Hukutaia information session well-attended

Last week’s drop-in session to discuss future growth in Hukutaia was well-attended with almost 60 people coming along to talk to Ōpōtiki District Councillors and staff about the 30-50 year vision for the area.

The Mayor, Lyn Riesterer and Councillors Rāpihana, Hocart and Nelson joined most of the Council’s senior management team at the Ōpōtiki Golf Course during the afternoon and evening.

Councillor Louis Rāpihana said that he was impressed with the thoughtful conversations throughout the afternoon.

“Certainly there were a wide range of discussions happening around the room at different times so my experience wasn’t the whole picture. But everyone I spoke to was very positive and had great ideas and suggestions. Some people were keen to get moving sooner rather than later!

“There were some questions about plans for the hospital site and certainly quite a few people worried about what it will mean if you are on a septic tank. But most people walked away much clearer about how far out some of this planning is and the sort of detail we don’t have yet.” Mr Rāpihana said.

Councillor Debi Hocart said it had been a good opportunity to meet new folk to town excited by the forward-planning and changes happening.

“It is exciting to be part of planning that considers the long-term future for our children’s children, not just the next few years. We are in a period of growth and opportunity and our housing needs to reflect that.

“Councillors are more than happy to talk this over and share what our growth plans look like. The next step is to find out about funding and the decisions that will flow from that. If you want to know more, make a time to have a chat,” Councillor Hocart said.