Agenda of Great Barrier Local Board

Great Barrier Local Board

10 February 2016

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 Funding Agreements - Tri-annual Reporting 7

13 Auckland Transport Report - February 2016 - Great Barrier Island 25

14 Auckland Transport Quarterly Update to Local Boards 29

15 Quarterly Performance Report for the three months ending December 2015 53

16 Seaweek Marine Conservation Futures and the legacy of Bill Ballantine event 75

17 Appointment of a representative to the Central Facility Partnership Committee 77

18 Parks, Recreation and Sports Committee - Growth Programme 79

19 Draft Local Government Election Year Policy for Elected Members 97

20 Review of the Food Safety Bylaw 2013 99

21 New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme and Electricity Authority Consulations 103

22 Correspondence 111

23 Chairperson's report 119

24 Board Members' Reports 123

25 Great Barrier Local Board Workshop Proceedings 139

26 Governance Forward Work Calendar 147

27 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, 9 December 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

10 February 2016

Great Barrier Funding Agreements - Tri-annual Reporting

File No.: CP2015/22748

Purpose

1. To note the tri-annual updates from the four Great Barrier Local Board funding agreement recipients, as stated in the terms of their contracts.

Executive Summary

2. A list of the funding agreement recipients are listed in the table below:

Group	Purpose of funding	Amount of funding	Key contact
Aotea Family Support Group	Support the Aotea Family Support Group to develop a range of services that meet the needs of the community.	$30,000	Rendt Gorter
Great Barrier Island Community Health Trust – Community Worker	Support the community worker to achieve successful community development outcomes, with a focus on community health and social services, safety, and marae capacity building.	$42,000	Gael Johnson
Destination Great Barrier Island	Support Destination Great Barrier Island to manage the Claris visitor site, advance Great Barrier Island as a destination, and provide marketing promotion and economic development outcomes.	$35,000	Tony Christiansen
Great Barrier Island Community Heritage & Arts Village Trust	Support the art gallery to provide programmes and opportunities for the Great Barrier Island community.	$10,000	Nell Williams

3. In all cases funding is also provided to support the delivery of initiatives outlined in the Aotea Great Barrier Local Board Plan and the Great Barrier Local Board Agreement.

4. It is stated in the terms of the funding agreements that recipients will report monthly and annually to the Auckland Council and to the Great Barrier Local Board’s October 2015, February 2016 and June 2016 meetings. Local board reports should be formal reports on the business meeting agenda, or tabled or verbal reports, if agreed beforehand.

5. Copies of the Aotea Family Support Group, Great Barrier Community Health Trust, Destination Great Barrier Island and Great Barrier Island Community Heritage & Arts Village Trust February reports are attached.

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) note the tri-annual reports from the Aotea Family Support Group, Great Barrier Community Health Trust, Destination Great Barrier Island and Great Barrier Island Community Heritage & Arts Village Trust.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Great Barrier Island Heritage & Arts Village - Tri-annual report - February 2016	9
b View	Great Barrier Island Community Health Trust – Community Worker - Tri-annual report - February 2016	15
c View	Destination Great Barrier Island - Tri-annual report - February 2016	19
d View	Aotea Family Support Group - Tri-annual report - February 2016	23

Signatories

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

Great Barrier Local Board

10 February 2016

Auckland Transport Report - February 2016 - Great Barrier Island

File No.: CP2016/00711

Purpose

1. To respond to local board requests on transport–related matters and to provide information to elected members about Auckland Transport (AT) activities in the local board area.

Executive Summary

2. This report covers matters of specific application and interest to the Great Barrier Local Board and its community, matters of general interest relating to Auckland Transport activities or the transport sector, and relevant Auckland Transport media releases for the information of the board and community.

3. In particular, this report provides an update on;

· Local Board Transport Capital Fund

· Claris Airport Update

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) note the Auckland Transport Report – February 2016 – Great Barrier Island

b) support the proposal for Auckland Transport to assume the role of Airport Authority, and supports their decision being provided to the Auckland Transport Board and the Minister of Civil Aviation

Comments

Local Board Transport Capital Fund (LBTCF)

4. At the Local Board meeting on the 12 March 2014 the Board were provided with a list of potential Local Board Transport Capital Fund projects.

5. The below table outlines an up-date as to decisions by the Board and on the progress of the projects.

Table 1: Great Barrier Local Board project update for Board approval:

Resolution # GBI/2013/234 (2013)

Resolution # GBI/2014/20 (April 2014)

ID#	Project Description	Progress/Current Status
211	Hector Sanderson Road Split into sections for funding purposes	· Resolution GBI/2014/63 (15 May 2014) “The design element of the project will be led by the Local Parks and SLIP’s project team” · Resolution GBI/2014/154 (December 2014) Requests that those parts of projects 221 and 211 currently being progressed by the board be funded from Local Board Transport Capital Fund. Board agreed to fund from the LBTCF April 2015. AT and AC working with Board on this and Board further supported the use of the LBTCF in the May 2015 Board meeting (GBI/2015/53) · Board resolved August 2016 to allocate all available funds from the LBTCF to selected sections of this project ($385,524) · This will be further discussed in Portfolio meeting with Board
222	Fitzroy Wharf parking · ROC – Unable to determine at present	Auckland Transport is working with AC on options; The area is very short of available space. 4 Parking spaces were identified, however the wall above these spaces slipped, forcing a reconsideration of location · This car park extension will be completed once the slip has been repaired. There are currently rubbish bins occupying the proposed new car park spaces and these will be relocated once slip work carried out. · Awaiting relocation of power line at new proposed location of bins · Chorus have contracted Daly’s to do trenching work, once completed trellising work will start on the new site, after which the bins will be moved. (By the xmas break)
	Okiwi School, Aotea Rd · Footpath outside school on Aotea Rd	Investigating possible footpath on grass outside Okiwi School (see section below) Looking at possible funding source from; · minor safety budget · regional footpath programme · underspend from LBTCF

Note: ROC = rough order of costs; FEC = firm estimate of cost)

Great Barrier Airfields – proposed transfer of responsibility

6. The two airfields at Claris and Okiwi on Great Barrier Island are currently owned by Auckland Council. Auckland Council is an airport authority under the Airport Authorities Act 1966, allowing it to (amongst other things) maintain, operate and manage airports.

7. Auckland Transport is currently undertaking these functions on behalf of Auckland Council. This includes day-to-day management, ensuring compliance with civil aviation rules governing the use of aerodromes, and the supervision of the airfields maintenance contract.

8. It is proposed that Auckland Transport takes over the regulatory role of airport authority from Auckland Council. Furthermore, it is proposed that the airfield operations (including the Claris terminal) are integrated into the Auckland Transport network, and are managed through the Auckland Transport Operations Centre.

9. Auckland Transport Operations Centre has operational and incident management systems for 24/7 monitoring and response, and the capability to provide a coordinated response to planned and unplanned events irrespective of travel mode.

10. Auckland Transport currently manages freight and passenger ferry services to the island, and the island’s roading network. The airfields form a strategic part of the island’s transportation system, and inclusion of their responsibility will enhance AT’s ability to effectively plan and deliver a more integrated transport service to the local community in terms of investment and management.

Consultation documents on proposed safety improvements

11. Consultation documents for the following proposals have been provided to the Great Barrier Local Board for its feedback. As the Board’s transport portfolio holders provide feedback on the Board’s behalf, the material below is included for general information purposes only.

12. There were no proposed projects this month.

Consideration

Local Board views and implications

13. The board’s views will be incorporated during consultation on any proposed schemes.

Māori impact statement

14. No specific issues with regard to the Maori Impact Statement are triggered by this report.

General

15. The activities detailed in this report do not trigger the Significance Policy. All programmes and activities are within budget/in line with the Council’s Annual Plan and LTP documents and there are no legal or legislative implications arising from the activities detailed in this report.

Implementation Issues

16. All proposed schemes are subject to prioritisation, funding and consultation.

Attachments

There are no attachments for this report.

Signatories

Authors	Ivan Trethowen – Auckland Transport Elected Member Relationship Manager
Authorisers	Jonathan Anyon – Auckland Transport Elected Member Relationship Team Manager

Great Barrier Local Board

10 February 2016

Auckland Transport Quarterly Update to Local Boards

File No.: CP2016/00718

Executive Summary

1. To inform local boards about progress on activities undertaken by Auckland Transport (AT) in the three months from 1 October to 31 December 2015.

Attachments include:

A – Auckland Transport activities by local board area

B – Travelwise Schools activities by local board area

C – Decisions of the Traffic Control Committee by local board area

D – Report against local board advocacy issues

E – Report on the status of the local board’s projects under the Local Board Transport Capital Fund (LBTCF).

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) note the Auckland Transport Quarterly Update to Local Boards

Significant activities during the period under review

Strategy and Planning

2. Transport for Future Urban Growth (TFUG)

Under the new business case approach AT has got approved funding to develop growth-related Programme Business Cases (PBCs) to identify the transport infrastructure needed within the next 30 years for the growth areas identified in Auckland Council's Future Urban Land Supply Strategy. The areas to be assessed are the Northwest, Southern, Northern and Warkworth areas. A multi-disciplinary and cross organisational team has been developed and is currently working from a co-located space on the four areas. Procurement is well advanced and consultant teams are on board with a number of workshops planned in January and February.

3. Central Access Strategy

A Strategic Case was jointly developed by the investment partners, and approved by NZTA in November 2015, agreeing the problems faced for access to the city centre. A PBC is underway to identify and agree a programme of options to address the problems, with a high level costs and benefits analysis.

PT Development

4. Double Decker Network Mitigation works

Each route is in a different project phase. By Jun-2018, the following routes are planned to be completed:

· Mt Eden (31 March 2016)

· Northern Express 2 (30 Jun 2016)

· Great North (31 March 2017)

· Manukau (30 June 2017)

· Remuera

· New North

· Onewa

Botany bus route 500 (from Botany Town Centre to Britomart) has been cleared.

5. PT Safety, Security and Amenity

Involves enhancing station safety, security and amenity. Current projects include completion of Ellerslie Station canopies, upgrade to Morningside Level Crossing and electronic gating at Manurewa Station. Programmed activities in various phases on these projects are:

· Ellerslie canopies will be completed January 2016

· Morningside Level Crossing Improvement construction work planned for April/May 2016 and interim improvements were completed in November 2015

· Manurewa gates in early design stage.

6. City Rail Link

Enabling Works Contract 2, construction of pipe jack (services relocation) commenced (Albert Street) on 21 December 2015. Enabling Works Contract 1, Britomart to Lower Albert Street and Contract 2, Lower Albert Street to Wyndham Street, is to commence in May 2016. Main Works: Construction to start in 2018/19 FY subject to funding agreement with Government.

PT Operations

7. Highlights for the quarter

· SuperGold Travel – a competitive tender process for SuperGold funding exempt ferry services from downtown Auckland to Matiatia Wharf, Waiheke – as per MoT directive. The tender process resulted in two operators being eligible for SuperGold reimbursements from 1 January 2016. Super Gold card holders conversion onto HOP cards has commenced, for delivery by 1 July 2016. This will mean seniors will be required to use HOP cards to access free PT SuperGold travel.

· Integrated Fares – just prior to Christmas Thales delivered the first release of version 7.0 (customer facing enhancements) for Integrated Fares, ready for AT to commence testing. Some minor changes to zone boundaries were also approved to mitigate some passengers who would have had fare increases under integrated fares. Initial testing of version 7.0 has commenced. Integrated fares implementation is targeted for mid-2016. A late February 2016 annual PT Fares review will be implemented as a stepping stone to integrated fares.

· Ferry Improvements – Waiheke Ferry Services: strong growth has been experienced on the route during the year, reaffirming the route as being the most popular on the Auckland Ferry network. A local initiative to display interpretative signage at Matiatia was delivered with the Waiheke Local Board in the last quarter, and way-finding signage was updated and replaced at Matiatia as well. Next quarter will see the installation of a purpose-built customer information/ticket office by Explore. Overall patronage to Waiheke has grown over 10% in the last 12 months with the combination of Fullers and Explore services.

Road Design and Development

8. SMART (Southwest Multi-modal Airport Rapid Transit)

Future proofing of the SMART route on the Kirkbride (trench) intersection is progressing together with the infrastructure works by Highway Network Operations of NZTA. This element of the project is expected to be complete in 2022. AT is working with the East West team to ensure the projects are well aligned at the critical points. The indicative business case is being updated for LRT and heavy rail. The cycle strategy for the wider Mangere area is also underway.

9. AMETI – Pakuranga Road Busway

Involves provision of a signalised Panmure roundabout, two-lane busway, Walking and Cycling facilities, Panmure bridge upgrade and upgrades to existing bridge and local roads towards Pakuranga Town Centre. A completion date is subject to the outcome/approval of a revised delivery strategy by the AT Board by February 2016. The Notice of Requirement lodgement is ready to proceed, with lodgement pending the outcomes of cultural mitigation discussion. The expected lodgement date is mid-February 2016.

10. Tamaki Ngapipi Intersection Safety Improvements

Involves installation of traffic lights at the Tamaki Drive/Ngapipi Road intersection to address safety issues. The design aims to encourage shared use by reducing conflict points and maintaining efficient movement through the intersection. The AT Board has approved the preferred option, that allows five Pohutukawa trees to be retained, and this option will be taken forward to consenting and construction. Detailed design is underway to finalise the proposal for consenting.

Services

11. Community and Road Safety Programme

· Delivered alcohol checkpoints in partnership with NZ Police

· Delivered child restraint checkpoints and Plunket promotions in partnership with NZ Police

· Delivered safety messages to motorcycle riders regarding high visibility vests and training in Northcote

· Delivered a targeted social media campaign for high risk young drivers in Henderson

· Delivered a ‘Train the Trainer’ course to local community and NZ Police for Learners Licence in Henderson

· Delivered learner and restricted licencing programmes to high risk young drivers in Mangere

· Delivered a targeted social media campaign for high risk young drivers in Mangere

· Supporting ACC and NZTA Young Drivers Signature programme in Mangere.

12. Commute Travel Planning

· Unitec Travel Plan – Unitec won the 'Think outside the car award for creative excellence' for its cycling programme including installation of 10 covered, student-designed bike racks

· Waitemata District Health Board was awarded the carpooling award at the AT Commute awards for its Carpooling programme.

13. Travel Demand (2015/16 Year)

Transport Choice campaign – ‘Time to cool your love affair with your car' video campaign was promoted for eight weeks primarily via online media and the AT website. Promoted travel choice and encouraged Public Transport, Walking, Cycling, Carpooling and Flexi-working. Over 625,000 views of the videos are recorded – which is a high rate and demonstrates increased awareness.

Road Corridor Delivery

14. The Assets and Maintenance Group is tasked with the responsibility for a wide range of activities within the Road Corridor. These include but are not limited to:

· the delivery of roading and streetlight maintenance and renewal programmes

· managing the access, co-ordination and traffic management impacts of activities taking place within the road corridor

· promoting design innovation and efficiency around how work is carried out on the network

· the development of long term asset management plans and modelling which support the decision making process around the management of Auckland’s roading assets.

15. Road Corridor Delivery

· In the 2015/2016 financial year AT is planning to deliver 37.7 km of pavement rehabilitation, 480.1 km of resurfacing (comprising 88.9 km of hotmix and 391.2 km of chip sealing), 75.7 km of footpath renewals and 82.7 km of kerb and channel replacement.

Table 1: Progress against Asset Renewal Targets

· Pavement rehabilitation projects have been completed on Kohimarama Road, Ranui Station Road, Edmonton Road, Robertson Road, Te Irirangi Drive, Ormiston Road, Whitford Road, Glenbrook Road, Linwood Road, Clyde Road, Lakeside Drive, Maygrove Drive, Brigham Creek Road, Mokoia Road, Kahika Road, Diana Drive, Glenmore Road, South Head Road, Waitoki Road, Mahurangi East Road, Hector Sanderson Road and Blind Bay Road. Further projects are underway on College Road, Hunua Road, Roscommon Road, St George Street, Bairds Road and Cavendish Drive.

· Contracts have been awarded to two suppliers for the provision of LED luminaires for the 2015/16 year. In the 2015/16 year approximately 11,000 of the existing 70W HPS lamps on the network will be replaced with LED luminaires and connected to the new central management system. Initially most will be in the central and north contract areas. The LED retrofit programme is being accelerated with the aim of completing the replacement of all the existing 70W HPS lamps by 1 July 2018 so as to maximise the available subsidy from the NZTA.

16. Road Corridor Access

· Monitoring of Temporary Traffic Management (TTM) at work sites is continuing to ensure compliance with the approved traffic management plans and to identify opportunities for improvement. The average percentage of low risk sites for Quarter 2 is 94% (against the target of 90%)

· With an anticipated dip in numbers for December, the Corridor Access Request (CAR) team continues to process around 1,300 applications per month. These requests are for AT operations (inclusive of CRL) and various utility operators to access and maintain the assets sitting within the road corridor. Access is also sought by private operators and individuals who need to access the road network to undertake activities such as private water connections etc.

17. Strategic Asset Management and Systems

· AT inherited an inventory of 117 permanent traffic counting sites across the Auckland region. These comprise inductive loops installed in the road pavement which detect passing vehicles through electro-magnetic induction. The loops provide details of traffic flows by vehicle category. In addition, AT can deploy pneumatic tubes installed across traffic lanes to undertake ad-hoc traffic counts. These are used where there are no permanent loops installed.

· The information generated by the loops provides an ongoing record of traffic growth across Auckland, which is used to inform infrastructure design as well as providing current and trend information for the Auckland traffic and growth models managed by the Auckland Joint Modelling Applications Centre (JMAC). The output from these models has been used in the development of the Integrated Transport Programme (ITP), defining AT’s road hierarchy for ONRC, and will be used for the Auckland Transport Alignment Project (ATAP).

· During the period October to December inclusive, a total of 493 traffic counts were undertaken using a mixture or permanent sites and pneumatic tubes. Additionally, 57 additional counts were undertaken over the Christmas holiday period to identify recreational traffic flows which may be significant at certain locations. Sixteen of these were on Waiheke and four on Great Barrier Island.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Schedule of activities undertaken for the first quarter (2015/16) ending 30 September 2015	35
b View	Travelwise Schools activities broken down by local board	45
c View	Traffic Control Committee Decisions broken down by local board	47
d View	Local Board Advocacy Report	49
e View	Local Board Transport Capital Fund Report	51

Signatories

Authors	Various Auckland Transport authors
Authorisers	Jonathan Anyon - Auckland Transport Elected Member Relationship Team Manager

Great Barrier Local Board

10 February 2016

Quarterly Performance Report for the three months ending December 2015

File No.: CP2015/26076

Purpose

1. To update the Great Barrier Local Board on progress towards their objectives for the year from 1 July 2015 to 30 June 2016 as set out in the local board agreement.

Executive Summary

2. A financial performance report is presented to the local boards for the accounting quarters ending September, December, March and June.

3. To improve overall performance reporting the Financial Advisory Services – Local Boards team produces a combined quarterly financial report and department report.

4. The attached omnibus consolidation contains the following reports this quarter.

· Local board financial performance report

· Local Community Services (incl. libraries) activity overview

· Local Sports Parks and Recreation overview

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) note the Quarterly Performance Report for the Great Barrier Local Board for the three months ended 31 December 2015.

Consideration

Local Board Views and Implications

5. This report informs the Great Barrier Local Board of the performance for the year to date for the period ending June 2016.

Maori Impact Statement

6. Maori as stakeholders of the council are affected and have an interest in any report on financial results. However this report does not impact specific outcomes or activities. As such the content of this report has no particular benefit to, or adverse effect on Maori.

General

7. This is the financial report for the three months year to date for the Great Barrier Local Board for the financial year ending 30December 2015; the next report will be presented to the board in May 2016.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Great Barrier Quarterly Perfomance Report for the three months ending December 2015	55

Signatories

Authors

Jane Koch - Lead Financial Advisor

Authorisers

John Nash - Senior Local Board Advisor

Christine Watson - Manager Financial Advisory Services - Local Boards

Great Barrier Local Board

10 February 2016

Appointment of a representative to the Central Facility Partnership Committee

File No.: CP2016/00180

Purpose

1. To appoint a member as a representative, and also another member as the alternative representative, to the re-established Central Facility Partnerships Committee.

Executive Summary

2. With the establishment of the LDI Capex Fund, the Central Facility Partnerships Fund was terminated and the business of the Central Facility Partnerships Committee ceased.

3. A workshop of the previous committee representatives from the constituent local boards was held in August 2015 and the participants agreed that the Central Facility Partnerships Fund had fulfilled a very useful role in the past by leveraging relatively small financial contributions from council into substantial sums for community projects.

4. The board resolved to support the re-establishment of the Central Facility Partnerships Committee at its business meeting on 11 November 2015 and would consider its participation once it was known how the committee would be funded, level of funding commitment from the board itself and what process/criteria was envisaged for prioritising applications for different board areas.

5. The purpose of the re-established committee has been confirmed as to provide a vehicle for developing joint advocacy around community partnership issues and opportunities and to undertake a governance role over existing approved projects and feasibility studies. There will no longer be any funding allocation decisions made as Boards are not being asked to contribute to a fund from their local capex funds.

6. It is considered that on this basis it would be worthwhile for the Great Barrier Local Board to be represented on the committee and it is recommended board members Christina Spence and Judy Gilbert be the respective representative and alternate.

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) appoint Member CA Spence as a representative, and Member JJ Gilbert as the alternative representative, to the Central Facility Partnerships Committee.

Attachments

There are no attachments for this report.

Signatories

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

Great Barrier Local Board

10 February 2016

Draft Local Government Election Year Policy for Elected Members

File No.: CP2015/26975

Purpose

1. To provide comments to the governing body on the draft “Local Government Election Year Policy for Elected Members”.

Executive Summary

2. This report attaches the draft policy which will be considered by the governing body at its meeting on 25 February 2016, along with comments from local boards.

3. The policy applies during an election year, which is the time that some sitting members may be “wearing two hats”. One role is as an elected member, making the decisions of the Auckland Council. The other role is as a candidate for the next elections. The policy sets out how to distinguish between these two roles. The “pre-election” period (three months prior to the election) is a particularly sensitive period.

4. The draft policy is based on the policy that was presented to local boards and the governing body in 2013 and reflects guidance provided to public sector entities by the State Services Commission and by the Office of the Auditor General.

5. It has been reformatted to:

· make it clearer it is principle-based

· remove some of the policy relating to staff conduct, which will be contained in a separate organisational policy for staff

· include a “Frequently Asked Questions” section giving additional guidance to common questions that confront elected members.

6. The body of the report provides comments raised by local boards in 2013 and the responses to them as contained in the report to the governing body.

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) provide comments on the draft “Local Government Election Year Policy for Elected Members”.

Comments

7. Previous comments from local boards that were reported to the governing body in 2013, along with responses, are below.

8. Two local boards queried the requirement that elected member bodies do not criticise decisions of other elected member bodies in council publications and one sought clarification regarding who the arbiter of this is.

· This principle is included on the basis that it is considered inappropriate for different parts of council to be publicly criticising each other’s decisions in council-resourced communications. This principle operates once a decision has been made. Auckland Council’s decision-making process provides several opportunities, prior to a decision being made, for local boards and the governing body to advocate for a particular position. There are no restrictions on elected members’ use of non-council funded news media or publicity, other than the standards of behaviour required by the Code of Conduct.

· The Manager, Communications and Public Affairs, is responsible for ensuring that council-funded publications adhere to council’s policies.

9. One local board expressed a view that the pre-election period was one month too early.

· The pre-election period of three months is defined in the OAG guidelines and applies nationally for all local government elections.

10. One local board requested information on sanctions that will be put in place to ensure elected member candidates adhere to the policies.

· The Election Year Policy now includes a section on breaches of the policy. This is based on a similar section in the Code of Conduct and provides that the chief executive will consider and take appropriate action on a case by case basis in response to complaints about breaches of the policy. This may include involving the electoral officer depending on the nature of the alleged breach.

Consideration

Local Board views and implications

11. This report provides an opportunity for the local board to record its views on the draft policy.

Māori impact statement

12. The attached policies are for the guidance of all elected members and are of equal relevance to Māori and non-Māori.

Implementation

13. Once adopted, the policies will be forwarded to all elected members.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a	Local Government Election Year Policy for Elected Members

Signatories

Authors

Warwick McNaughton - Principal Advisor - Democracy Services

Authorisers

Marguerite Delbet - Manager Democracy Services

John Nash - Senior Local Board Advisor

Great Barrier Local Board

10 February 2016

Review of the Food Safety Bylaw 2013

File No.: CP2015/27125

Purpose

1. To seek the local board’s views regarding proposals to retain the grading provision of the Auckland Council Food Safety Bylaw 2013 and require the display of food safety grade certificates.

Executive Summary

2. From 1 March 2016 the Food Act 2014 (“the Act”) will replace the Food Act 1981 and Food Hygiene Regulations 1974 over a three year transition period. The Act also requires the amendment of existing food safety bylaws to ensure consistency. A formal public consultation process is not required for this bylaw review.

3. Staff analysis has identified that most of the existing Food Safety Bylaw 2013 (“the Bylaw”) provisions can be revoked and will be regulated by the Act and subsequent regulations.

4. National food safety grading will not be implemented through the new Act.

5. Staff propose to retain the grading provision of the Auckland Council Food Safety Bylaw 2013 and require the display of food safety grade certificates. Staff consider that the mandatory display of food safety grade certificates provides an incentive for food operators to proactively improve and maintain the safety of their food and enables customers to make informed choices.

6. A proposed amended bylaw will be presented to the Regulatory and Bylaws Committee in February 2016 followed by the Governing Body for consideration. The views of local boards will be presented in the accompanying report.

Recommendations

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) endorse the proposal to retain the grading provision of the Auckland Council Food Safety Bylaw 2013 and require the display of food safety grade certificates.

Comments

Background

The Food Act 2014

7. The Food Act 2014 (“the Act”) will come into effect on 1 March 2016. It will replace the Food Act 1981 and the Food Hygiene Regulations 1974 over a three year transition period. The Act will introduce significant improvements to the way that food safety is addressed by food businesses across New Zealand.

8. The primary duty of ensuring food safety will be the responsibility of food businesses, including food operators of mobile shops and food stalls at markets. For most businesses, this will involve a new requirement to document their procedures which will be audited by the council.

9. Businesses that prepare food with a high risk to food safety will be required to operate under a Food Control Plan. In most cases, a business subject to a Food Control Plan will be required to register with their local council. This enables councils to manage compliance activities and identify operators’ understanding of food safety.

10. The Act introduces new registration and auditing requirements for food businesses that operate from school tuckshops, childcare centres, work cafeterias and marae.

11. Businesses or charities that sell food for community purposes or to raise funds will be exempt from registration and auditing requirements for up to 20 occasions per year (e.g. sausage sizzles or home baking at school fairs).

Auckland Council Food Safety Bylaw 2013

12. On 23 May 2013, the council’s Governing Body adopted the Auckland Council Food Safety Bylaw 2013 (“the Bylaw”) to replace seven legacy council food safety bylaws (Resolution Number: GB/2013/47).

13. The Bylaw was introduced to minimise potential food safety risks associated with the sale of food. The Bylaw provides the council with powers related to:

· the closure of unhygienic or unsafe food premises

· minimum standards for staff training in basic food hygiene

· grading of food premises

· standards for preparing, handling and labelling food sold to private premises, and

· operating food stalls and mobile food shops.

14. The Bylaw requires each registered food business to display a food safety grade certificate, which the council issues following its inspection of the premises, pursuant to the Food Hygiene Regulations 1974. The certificate shows customers the premises’ food safety level.

Discussion

Impact of the Food Act 2014 on the Food Safety Bylaw 2013

15. The new Act requires the council to amend its Bylaw to ensure consistency with the new regulatory regime for food businesses. In June 2015, the Regulatory and Bylaws Committee directed council staff to undertake a review of the Bylaw (Resolution Number: RBC/2015/19).

16. Staff have now completed this review and recommend that the council revoke most of the Bylaw as the relevant activities will instead be regulated by the Act and subsequent regulations. The exception to this is the food grading system.

17. National food safety grading will not be implemented through the new Act, although there is potential for the development of a national scheme after 2019. Staff recommend retaining the grading provision (with minor amendments) of the Bylaw and require the display of food safety grade certificates.

18. There would be no additional cost to businesses for a food safety grade certificate. The grade assessment would be undertaken at the same time as the audit required by the new Act.

19. The benefits of a food safety grading scheme is that it provides:

· food operators with an incentive to take responsibility for the safety of the food they sell and to proactively improve and maintain the safety of their food

· the public with concise information on a business’ level of food safety so that customers can make informed choices.

Consideration

Local Board views and implications

20. This report seeks the views of local boards on retaining the Food Safety Bylaw 2013 to require the display of a food safety grade certificate for food businesses registered with the council.

21. The views of local boards will be presented to the Regulatory and Bylaws Committee and the Governing Body in February 2016.

22. Local boards were engaged on the consolidation of legacy food safety bylaws in 2011 and feedback received at the time indicated there was general support for the grading of food premises. Some local board members expressed concern about the standards applying to food sold from stalls at markets.

Māori impact statement

23. Engagement with mana whenua and mataa waka is currently underway.

24. Food prepared and served on a marae that is not provided as part of a commercial activity is outside the scope of this bylaw review. In addition, registration and auditing requirements of the new Act do not apply to the preparation and sale of food for the purpose of raising funds up to 20 times a year.

25. Food businesses that operate from marae, for instance catering at events more than 20 times per year, will be subject to registration and auditing requirements under the Act in the same way as other food businesses.

Implementation

26. The Governing Body is responsible for making a decision on the review of the Food Safety Bylaw 2013. A proposed amended bylaw will be presented to the Regulatory and Bylaws Committee in February 2016. It will then be considered by the Governing Body. The views of Local Boards and targeted stakeholders will be presented in the accompanying report.

27. The method for determining the criteria of food safety grades is an operational matter and is outside the scope of this bylaw review.

28. Registration fees for food businesses are also out of scope of this bylaw review. For information purposes, proposed fees under the new Act were presented to the Finance and Performance Committee at their meeting on 19 November 2015. The consultation period on proposed fees will be from 20 November to 21 December 2015. Current registration and inspection fees will continue to apply for existing food businesses until they transition to the new regulatory regime.

Attachments

There are no attachments for this report.

Signatories

Authors

Emma Pilkington - Policy Analyst

Belinda Hansen - Principal Policy Analyst

Authorisers

Kataraina Maki - GM - Community & Social Policy

John Nash - Senior Local Board Advisor

Great Barrier Local Board

10 February 2016

New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme and Electricity Authority Consulations

File No.: CP2016/00172

Purpose

1. To provide feedback into the Auckland Council joint submission for the Ministry for the Environment’s New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme Review 2015/2016 and Electricity Authority’s Implications of evolving technologies for pricing of distribution services consultations.

Executive Summary

2. The submissions are meant to provide a clear line of sight between targets in the Auckland Plan, implementation via the Low Carbon Auckland action plan, the evolving national context and the international climate deal reached on 13 December.

3. There are potential trade-offs and synergies between the two reviews in terms of issues being addressed and benefits that could arise. Hence the submissions are being drafted in parallel.

4. The local board plans and aspirations for environmental protection and sustainability will be considered when developing the council’s submissions to these two consultations. The draft submissions will be presented to the Regional Strategy and Policy Committee on 4 February 2016.

5. Feedback from the local boards into the joint consultation process is to be provided to the Chief Sustainability Office by 15 February 2016. This feedback will be attached verbatim to the council’s submissions.

6. The submissions for both consultations will be lodged on the due date of 19 February 2016.

7. Attached is a background paper on the consultations providing further detail.

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) consider providing feedback into the Auckland Council joint submission for the Ministry for the Environment’s New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme Review 2015/2016 and Electricity Authority’s Implications of evolving technologies for pricing of distribution services, and delegate authority to the chair in discussion with other board members to submit the feedback by 15 February 2016.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Background Paper for the Ministry for the Environment and Electricity Authority Consultations	105

Signatories

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

Great Barrier Local Board

10 February 2016

Governance Forward Work Calendar

File No.: CP2016/00131

Purpose

1. To present the board with a 12 month governance forward work calendar.

Executive Summary

2. This report introduces the governance forward work calendar: a schedule of items that will come before the board at business meetings and workshops over the next 12 months. The governance forward work calendar for your board is included in Attachment A.

3. The calendar aims to support local boards’ governance role by:

· ensuring advice on agendas and workshop material is driven by local board priorities

· clarifying what advice is required and when

· clarifying the rationale for reports.

4. The calendar will be updated every month. Each update will be reported back to business meetings and distributed to relevant Council staff. It is recognised that at times items will arise that are not programmed. Board members are welcome to discuss changes to the calendar.

Recommendation/s

That the Great Barrier Local Board:

a) note the attached Governance Forward Work Calendar.

Comments

5. Council’s Quality Advice Programme aims to improve the focus, analysis, presentation and timeliness of staff advice to elected representatives. An initiative under this is to develop forward work calendars for governing body committees and local boards. These provide elected members with better visibility of the types of governance tasks they are being asked to undertake and when they are scheduled.

6. Although the document is new, there are no new projects in the governance forward work calendar. The calendar brings together in one schedule reporting on all of the board’s projects and activities previously approved in the local board plan, long-term plan, departmental work programmes and through other board decisions. It includes governing body policies and initiatives that call for a local board response.

7. This initiative is intended to support the boards’ governance role. It will also help staff to support local boards, as an additional tool to manage workloads and track activities across council departments, and it will allow greater transparency for the public.

8. The calendar is arranged in three columns, “Topic”, “Purpose” and “Governance Role”:

· Topic describes the items and may indicate how they fit in with broader processes such as the annual plan

· Purpose indicates the aim of the item, such as formally approving plans or projects, hearing submissions or receiving progress updates

· Governance role is a higher-level categorisation of the work local boards do. Examples of the seven governance categories are tabled on the following page.

Governance role	Examples
Setting direction/priorities/budget	Capex projects, work programmes, annual plan
Local initiatives/specific decisions	Grants, road names, alcohol bans
Input into regional decision-making	Comments on regional bylaws, policies, plans
Oversight and monitoring	Local board agreement, quarterly performance reports, review projects
Accountability to the public	Annual report
Engagement	Community hui, submissions processes
Keeping informed	Briefings, cluster workshops

9. Board members are welcome to discuss changes to the calendar. The calendar will be updated and reported back every month to business meetings. Updates will also be distributed to relevant Council staff.

Consideration

Local Board views and implications

10. All local boards are being presented with governance forward work calendars for their consideration.

Māori impact statement

11. The projects and processes referred to in the governance forward work calendar will have a range of implications for Māori which will be considered when the work is reported.

Implementation

12. Staff will review the calendar each month in consultation with board members and will report an updated calendar to the board.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Governance Forward Work Calendar for Great Barrier Local Board, February 2016	149

Signatories

Authors

Kris Munday - Senior Advisor - Local Board Services

Neil Taylor - Senior Local Board Advisor

Authorisers

Karen Lyons - Manager Local Board Services

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