeing indicators, our District continues to track behind the national average. Alongside partners, the Council is well placed to support the specific community development aspirations of communities in our District.

Our District is at risk from a range of natural hazards. In recent history we have needed to respond to and recover from a number of events. There is more we can do to minimise our vulnerability - we must all be prepared, resilient, and ready to respond when needed.

Forecasts for climate change have some serious implications for our District. We are challenged to take action now, to reduce risks for future communities, foster climate resilience and work towards a new low carbon economy.

Our population has been growing much faster than previously expected and there is good reason to expect this trend will continue over a longer time period.  We want to ensure growth is accommodated in a way that ensures positive outcomes are maximised and that reinforces the things we love about our corner of the world.

There is regular demand from our community to continue to enhance and diversify the opportunities that our District has to offer for recreation and arts. Finding co-funding opportunities and working in partnership with the community offers much opportunity to progress projects.

New Zealand is facing a waste crisis, with too much rubbish being produced and nowhere for it to go. We must all do our part. The challenge is to change our patterns of consumption and manage waste more sustainably.

Deadlines are approaching for many of our wastewater systems to be substantially upgraded. A major programme of work is needed to meet modern environmental and health standards, and community expectations.

The national focus on drinking water has increased substantially since 2016. A major programme of work is needed to upgrade our water supplies to meet enhanced standards, and new delivery models are being explored.

Transport is integral to our wellbeing and quality of life. The transportation needs and expectations of our economy and communities continues to evolve. The Council needs to ensure that we continue to meet these changing needs into the future.