Hurunui Mayor Marie Black selected Fiona Harris as her deputy mayor at the inaugural council meeting in Amberley on Thursday.
It is the first time two women have held the two roles at the same time.
A fifth term councillor, Harris said she only found out two days before the meeting, when Black mentioned it during two days of inductions with the new council.
‘‘They are all coming in with a lot skills and I am encouraged that we will work well together.
‘‘None of them are here for the money and they have all talked about their passion for their community.’’
Harris said she wouldn’t be in her position without the support of Black and Cr Vince Daly, who has served 21 years at the council table, including the last 1.5 terms as deputy mayor.
‘‘Marie and Vince are the only ones still on council from when I started.
‘‘She had to smooth out some of my rough edges along the way and Vince has kept me honest.
‘‘I’m so grateful to Vince because he has got so much knowledge. He really embodies serving the community.’’
Her husband Paul Harris is the Waipara Volunteer Fire Brigade chief fire officer and received his gold star for 50 years service earlier this year.
Black said Harris had ‘‘a genuine commitment to serve our community’’.
She thanked Daly for his support as deputy mayor.
‘‘His experience and dedication has been immense, with his calm guidance and collaborative spirit, and his influence goes beyond the council table.’’
Mrs Black also acknowledged the work of council staff in supporting the district through the recent weather event.
‘‘Our district has taken a bit of a battering over the last week and many of our businesses and communities have been impacted.
‘‘A feature of our district is how our communities and volunteers have stepped up and I would like to thank our staff who were here on duty in our emergency operations centre throughout Labour Weekend.’’
Cr Daly was among several councillors who endorsed Cr Harris’ appointment after it was announced.
‘‘I think she will go a great job,’’ he said.
The council will meet again on Tuesday, November 4, to get down to business at the first ordinary meeting of the new term.
By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter
■ LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
