Queenstown Lakes District mayor-elect Vanessa van Uden in
her new Gorge Rd office yesterday. Photo by Tracey
Roxburgh.
Reducing the Queenstown-Lakes District Council's debt -
estimated to reach $400 million by 2019 - is at the top of new
mayor Vanessa van Uden's priority list, she said yesterday.
It has been a hectic three days for Ms van Uden but she
wasted no time settling into her new role yesterday,
preparing to lead the council and community for the next
three years.
In an interview with the Otago Daily Times, Ms van Uden (43)
said while the council had already made huge inroads into
cutting debt, recently identifying a $170 million saving
through rates and water demand management, "there's still $28
million [needed] to get us back to our own, self-imposed
levels".
There would need to be prioritisation of spending across the
full spectrum of council services and the council had until
the next long-term plan in 2012 to get the projected debt to
a comfortable level.
"As far as I'm concerned, it's achievable.
"It will be done. It has to be done.
"There isn't a choice."
After emerging a clear winner of the district's mayoralty
race on Saturday, Ms van Uden was at the council's Gorge Rd
office yesterday morning for a "long chat" with council chief
executive Debra Lawson.
Her success means women now have leading roles in several of
the district's key businesses.
Lakes Leisure is run by Fiona McKissock and the Chamber of
Commerce is run by Ann Lockhart.
"What I think is fantastic - and I firmly believe this - all
of us have been put there because of our ability and
experience.
"It isn't any bearing on our gender at all," Ms van Uden
said.
While Ms Lawson has only been with the QLDC since the
beginning of this year, Ms van Uden expects their working
relationship to be "very positive" as "we think along the
same lines on many, many things".
"One of the things we discussed [yesterday] was working
together as a team - it's one of the things I have been
pretty positive about and I think the returning councillors
... and the new ones will be working together as a team, as
councillors and with council staff ... and having some fun."
All councillors who sought re-election were successful on
Saturday and the result was a council with a good balance of
experience and new blood, she said.
"I've got a good working knowledge of how the mechanics [of
the council] works ... but I think we should never be afraid
of having a new set of eyes looking at anything.
"What we are fortunate to have is some councillors returning
that have been here for a comfortable period of time, we have
skilled council staff and checks and balances to give us a
fresh point of view balanced with experienced heads.
"I think we've got a very nice balance."
By the end of this week Ms van Uden aimed to meet all the
councillors individually and "chat" with them about their
objectives and priorities before getting together with all
the councillors as a group.
"That's one of the promises I made straight up - I wanted an
inclusive council ... that's part of the process of doing
that."
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