Agenda of Ordinary Council Meeting

Ordinary Council Meeting Agenda 11 February 2020

6 Mayor's Report

6.1 Mayoral Activities Report

File Reference: n/a

Attachments: Nil

Recommendations

That the report be received.

Activities

Mayoral Forum Food and Fibre Innovation Programme

I attended a Value Added Food and Fibre workshop in Ashburton on 15 January 2020.

A Mayors Canterbury survey identified the lack of younger people coming through in agriculture as a limiting factor in increasing food production. Agriculture university graduates have dropped off with a rise in the number of people now wanting to be environmental consultants instead.

A group of young leaders met with Lincoln graduates, Fonterra, Balance and Young Farmers across Canterbury. The meeting was titled Voice of Young People. The group explored the following:

1. What is the future for Canterbury in farming?

2. How can the Agriculture sector help future generations?

3. How can we better collaborate with employers?

4. How can we be better leaders?

Some of the group’s concerns include the increasing rural/urban divide issue. The group also identified issues with young people gaining experience as another concern. There is a need for good mentors as agriculture is often not encouraged in schools, or it depends on whether teachers are interested in the subject or not.

Grass roots farmers need to be involved in agriculture mentoring. It is up to the farmers to show the world how food is produced from paddock to plate. There is increasing connectivity in rural areas and training option information need to be better communicated to young people.

The Mayors Task Force has $200,000 in funding available and it was agreed that this will be spent on an App to help inform Youth on opportunities in the Agriculture sector, especially in Canterbury.

I also engaged with the Community and Council in the following activities:

§ Streetlights Omahau Crescent

§ Lake Ruataniwha High E-coli Count

§ Pukaki Airport Board disestablishment following the elections and new Council Committee structure

§ Water supply Manuka Terrace

§ Edwards Stream Rest area

§ L&L Construction – Bridge project

§ Land abandonment notice Section 322280

§ Immigration New Zealand – permanent residence visa application

§ Water system Tekapo

§ Dog Safety in the community

§ Te Waipounamu South Island Destination Management plan

§ SH8 Tekapo township speed limits

§ Fairlie Pies and Fairlie brand

§ Lake Alexandrina

§ Ben Ohau Golf Club

MEETINGS AND EVENTS

Meetings and events of note that I have attended since the last Mayor’s report to Council in December:

January 2020

§ Meeting with Charlie Reider, 9 January and 17 January

§ Meeting with Derek Curd, 9 January

§ Mayoral Forum Food and Fibre Innovation Programme, 15 January

§ Alpine Shareholders meeting, 16 January

§ Pukaki Airport Board – changes to previous board structure following elections, 17 January

§ Meeting Jo McLean, Chair Te Rūnanga o Waihao, 20 January

§ Meeting Nola Tipa, Chair Te Rūnanga o Moeraki, 23 January

§ Builders meeting, Fairlie, 23 January

§ Twizel Community Board, 27 January

§ Meeting Mayor Jim Boult and Queenstown Lakes District CEO, Mike Theelen, 31 January

§ Department of Conservation officials (Tinaka Mearns, Bruce Parkes, Karina Morrow), 31 January

February 2020

§ Mayors and CE’s workshop, 3 February

Invitation received but not accepted

§ Mackenzie Region Tourism update, 4 February. Declined due to clash with Council Workshop.

Communications and publications

I contributed articles to the following publications:

§ Fairlie Accessible

§ Twizel Update

I responded to the following media queries:

§ Proposed statue for late Bill Hamilton of Hamilton Jet Fame

§ $17.1m lotto winner – Twizel

§ Coronavirus

Ordinary Council Meeting Agenda 11 February 2020

8 Reports

8.1 Chief Executive's Activity Report

File Reference: n/a

Author: Suzette van Aswegen, Chief Executive Officer

Authoriser: Suzette van Aswegen, Chief Executive Officer

Attachments: Nil

Purpose of Report

For the chief executive to update Council on recent activity.

Staff Recommendations

1. That the report be received.

Activities

Emergency Operations Centre

Our Emergency Operations Centre was activated on 30 January 2020 to assist FENZ due to multiple wildfires including one at a SH8 location near Kimbell. MDC supplied staff back up and office space at the Fairlie office to FENZ and support teams. It was heart-warming to see the engagement of MDC, WDC and TDC staff working so well together with FENZ and other organisations and we would like to take this opportunity to recognise their sterling and tireless efforts during this trying time in our District.

Organisational capacity building

It’s been eight months since the restructure and we focussed on continuous improvement and organisational capacity and capability building during this time. Progress has been steady and a detailed report is to be presented to the Audit & Risk Committee meeting on 25 February 2020.

In recognition of the fast paced change programme to date, I am meeting with colleagues to hear their thoughts on progress and the pace of change to date. These “Pulse of the Organisation” one-on-one catch up invitations have also been extended to the Mayor and Councillors.

Destination Mackenzie

With the Southland Destination Management Plan a significant topic at Mayoral and CE Forums, a constructive meeting was held with ChristchurchNZ to hear about their strategic plans for the Mackenzie District for 2020 and beyond. Council and the Executive Team also met the Queenstown Lakes District Council Mayor Jim Boult and Chief Executive Mike Theelen to hear about their experiences with Queenstown’s tourism boom. The lessons learnt will prove valuable when Council considers its strategy for the Mackenzie District in the tourism space as part of our wider district plan review.

The Destination Mackenzie project has been progressed to a mana to mana hui with the three Rūnanga Chairs at the Arowhenua Marae. It is expected that the Rūnanga will set a clear direction on their expectations for the Destination Mackenzie project at this meeting.

Council and the Executive team also met with Department of Conservation officials to agree how we can work better together on various programmes of work, both in the wider Basin and on the Destination Mackenzie project.

Long Term Plan

The Long Term Planning activities are in full swing with regular project meetings with the Senior Corporate Planner and General Manager Corporate Services to ensure we remain on track. A Strategic Planning Workshop was held at the 4 February Council Workshop which provided for an interactive session with councillors.

Office renovations

Office renovations in Fairlie is in full swing with Phase 1 of the temporary move to the church hall complete. Phase 2 is on track to start in the first week of March 2020 with the top floor of the building being renovated.

Strategy Workshop

The Strategy Workshop with full Council and Executive Team facilitated by Alicia Mackay is being held on 14 February 2020.

Annual ECAN Councillor / MDC Councillor meeting

The annual ECAN Councillor / MDC Councillor Meeting is being planned for 11 March 2020.

CEO MEETINGS AND EVENTS

Meetings and events of note attended since the last Council meeting include:

January 2020

· PR meeting with Heartlands, Fairlie, 15 January

· Alpine shareholders meeting, 16 January

· Meeting with a commercial developer of Tekapo, 17 January

· Meeting with a resident regarding Cass River Bridge, 17 January

· ChristchurchNZ meeting, 23 January

· Fairlie Builders meeting, 23 January

· Canterbury Chief Executives Forum, 27 January

· CDEM CEG meeting, 27 January

· Waimate, Timaru and Mackenzie District Council CEs meeting, 29 January

· Queenstown Lakes District meeting Mayor Jim Boult, and CEO Mike Theelen, 31 January

· Meeting with DOC, 31 January

February 2020

· Mayors and CEs strategic planning workshop, 3 February

PEOPLE & CULTURE UPDATE

MDC’s Flexible Working Arrangement policy feedback was finalised and incorporated into the policy. This was rolled out to all our MDC team members early January 2020.

The Departure Policy is ready to be rolled out to all MDC team members following consultation with the Senior Leadership Team.

December saw an increased number of training requests being received. Many of our teams have a number of conferences and training courses allocated for 2020 which is great to see. Our team members are taking an active interest in their personal and professional development and this is on the back of a more structured approach to Learning and Development.

Work on a Values based Code of Conduct, REM policy and Leave Policy have begun.

Resignations / Departures:

· March Crocker, Governance Advisor.

Current vacant positions:

· General Manager Operations, full time based in Fairlie – recruitment process has commenced.

· Planning Team Leader, full time based in Fairlie - role currently being advertised.

· Administration Support Officer (Planning), full time based in Fairlie - role has been advertised and a temp was sourced for the interim.

· Principal Building Control Officer, full time based in Twizel - role currently being advertised.

· Senior Building Control Officer, full time based in Twizel - role currently being advertised.

Health, Safety & Wellbeing

The Health, Safety, Environment and Wellbeing Management Plan has been signed off and is ready to be communicated to all our team members within Council. This plan defines the Health, Safety and Environmental principles, processes, procedures, systems, tools, and templates implemented for use throughout the council’s operations. A Wellbeing Plan has yet to be developed. A revised Health & Safety Policy is currently being drafted.

Lost Time Injuries / Near Misses / Incidents / Work & Non Work Related Injuries:

§ There have been no work related injuries or lost time injuries reported in November.

§ There have been four traffic related incidents / near misses reported during the month of November all of which occurred on the highway between Fairlie and Twizel.

§ A near miss / incident was reported regarding the felling of trees within the Twizel Market Place area by Whitestone Roading. This incident was reported as a near miss due to there being a no exclusion zone and fenced off to the public whilst the work was being undertaken and there were only 'spotters' on site. This incident / near miss has been investigated and the parties involved have been reminded of their obligations i.e. to isolate the tree felling hazard and ensure its fenced off from public access.

OPERATIONS UPDATE

Water Supplies

As we are getting warmer weather and the river levels drop water restrictions have come in to force.

Twizel is set at level one which is conserve water. Most likely by the end of this week or early next week they will be at level two which is no irrigating of lawn and restricted to two hours of watering of gardens between 6 pm to 8 am.

Fairlie as of 3 February is on level two water restrictions which is no irrigating of lawn and restricted to two hours of watering of gardens between 6 pm to 8 am.

Resource Consents

Between 17th December 2019 and 31 January 2020 sixteen resource consents were issued (93.75% within statutory timeframes).

Building Consents

CORPORATE SERVICES UPDATE

Complaints/Service Requests for December 2019 and January 2020

For the period 18 December to 31 January, there were 4 customer service requests received of which 4 were completed and 0 remain open.

Local Government Official Information Meeting Act (LGOIMA) Requests

The following LGOIMA requests were received since the December Council meeting:

Date Received	From	Nature of Request
18/12/2019	Jaime McSorley (forwarded from ECAN)	Sport and recreation funding
20/12/2019	Brendan McNeice	Questions to be asked of Alpine Energy
20/12/2019	Natalia Zuleta	Building consent status – Tekapo Sky Hotel
13/01/2020	Lyn George, Lake Alexandrina Outlet Hutholders Society Inc	All info held re Tekapo Trails
13/01/2020	Jayne Richards, University of Otago	Nitrates in Drinking Water
15/01/2020	Prudence Steven QC	Tekapo Sky Hotel - Application
20/01/2020	Alice Geary - Stuff.co.nz	Freedom Camping Enforcement feedback

CIVIL DEFENCE UPDATE

Following a severe weather warning during Wednesday and Thursday that forecasted severe northwest gales gusting 140km/hour in exposed places, numerous vegetation fires broke out across the greater South Canterbury area including a wildfire on SH8 located near Airies.

With the information provided to Fire and Emergency Services they made the decision to escalate the response to include the activation of their Incident Management teams (IMT) to assist with the management of this event.

The day progressed with the IMT numbering 16 staff operating out of the Mackenzie EOC with approx. 65 personnel on the fire ground including 5 helicopters and 2 diggers.

The role of MDC staff was to support the Fire and Emergency response to this wild fire. CDEM Officer maintained a watching brief and included Canterbury CDEM duty officer and Mackenzie CDEM controllers in the emailed situation reports (SitRep).

EYES ON THE HORIZON

The following are active Central Government consultations that affect the operations of Council.

Item	Agency	Submissions due
Freshwater proposals	MfE	Recommendations due February 2020
Consultation on Landfill Levy – Reducing waste, submissions closed	MfE	3 February 2020
Consultation on the Burial and Cremation Act 1964 and related legislation	MOH	28 February 2020
Resource Management Amendment Bill. Bill has passed its first reading. Report due in March 2020.	Select Committee	26 Mar 2020
NPS for Indigenous Biodiversity	MfE	14 March 2020
Tackling Unsafe Speeds Programme	NZTA	Ongoing
Three Waters bill	Select Committee

Suzette van Aswegen

Chief Executive Officer

Ordinary Council Meeting Agenda 11 February 2020

8.2 Canterbury Local Authorities Triennial Agreement

File Reference: n/a

Author: Suzette van Aswegen, Chief Executive Officer

Authoriser: Suzette van Aswegen, Chief Executive Officer

Attachments: 1. Canterbury Local Authorities Triennial Agreement as adopted by Mayoral Forum ⇩

Council Role:

☒ Advocacy	When Council or Committee advocates on its own behalf or on behalf of its community to another level of government/body/agency.
☐ Executive	The substantial direction setting and oversight role of the Council or Committee e.g. adopting plans and reports, accepting tenders, directing operations, setting and amending budgets.
☐ Legislative	Includes adopting District Plans and plan changes, bylaws and policies.
☐ Review	When Council or Committee reviews decisions made by officers.
☐ Quasi-judicial	When Council determines an application/matter that directly affects a person’s rights and interests. The judicial character arises from the obligation to abide by the principles of natural justice, e.g. resource consent or planning applications or objections, consents or other permits/licences (e.g. under Health Act, Dog Control Act) and other decisions that may be appealable to the Court including the Environment Court.
☐ Not applicable	(Not applicable to Community Boards).

Purpose of Report

This report invites Council to ratify the attached draft Canterbury Local Authorities’ Triennial Agreement 2020–22 (the Agreement).

Staff Recommendations

1. That the report be received.

2. That Mackenzie District Council ratifies the Canterbury Local Authorities’ Triennial Agreement 2020-22.

Background

The Canterbury Mayoral Forum has adopted the attached agreement which mandates the work of the Mayoral Forum, the Chief Executives Forum and other regional forums and working groups.

Policy Status

The Local Government Act 2002 (s.15) requires all local authorities within a region to enter into a triennial agreement not later than 1 March after each triennial general election of members.

The purpose of a triennial agreement is to ensure that appropriate levels of communication, co-ordination and collaboration are maintained between local authorities within the region. Agreements must include:

• protocols for communication and co-ordination between councils

• the process by which councils will comply with section 16 of the Act, which applies to significant new activities proposed by regional councils

• processes and protocols through which all councils can participate in identifying, delivering and funding facilities and services of significance to more than one district.

Triennial agreements may also include commitments to establish joint governance arrangements.

A triennial agreement may be varied by agreement between all the local authorities within a region and remains in force until local authorities ratify a new agreement.

The secretariat has drafted the Agreement at the direction of the outgoing Mayoral Forum. The attached draft was discussed and refined at the May and August 2019 meetings of the Mayoral Forum. It was adopted by the Mayoral Forum on November 29, 2019.

Significance of Decision

Ratifying a triennial agreement as required by the Local Government Act 2002 s.15 is unlikely to trigger Significance and Engagement Policies as adopted by councils to comply with s.76AA of the Local Government Act 2002.

Options

This is a standing arrangement between the Mayors of Canterbury and therefore is only one option and that is to ratify the agreement adopted by the Mayors.

Considerations

Legal

The Agreement complies with requirements in section 15 of the Local Government Act 2002.

Financial

As per Annual Plan.

Suzette van Aswegen

Chief Executive Officer

Ordinary Council Meeting Agenda 11 February 2020

8.4 Adoption of Committee Terms of Reference

File Reference:

Author: Katherine Hill, Senior Corporate Planner

Authoriser: Paul Numan, General Manager Corporate Services

Attachments: 1. Draft Terms of Reference for Council Committees ⇩

Council Role:

☐ Advocacy	When Council or Committee advocates on its own behalf or on behalf of its community to another level of government/body/agency.
☒ Executive	The substantial direction setting and oversight role of the Council or Committee e.g. adopting plans and reports, accepting tenders, directing operations, setting and amending budgets.
☐ Legislative	Includes adopting District Plans and plan changes, bylaws and policies.
☐ Review	When Council or Committee reviews decisions made by officers.
☐ Quasi-judicial	When Council determines an application/matter that directly affects a person’s rights and interests. The judicial character arises from the obligation to abide by the principles of natural justice, e.g. resource consent or planning applications or objections, consents or other permits/licences (e.g. under Health Act, Dog Control Act) and other decisions that may be appealable to the Court including the Environment Court.
☐ Not applicable	(Not applicable to Community Boards).

Purpose of Report

The purpose of this report is for Council to adopt the terms of reference for the following standing committees: Engineering and Services Committee; Commercial and Economic Development Committee; Planning and Regulatory Committee; Strategy Committee; and Audit and Risk Committee.

Staff Recommendations

1. That the report be received.

2. That Council adopt the attached terms and references of the Engineering and Services Committee, Commercial and Economic Development Committee, Planning and Regulatory Committee, Strategy Committee, and Audit and Risk Committee.

Background

The Mayor amended the structure of Council standing committees following the election of Council in 2019. New standing committees have been established as follows:

· Engineering and Services Committee;

· Commercial and Economic Development Committee;

· Planning and Regulatory Committee;

· Strategy Committee; and

· Audit and Risk Committee.

Terms of references for each of the above committees have been drafted. These draft terms of reference were provided to Council in workshop 18 December 2019, and further workshopped with Council 4 February 2020.

The inaugural meeting of the Engineering and Services Committee, Commercial and Economic Development Committee, Planning and Regulatory Committee are to be held 11 February 2020 following the Council meeting. The Strategy Committee and Audit and Risk Committee will be held at a later date. The terms of reference of Council’s standing committees need to be adopted in advance of these meetings.

The draft terms of reference are attached to this paper. In summary the following changes have been made to the existing terms of reference:

· Meeting frequency of all committees amended to ‘quarterly, or as required’. Should matters requiring a time critical governance decision be required outside of the scheduled meetings, this can be managed through an extra-ordinary committee meeting.

· Terms of reference drafted for Commercial and Economic Development Committee as a new standing committee.

· Removal of Forestry Committee and Pukaki Airport Board Committee terms of references following an early decision to remove these committees and transfer governance responsibilities to the Commercial and Economic Development Committee and operational matters to Council’s Property and Commercial team. The Finance Committee terms of reference have also been removed following its disestablishment. Financial reporting will now be made to full Council.

· Addition of iwi representation membership clauses to the Planning and Regulatory Committee and Strategy Committee. It should be noted that there are three papatipu rūnanga whose rōhe fall within the Mackenzie District. As such, Council should be prepared that representation may include one representative from each of the three rūnanga. How this is managed is a matter for the rūnanga to consider and should not be determined by Council. Should Council be minded to include provision for iwi representation on any of its committees, it is recommended that an invitation be extended from the Mayor to Te Rūnanga o Moeraki, Te Rūnanga o Waihao and Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua.

Policy Status

If adopted, the new terms of references will be updated in Council’s Delegations Manual, with the amendment recorded within the schedule of changes.

Significance of Decision

The decision to adopt terms of reference for the standing committees is an important one, but is not considered significant under the terms of the Council’s Significance and Engagement Policy. It deals largely with the governance of the Council standing committees and public consultation is not required.

Options

The options available to Council are to either:

Option 1: Adopt the terms of reference for the Engineering and Services Committee, Commercial and Economic Development Committee, Planning and Regulatory Committee, Strategy Committee, and Audit and Risk Committee; or

Option 2: Instruct staff to make amendments to the Engineering and Services Committee, Commercial and Economic Development Committee, Planning and Regulatory Committee, Strategy Committee, and Audit and Risk Committee and adopt the revised terms of reference.

Option 3: Decline to adopt the terms of reference for the Engineering and Services Committee, Commercial and Economic Development Committee, Planning and Regulatory Committee, Strategy Committee, and Audit and Risk Committee.

As identified above, the terms of reference of Council’s standing committees need to be adopted in advance of the inaugural meetings of these committees. As the Engineering and Services Committee, Commercial and Economic Development Committee, Planning and Regulatory Committee are to be held 11 February 2020 following the Council meeting, Option 3 is not recommended.

Considerations

Legal

The draft terms of reference of Council’s standing committees have been prepared in accordance with the Local Government Act 2002 and Mackenzie District Council Standing Orders.

Financial

There are no direct financial implications from revising the terms of reference of standing committees and updating the Delegations Manual. However, it should be noted that addition of iwi representation membership clauses to the Planning and Regulatory Committee and Strategy Committee and non-elected members to the Commercial and Economic Development Committee will involve remuneration if these positions are filled.

Other

Not applicable.

Conclusion

Suzette van Aswegen

Chief Executive Officer

Ordinary Council Meeting Agenda 11 February 2020

8.5 Adoption of Street Names for Mackenzie Park Subdivision

File Reference: na

Author: Bernie Haar, Engineering Manager

Authoriser: Simon Mackenzie, General Manager Operations

Attachments: Nil

Council Role:

☐ Advocacy	When Council or Committee advocates on its own behalf or on behalf of its community to another level of government/body/agency.
☐ Executive	The substantial direction setting and oversight role of the Council or Committee e.g. adopting plans and reports, accepting tenders, directing operations, setting and amending budgets.
☒ Legislative	Includes adopting District Plans and plan changes, bylaws and policies.
☐ Review	When Council or Committee reviews decisions made by officers.
☐ Quasi-judicial	When Council determines an application/matter that directly affects a person’s rights and interests. The judicial character arises from the obligation to abide by the principles of natural justice, e.g. resource consent or planning applications or objections, consents or other permits/licences (e.g. under Health Act, Dog Control Act) and other decisions that may be appealable to the Court including the Environment Court.
☐ Not applicable	(Not applicable to Community Boards).

Purpose of Report

For Council to adopt proposed street names for the Stage 3 of Mackenzie Park Subdivision in Twizel.

Staff Recommendations

1. That the report be received.

2. That the street names, Hydro Avenue and Canal Place, as proposed by the developers for the Mackenzie Park Subdivision – Stage 3, be approved noting they have written approval from Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua.

Background

As part of the subdivision consent process developers are given the opportunity to recommend street names for the streets within subdivisions. The naming convention should fit within Council’s expectations and the requirements of NZS 4819:2011 Rural and Urban Addressing.

Currently there is only one subdivision reaching completion and the developers have put forward street names for approval.

That subdivision is: Mackenzie Park – Twizel

The proposed Street names for Mackenzie Park, in order of preference are:

ROAD A (OFF GRANDVUE DRIVE): HYDRO AVENUE

ROAD C (OFF ROAD A): CANAL PLACE

ALTERNATIVE NAME:

ROAD C: Turbine Court

While the developer has not provided any specific reason why these names have been chosen, they do recognise and celebrate the very essence of Twizel and why it was developed in the 1960s and 1970s.

Policy Status

The council does not have a policy on naming roads, however there appears to be propensity towards using the names of landscape features and well-known local people. (Staff are preparing a policy for consideration).

Significance of Decision

This decision is of low significance.

Options

All the names suggested have a link to the significant hydro construction work in the Mackenzie area and the Twizel Township and history, and have no similarity to any other street name in the district.

Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua have been consulted and have no issues with the names suggested for this subdivision.

Considerations

Legal

The process for naming and/or renaming roads is included in the Local Government Act 1974.

Section 319 General Powers of Council in respect to roads

Section 1 (j) to name and to alter the name of any road and to place on any building or erection on or abutting on any road a plate bearing the name of the road:

Section 319A Naming of roads

If the council names any road for the first time, or alters the name of a road, the council must as soon as practicable send a copy of the relevant resolution to the Registrar-General of Land and the Surveyor-General.

Conclusion

The road names generally comply with the informal naming convention. They also comply with the requirements of the New Zealand Standards. I see no reason not to approve the developers’ choice of road names.

Suzette van Aswegen

Chief Executive Officer