Agenda of Great Barrier Local Board

I hereby give notice that an ordinary meeting of the Great Barrier Local Board will be held on:

Date:

Time:

Meeting Room:

Venue:

Wednesday, 9 September 2015

10.00am

Claris Conference Centre
19 Whangaparapara Road
Claris
Great Barrier Island

Great Barrier Local Board

OPEN AGENDA

MEMBERSHIP

Chairperson	Izzy Fordham
Deputy Chairperson	Susan Daly
Members	Jeff Cleave
	Judy Gilbert
	Christina Spence

(Quorum 3 members)

Jacqueline Fyers

Democracy/Engagement Advisor

31 August 2015

Contact Telephone: (09) 301 0101

Email: jacqueline.fyers@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

Website: www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

Great Barrier Local Board

09 September 2015

ITEM TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE

1 Welcome 5

2 Apologies 5

3 Declaration of Interest 5

4 Confirmation of Minutes 5

5 Leave of Absence 5

6 Acknowledgements 5

7 Petitions 5

8 Deputations 5

9 Public Forum 5

10 Extraordinary Business 5

11 Notices of Motion 6

12 Great Barrier Local Board cemeteries delegation information 7

13 Whangaparapa Wharf Draft Concept Plan 2015 13

14 ATEED 6 month report Great Barrier 21

15 Ngati Rehua Ngatiwai ki Aotea WalkFest report 31

16 Forward Together - Hauraki Gulf Marine Park Seminar - 27 October 2015 51

17 Correspondence 55

18 Chairperson's report 59

19 Board Members' Reports 65

20 Great Barrier Local Board Workshop Proceedings 81

21 Consideration of Extraordinary Items

1 Welcome

Chairperson IM Fordham will welcome everyone in attendance. Member JC Cleave will lead a karakia.

2 Apologies

At the close of the agenda no apologies had been received.

3 Declaration of Interest

Members are reminded of the need to be vigilant to stand aside from decision making when a conflict arises between their role as a member and any private or other external interest they might have.

4 Confirmation of Minutes

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) confirm the ordinary minutes of its meeting, held on Wednesday, 12 August 2015, as a true and correct record.

5 Leave of Absence

At the close of the agenda no requests for leave of absence had been received.

6 Acknowledgements

At the close of the agenda no requests for acknowledgements had been received.

7 Petitions

At the close of the agenda no requests to present petitions had been received.

8 Deputations

Standing Order 3.20 provides for deputations. Those applying for deputations are required to give seven working days notice of subject matter and applications are approved by the Chairperson of the Great Barrier Local Board. This means that details relating to deputations can be included in the published agenda. Total speaking time per deputation is ten minutes or as resolved by the meeting.

At the close of the agenda no requests for deputations had been received.

9 Public Forum

A period of time (approximately 30 minutes) is set aside for members of the public to address the meeting on matters within its delegated authority. A maximum of 3 minutes per item is allowed, following which there may be questions from members.

At the close of the agenda no requests for public forum had been received.

10 Extraordinary Business

Section 46A(7) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (as amended) states:

“An item that is not on the agenda for a meeting may be dealt with at that meeting if-

(a) The local authority by resolution so decides; and

(b) The presiding member explains at the meeting, at a time when it is open to the public,-

(i) The reason why the item is not on the agenda; and

(ii) The reason why the discussion of the item cannot be delayed until a subsequent meeting.”

Section 46A(7A) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (as amended) states:

“Where an item is not on the agenda for a meeting,-

(a) That item may be discussed at that meeting if-

(i) That item is a minor matter relating to the general business of the local authority; and

(ii) the presiding member explains at the beginning of the meeting, at a time when it is open to the public, that the item will be discussed at the meeting; but

(b) no resolution, decision or recommendation may be made in respect of that item except to refer that item to a subsequent meeting of the local authority for further discussion.”

11 Notices of Motion

At the close of the agenda no requests for notices of motion had been received.

Great Barrier Local Board

09 September 2015

Great Barrier Local Board cemeteries delegation information

File No.: CP2015/18419

Purpose

1. The purpose of this report is to provide the Great Barrier Local Board with information it needs now that it holds the delegation for cemeteries operations.

Executive Summary

2. The Great Barrier Local Board recently obtained a delegation from the Auckland Council governing body to operate and manage cemeteries on the island. Officers have agreed what consequential operational changes are needed and these are covered in this report.

3. The report includes information on front of house operations, fees collection processes, maintenance, burial and sexton services and renewals. The general principle agreed amongst officers is that if there is no need to change current processes, they shouldn’t be changed.

4. The report addresses the new fee structure that now applies to Great Barrier Island cemeteries as a result of fees for burials and associated services being introduced under the 10 year plan from 1 July. It notes that the local board could choose to not charge these fees or to subsidise some or all of them, but that it would have to fund the costs of this change through its discretionary opex budgets.

5. The report also discusses the local board’s aspiration to develop new cemeteries, what opportunities the delegation provides and suggests steps to advance these.

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) Notes the operational changes in Great Barrier cemeteries management resulting from the delegation.

b) Considers whether it wishes to leave new burial fees established on 1 July 2015 unchanged or whether it wishes to return to free burials or subsidise some or all current fees.

c) Requests that officers establish a team to work with the board to investigate site options on local parks for new cemeteries at Claris and Okiwi.

Comments

6. At its 29 July 2015 meeting, the Parks, Recreation and Sports Committee agreed to delegate authority for cemeteries operations on Great Barrier Island to the Great Barrier Local Board. This decision followed advocacy from the Great Barrier Local Board for this delegation and a supportive recommendation from officers.

7. The delegation covers the following activities:

· Burial and sexton activities including grave aftercare and maintenance

· Maintenance of cemetery records

· Grounds maintenance of cemeteries

· Monitoring and ensuring compliance with Cemeteries and Crematoria Bylaw, and other relevant legislation

· Investigating and responding to complaints

· Planning and delivery of capital development and renewals programme

The delegation does not cover planning for regional cemeteries, management of the regional cemetery database, contract matters associated with burial and sexton duties, or acquisition of land for cemetery purposes.

8. This decision was reported to the 12 August 2015 Great Barrier Local Board meeting. The board asked that officers report back to its September meeting on which unit will be responsible for island cemetery and budget management and reporting to the local board, on an indicative work plan for cemetery development on local park land at Claris and/or Okiwi and on the cost and revenue implications if the local board wishes to subsidise burial costs. This report addresses that request.

9. Attachment A is a table outlining the key elements of cemetery management on Great Barrier Island and is broken down in to roles and responsibilities before the delegation and proposed roles and responsibilities post the delegation. It also proposes roles and responsibilities for planning for new cemetery development. The table has been agreed amongst officers who have and will have roles and responsibilities for Great Barrier cemetery management under the delegation.

10. The general principle adopted by officers in developing this table was that if there is no need to change current practises then they shouldn’t be changed. So for example, “front of house” activities i.e. where customers interface with council will continue to be the Claris Service Centre. There will be some process changes behind the scenes as budgets and responsibilities move from regional to local but that will be largely invisible to the public. Likewise, City Parks Services currently undertake burial and sexton services for Great Barrier Cemeteries and this will remain largely unchanged.

11. In relation to fees, Auckland Council’s 10 year plan has standardised fees for cemetery and cremation services across Auckland which has resulted in the implementation of fees for the Hauraki Gulf Islands. This enables the council to recover costs from customers whereas in the past the rest of the region has subsidised the Hauraki Gulf Islands cemeteries. The new charges are shown in the following table. There will continue to be no plot purchase fee for the Gooseberry Flat and Whangaparapara cemeteries.

12.

Proposed Fee from 1 July 2015 (incl gst)
Interment Fees
Adult single	$1,200
Adult double	$1,350
Child 0-1yr	$250
Child 1-12yr	$550
Disinterment	$2,290
Reinterment	$1,350
Ash Burial	$340

Other Fees
Weekend fee	$350
Public Holiday fee	$650

13. During consultation on the draft 10 year plan, the Great Barrier Local Board asked its community if it supported the board having authority for local cemeteries including deciding how much to charge. Those who responded to this matter were mostly supportive however it is noted that as proposed solid waste charges were the hot topic of debate, this matter received little feedback. Officers subsequently ran a limited consultation on the fees issue to which there was very limited feedback.

14. If the board wishes to remove or reduce burial costs for customers, it will need to meet these costs itself from its discretionary opex budget. Options include a full subsidy of all fees i.e. no one pays anything for any cemetery service, or a partial subsidy for certain aspects only. Examples could include no cost for infant or child burials or reducing these charges. The amount of this subsidy would depend on what the board chose to subsidise but given that there are only 2-3 burials a year on average, and no disinterments or reinterments in the last two years, a full subsidy would likely cost less than $5,000 per year. New processes would need to be introduced if any subsidy was introduced.

15. It is noted that for customers with financial hardship, Work and Income provides funeral grants of up to $1,998 to cover burial, plot, and cremation charges. Customers can also avoid some of the charges (e.g. weekend fees) by changing the day of their service.

16. In relation to future cemetery development, the delegation now enables the board to make progress on its communities long held aspiration for new cemeteries at Claris and Okiwi. The Aotea Great Barrier Local Board Plan includes a section entitled “new cemeteries” which notes that for many years locals in the north and centre of the island have asked that cemeteries be established. It notes that as the responsibility for cemeteries has rested regionally, priority hasn’t been given to these requests based on the much greater cemetery pressures faced elsewhere in the region.

17. With the delegation now in place progress can be made as it is delegated authority for planning and delivery of capital development, which includes new cemeteries. It is noted that acquisition of land for cemeteries remains a regional decision so the board’s focus will need to be on existing local parks for which it has full decision making authority.

18. Considerable work has already been undertaken by Auckland City Council and Auckland Council to investigate sites for new cemeteries at Claris and Okiwi and the board will now be able to take this further. A number of local parks were identified as possible cemetery sites but technical hurdles with high water tables and sandy soils were identified. It is now understood that solutions to these issues may be available.

19. It is proposed that the board establish a working group of key officers to review and further investigate these sites using the $10,000 budget it has established for a cemeteries feasibility investigation. The investigation should also include an assessment of the costs of developing a cemetery and whether or not any Reserves Act processes apply, e.g. classification.

20. Should this investigation confirm that a Claris and/or Okiwi cemetery could be developed, the board will need to consider allocating capex funding for development. If this is to commence in the current financial year, a budget will need to be set aside. It is noted that the board will further consider capital spend options at its October business meeting.

Consideration

Local Board views and implications

21. This report is in direct response to the Great Barrier Local Board’s advocacy since the creation of Auckland Council in 2010 for authority over the island’s cemeteries so the report reflects the local board’s views.

Māori impact statement

22. The Aotea Great Barrier Local Board Plan lists Ngati Rehua Ngatiwai ki Aotea as a key agency the local board will work with as it advances its plan to develop new cemeteries on Great Barrier. Discussions have already been held on this subject and the local board will seek specific advice from Ngati Rehua Ngatiwai ki Aotea in regards to what role mana whenua wish to have in this matter.

Implementation

23. The delegation to the Great Barrier Local Board for cemetery operations on Great Barrier Island will result in a range of operational and “behind the scenes” changes which are expected to have very little impact on the board or council processes. To the extent necessary to give effect to this change, budgets which were previously held by Regional and Sports Parks will now transfer to Local and Sports Parks.

24. The local board will not need to allocate any of its discretionary opex budget to cemeteries operations unless it wishes to reduce the new burial fees introduced from 1 July 2015. The board will however need to fund any work to develop new cemeteries as outlined previously in this report. In addition officer resources for the proposed new cemetery investigations will need to be agreed.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Great Barrier cemeteries - current and proposed management & reporting roles and responsibilities	11

Signatories

Authors	Jacqueline Fyers - Democracy/Engagement Advisor
Authorisers	John Nash - Senior Local Board Advisor

Great Barrier Local Board

09 September 2015

Whangaparapa Wharf Draft Concept Plan 2015

File No.: CP2015/18422

Purpose

1. The purpose of this report is to present the Whangaparapara Wharf Concept Plan to the Great Barrier Local Board for consideration and adoption and to enable the board to consider options to progress elements of the plan.

Executive Summary

2. Over the last few years a number of Whangaparapara residents have proposed small projects for their community. These ideas have also been presented to Great Barrier Local Board members at various community consultations for the Local Board Plan and the Long Term Plan but the smallness of the projects has meant they struggle to gain priority. During this time the Board also enabled the new Whangaparapara wharf pontoon to be installed.

3. Through these engagements it became obvious that Whangaparapara residents care deeply about their area and wish to be involved in anything to do with it. There is also at times a disconnect between the work of various Auckland Council teams/departments.

4. The idea of developing a concept plan for the Whangaparapara wharf area is in part a response to these matters. It aims to collect all the ideas for public space in and around the Whangaparapara “town centre” in one place and present them in a coordinated plan.

5. The Whangaparapara community has embraced the idea, formed a local group and met with a Council employed landscape architect to discuss the ideas and produce a draft Whangaparapara Wharf concept plan. Auckland Transport and Sealink as key stakeholders have also been involved.

6. This plan has now been agreed by all parties for presentation to the local board to determine what might be advanced by whom, when and what budget might be available for this. It has been agreed that local stakeholders will be involved along the way and invited to give further input about the details e.g. the design of furniture, the materials for surfaces, welcome signage and vegetation planting choices.

7. The draft Whangaparapara Wharf Concept Plan is included at Attachment A to this report. It is recommended that the Great Barrier Local Board adopts the plan and considers how best it can deliver on components of the plan either through its budgets or via budgets that might be available through Auckland Transport and other Council departments.

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) Adopts the Whangaparapara Wharf Concept Plan 2015 and agrees to work with all key stakeholders to implement the plan

b) Notes that it will confirm its 2015/16 discretionary capex budget at its October 2015 meeting and will consider the allocation of funding to implement this plan at that meeting

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Whangaparapara Wharf Draft Concept Plan	15

Signatories

Authors	Jacqueline Fyers - Democracy/Engagement Advisor
Authorisers	John Nash - Senior Local Board Advisor

Great Barrier Local Board

09 September 2015

ATEED 6 month report Great Barrier

File No.: CP2015/17237

Purpose

1. The purpose of this report is to present the Great Barrier Local Board with the Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED) six monthly report.

Executive Summary

2. The attached report provides the Great Barrier Local Board with highlights of ATEED’s activities in the Great Barrier Local Board area for the six months from 1 January to 30 June 2015.

3. Furthermore, ATEED has recently been in contact through Destination Great Barrier Island to advise that they will be running an Auckland campaign to educate Aucklanders on hidden gems in the region. The campaign will air October/November. ATEED has proposed that Great Barrier be one of the places visited/filmed and suggests the board match funds $5,000.

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) Receives the Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED) six monthly report.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	ATEED 6 month report Great Barrier	23

Signatories

Authors	Jacqueline Fyers - Democracy/Engagement Advisor
Authorisers	John Nash - Senior Local Board Advisor

Great Barrier Local Board

09 September 2015

Ngati Rehua Ngatiwai ki Aotea WalkFest report

File No.: CP2015/17230

Purpose

1. The purpose of this report is to provide the Ngati Rehua Ngatiwai ki Aotea Walkfest report to the Great Barrier Local Board and to enable the board to consider options for any future event.

Executive Summary

2. The 2015 Aotea Walkfest event was held over three days - Friday 27 March to Sunday 29 March 2015 consisting of eight walks that ranged across the island. The Great Barrier Local Board provided funding of $25,000 from its discretionary budget towards this event.

3. The programme and overall event was developed, managed and delivered by Aotea mana whenua Ngati Rehua Ngatiwai ki Aotea with support from a range of local individuals and groups. Fly My Sky and Destination Great Barrier Island also played a large part in supporting this event through marketing and on the day operations.

4. The attached report on the event meets Ngati Rehua Ngatiwai ki Aotea’s obligations to report back to the board on the event. A representative will be in attendance at the meeting to answer any questions board members may have.

5. In relation to future events, it is noted that this report back also serves to assist the board in deciding if it wishes to fund a 2015/16 event, how much it wishes to allocate to this and who might run it. No decision has been made on this yet.

6. It is noted that the board has amalgamated its past walking festival event funding into its events budget for the current 2015/16 financial year on the basis that no decision has been made on any future event(s). The Ngati Rehua Ngatiwai ki Aotea Trust has advised that it supports the walking festival continuing due to its investment in building competencies and capability skills among its people.

7. It is recommended that the board meet with interested parties to discuss options for future events. One option that has been suggested is for the event to be bi-annual. The board has also previously stated that its expectation is that over time this event will be self-funding.

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) Receives the Ngati Rehua Ngatiwai ki Aotea Walkfest report and thanks Catherine Munro and Nicola MacDonald for their work on the event.

b) Notes that its 2015/16 community events budget includes provision for the Aotea WalkFest pending decisions on whether to hold this event, and other event priorities, which the board will consider at its November 2015 meeting.

c) Meets with interested parties to discuss options for continuing with this event including the option that it becomes a bi-annual event, to enable decisions to be made at the November meeting.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Ngati Rehua Ngatiwai ki Aotea WalkFest 2015 Report	33

Signatories

Authors	Jacqueline Fyers - Democracy/Engagement Advisor
Authorisers	John Nash - Senior Local Board Advisor

Great Barrier Local Board

09 September 2015

Forward Together - Hauraki Gulf Marine Park Seminar - 27 October 2015

File No.: CP2015/16247

Purpose

1. The purpose of this report is to seek expressions of interest in attending the Forward Together – 2015 Hauraki Gulf Marine Park Seminar being held at the Auckland Museum on Tuesday 27 October 2015.

Executive Summary

2. Forward Together is a Hauraki Gulf Marine Park Seminar that addresses terrestrial, freshwater and marine biodiversity loss.

3. Speakers at the seminar include Waka voyager Hoturoa Barclay-Kerr, Noises (island group) caretakers Rod and Sue Neureuter, Oceanographer John Zeldis, Marine ecologist Mark Morrison, Sanford CEO Volker Kuntzsch, Marine reserve scientist Nick Shears, and Conservation and business leader Rob Fenwick. The full list is Attachment A.

4. The seminar fee is $33 plus travel and accommodation at approximately $550 per person.

5. The Great Barrier Local Board professional development budget will cover the attendance costs for this conference.

6. It is expected that all attendees will report back via their board member reports during the business meeting held on 11 November 2015.

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) Nominates board member/s xxx to attend the Forward Together – 2015 Hauraki Gulf Marine Park Seminar held on Tuesday 27 October 2015, 9am-4.30pm, at the Auckland Museum, on the basis that the conference programme is relevant to the Local Board and Environment Committee’s work programmes

b) Confirms that the conference attendance including travel and accommodation will be paid for in accordance with the current Auckland Council Elected Member Expense Policy from the Great Barrier Local Board professional development budget line.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Forward Together Seminar programme	53

Signatories

Authors	Jacqueline Fyers - Democracy/Engagement Advisor
Authorisers	John Nash - Senior Local Board Advisor

No.	Title	Page
a View	Board Member Susan Daly's report	67
b View	Board Member Jeff Cleave's report	75
c View	Board Member Judy Gilbert's report	77
d View	Board Member Christina Spence's report	79

No.	Title	Page
a View	Workshop proceedings 4 August	83
b View	Workshop proceedings 5 August	85
c View	Workshop proceedings 11 August	87
d View	Workshop proceedings 12 August	89