Sewerage Scheme Team Progress Update

28 April 2024

Sewerage Scheme Team Progress Update - 28 April 24

Good progress has been made making our position clear. Key actions have been:

United Community

Ngati Pikiao, East Rotoiti, Tamatea St, and Rotoma communities have united against the proposals in the long term plan.

Rotoiti public consultation meeting

Since our last update the community has delivered a very clear message to council that the long-term proposal is completely unacceptable. On the 15th April the record crowd of well over 200 locals made it very clear that:

* For large sections of our community $14 to $15,000, as was originally advised, is all they can afford

* Property owners have agreed to installation based on an expected cost of around $14 or $15,000 originally advised and they will not pay any more.

* That the council should take responsibility for project mis-management that meant the scheme went over forecast total cost by $20 million - around 60%.

You can hear a recording of the meeting here.

Media support

Attention grabbing articles have kept our campaign in the public eye:

* First in the Rotorua Daily Post, “$14k then, up to $88k now: Lake Locals Furious at Horrendous Blowout”, 17 April and

* Richard Prebble’s column in the Herald, “Beware of Government Subsidies Close to Home”, 24 April

Key Meetings

Have been held with Doug Leeder, Chair of the Bay of Plenty Regional Council, Todd McClay, member for Rotorua and Minister of Trade, Agriculture, Forestry and Hunting & Fishing. Both have offered support. We also met with Tania Tapsell, and her new CEO, Andrew Moraes, on Friday. The mayor is fully aware of our concerns, particularly that the situation we have been put in does not reflect well on the Council’s LTP vision of “A better Rotorua for ALL,” and risks jeopardising their desire to “Build Rotorua’s reputation! A satisfactory remedy must be found.

Request Council Notifies all Property Owners

We have requested that the Council advise all affected property owners of the contents related to the sewerage system in the LTP - given that many may not be aware of what’s planned.

Contact with Local Councillors

The Councillors will vote on the long term plan - we are talking to them and you should too - call them, (or email them), and politely let them know your thoughts - following the public meeting they are very aware they have a problem for which a better remedy must be found.

LRCA and Community Response

It is important we all play our part to get the best result for our community - numbers of submissions matter!

VERY IMPORTANT

Make your own Submission on the Councils Long Term Plan

We recommend that you use this Council on line form and if you can be present, please make sure you tick yes to: "I wish to present my submission publicly in front of your Councillors at a hearing”. It will add important weight to our case if you can be present.

Submissions to date have probably focused on the wrongs which need to be remedied.

Submissions from now on should also include comments on the Council’s need to remedy their wrongs by increasing rates to the whole community through increasing the “Lakes Enhancement Fund” or other targeted rates to better balance the Council/Ratepayer contribution to improve lake water quality, with our local community’s contribution.

It is not, “A better Rotorua for ALL”, when even though we all benefit from better lake water quality:

* Our small community, (770 people), is contributing between $10m and $30m, (or $15,000 to $45,000 each),

* when the rest of the community, (27,000 people), is contributing just $1.16m to $2.7m, (or $49 to $100 each)!

N.B. The Vital Signs research in 2018, commissioned by our District & Regional Councils, found that the Rotorua district's community valued “Environment Wellbeing” equal 1st in importance to them and the stand out 1st Environment priority was to “Improve the quality of lakes and rivers”.

Also, you will be interested to hear that Niwa research in 20-21 found that Rotoiti is the most fished lake in NZ with 33,000 angler days pa.

(Note - submissions must be in by the Monday 6th May - now extended to 5pm Friday 10th May - don't leave it till the last moment)

You can make more than one submission, but if you do, you must indicate that you have made more than one submission and advise the date you made the previous submission.

Thank you for your support!

LRCA East Rotoiti - Rotoma Sewerage Scheme Sub Committee.

Update - April 24

Cost Now Up To $45,000 Per Property!

The Council released its Long Term Plan Consultation document on Thursday 4th April.

With it came another bomb shell for our East Rotoiti property owners. With the uncertainty over $10m funding from the Ministry for the Environment the proposed cost to rate payers has now risen to over $45,500, if paid in a lump sum, and $88,000, if spread over 25 years!

This has 770 East Rotoiti and Rotoma property owners paying $35,000,000 versus all Rotorua’s 31,000 ratepayers paying just $1,500,000 to improve lake water quality for the whole district’s benefit!

We believe this is totally unjust.

For many in our community $14 to $15,000, as was originally advised, is all they can afford

Throughout their public communication the council has frequently confirmed this commenting that “significant sections of our community cannot afford any more than $14 to $15,000”. Proceeding, without consultation, with a project which the community could not afford does not make sense.

Most have agreed to installation based on an expected cost of around $14 or $15,000 originally advised.

In updates to the community the council regularly advised that every effort was being made to keep costs per property close to the amounts originally quoted.

They also advised that if the Rotoiti system cost was materially different to the planned cost that the community would be consulted.

It was not until March 2024, when we requested an update - well after most of the systems had been installed - that the community were finally advised by council officials that the projected cost for the project had now climbed from $35,500,000 to over $56,000,000 and the estimated cost per property would be around $30,000, based on anticipated external funding.

And now in early April, less than a month later, the Council has upped that again to over $45,000 in their long term plan, if a $10,000,000 loan is not secured from the Ministry for the Environment. Three times the original amount!

Even now, (Friday 12 April, 2024), the affected East Rotoiti and Rotoma ratepayer/property owner community have not received advice direct from the council, based on budgets produced since 2019, as to any significant change to the 2019 estimated cost to property owners.

Where should responsibility for possible mis-management lie?

Council officers have had the best intentions and have done their best on our behalf.

We are however concerned about being made responsible for possible Council mis-management.

As work on the Rotoma installations and waste water treatment plant progressed the community were advised that $24,000,000of the $35,500,000 project was now under contract with just the Rotoiti section at $11,000,000 for reticulation and systems, to be let.

With the expected project cost now over $56,000,000 that suggests, contract mis-management, or a blow out of around $20,000,000 on the Rotoiti portion of the project. Council should be responsible for this blow out?

LRCA and Community Response

It is important we all play our part to get the best result for our community - numbers of submissions matter!

Support for our LRCA Submission with your comments here.

Make your own Submission on the Councils Long Term Plan

We recommend that you use this on line form and if you can tick yes to: "I wish to present my submission publicly in front of your Councillors at a hearing".

(Note - submissions must be in by the 6th May)

Attend the Council’s Rotoiti Consultation Meetings:

* Pikiao League Club, 5.30 to 7pm Tuesday 9th April

* Rotoiti Sports Club, 6.00 to 7.30pm Monday 15th April

Read the section of the Long Term Plan that relates to Rotoma & East Rotoiti Sewerage Scheme here.

Read the full Long Term Plan for Consultation here.

Regularly check our LRCA web site for the latest information on our progress on this issue