Dunedin City Council faces divided opinions

Room for improvement

Touted as New Zealand’s most beautiful city in 2018, Dunedin remains the gatekeeper of some of the country’s most remarkable architecture and history.

All things considered; you’d presume it’s an ideal place to live. However, the satisfaction levels of citizens living in any given city is largely dependent on the decisions made by local governing forces. And based on the results from the Dunedin City Council’s Residents’ Opinion Survey, the DCC has some work to do. The survey outcomes, published in December of last year, reveal a sharp drop in the level of satisfaction with the mayor and councillors – down 14 percent from the year prior. More than 1,200 people responded to the survey, which ran from July 2020 to June 2021. Ratings were highest for ease of pedestrian movement, followed by street lighting and the flow of off-peak traffic. Respondents were least satisfied with the availability of parking in the central city, availability of on-street metered parking in the central city and traffic flow during peak times. Infrastructure maintenance was also identified as key issues that resident’s felt required attention. DCC chief executive, Sandy Graham, commented that while the findings are reminiscent of recent years, the DCC has indeed been working to improve its’ performance and change public perceptions. “We know this has been a tough year for everyone, and to some extent that frustration is borne out in these results, but our focus is on improvement. “We can’t change past performance or tackle all of these challenges overnight, but we know we need to deliver for our communities. “The survey clearly identifies the public’s priorities, many of which are not a surprise, and we are already working hard to address these,” Sandy says. Well on track for a record year of investment in capital and renewals in 2021-22, the DCC is actively increasing the amount it spends on core infrastructure to deliver on the public’s concerns. For example, over the next ten years, transport renewals expenditure is projected to increase from $161 million dollars to more than $245 million dollars and spending on Three Waters infrastructure will also leap from $305 million dollars to $437 million over the same period.

We can’t change past performance or tackle all of these challenges overnight, but we know we need to deliver for our communities. ”

Additional transport projects will also help, including the upgraded harbour arterial route and plans to improve parking management in the central city. The DCC is also currently looking at increasing parking options. Not to mention a new kerbside collection system – including extra bins for rubbish, food waste and an optional extra bin for green waste – which is due to be rolled out in mid-2023. Dunedin’s $28 million dollar retail quarter will also deliver significant improvements to the overall look and feel of the urban centre. Enabling work is reportedly already underway and the upgrade is due to be finished by the beginning of 2024. While many of the projects are long-term investments which will take some time to complete, Ms Graham said she is confident they will deliver for the city and its residents. The DCC will also be implementing other measures, such as more regular reporting of key performance indicators, to promote earlyidentification of areas for improvement, Ms Graham said. The Dunedin Mayor Aaron Hawkins commented that contention on significant issues can skew public perceptions of elected members even when much of their work is carried out diligently and in a collegial fashion. “I’m confident this Council has the best interests of its residents at heart, and we are lucky to have staff working hard on projects to make the city a better place. “Just like our residents have different views about how to achieve that so do elected members. That is exactly what we would expect in a healthy local democracy.” CT

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