Like Coleridge’s Ancient Mariner, Waitaki’s new council will find public office to be a case of "water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink".
Impositions of the government’s Local Water Done Well reforms will still be reverberating around the council’s Oamaru stone chambers by the time the new council is sworn in, and potentially, echoing around the corridors of local power for the full three-year term.
Waitaki ratepayers will, no matter the final result of the district’s water services provider, face hefty rates bills and rising water charges to pay for the water services.
There will be no plaudits on offer for new councillors, just acrimonious cries of "why us?" when they inevitably pull funding from projects that were funded under the recent long-term plan (LTP).
The first task of new councillors will be to take a red pen to funding proposals contained in the LTP, through the LTP Amendment process. This will be needed to reflect the multimillion dollar changes to capital expenditure necessary to pass the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) tests for Water Services Delivery Plans prior to October’s election.
For perspective on how many projects will be in the firing line, the sum total of depreciation of council water assets, which was not funded in the LTP but will have to be, is more than the council spends on the library, the opera house, the gallery, the museum and the aquatic centre combined.
All of that comes before the new council will have to again look at its district plan, halted in its tracks following government legislation. The new, and by the looks of the candidates, more agriculturally friendly council, could have to start hearings on its controversial first attempt.
Mayor Gary Kircher is moving on and Guy Percival, Melanie Tavendale, Kelli Williams and David Wilson are seeking to replace him. Mr Kircher was mayor for four terms, and is now seeking office at the Waitaki Power Trust.
The troops he leaves behind round the council table will have to possess some smart financial minds.
Managing general rising construction costs against limited revenue and rates pressures while managing debt will also be a test, as will how the new council handles an increasing population.
Climate Change and climate resilience will continue to be a challenge. Coastal erosion is apparent around the district, the pressing issue of restoring Beach Rd and access to Kakanui a hot topic. There is around $1 million or so in the kitty to maybe fund a one-lane solution but not much else — will that be acceptable to residents?
