The Otago Chamber of Commerce would put a frustrating year behind it and the newly-elected board would focus on an agenda of growth and development, chamber president Ali Copeman said yesterday.
Two new members had been elected to the board for 2016, Oyster Recruitment managing director Karen Bardwell and commercial lawyer Michael van Aart.
Each had specific skills which would benefit the board, Mrs Copeman said.
Sitting director and Dunedin deputy mayor Chris Staynes was not successful in the election yesterday.
It had been a frustrating year watching the struggle the Dunedin City Council had gone through and the council seemed to be in a holding pattern.
''We want to see an agenda of growth and development and we need the right environment for businesses to grow and flourish.''
Looking ahead, Mrs Copeman said 2016 was a local body election year and offered the chamber a chance to make its views heard.
The election meant it was up to voters to set the direction the council would take.
The chamber continually looked for a business-friendly environment and a council which would follow its own mantra of ''red carpet, not red tape'', she said.
The election results were. -
Elected for a three-year term: Oyster Recruitment managing director Karen Bardwell (new); JW Smeaton principal and accountant David Shelton (re-elected); commercial lawyer Michael van Aart (new). Not elected: Allied Workforce manager Kenneth Schumacher; Dunedin deputy mayor Chris Staynes (sitting director); Blueskin Resilient Communities Trust manager Scott Willis (co-opted director).
Directors not standing but who remain on the board: George Benwell, Ali Copeman, Greg Easton, Alan Preston.
