Councillors and Council staff participated in several hours of discussion today, ably led by Councillor Rebecca Gray on the outcomes the South Wairarapa community needs now and in the future. These and other relevant topics are part of the visioning needed for the 2024-34 Long-term Plan (LTP) that will help inform the priorities for the next ten years.
Every three years we look a little further out to reassess where we are headed. The LTP sets our strategic direction with a ten-year outlook.
Although much work has been going on for some months, this was one of the first opportunities for the public to see and hear what challenges we face, what opportunities exist and what some of the things are that we should be focused on.
Councillor Rebecca Gray said, “We are excited and looking forward to engaging with the community. This is an important opportunity for all of us to help shape the direction of our region over the next decade. A long-term Plan is about outcomes, about making South Wairarapa a better place to live, work and play. We hope our communities will seize the opportunity over the coming months to actively participate and to share their views.”
The discussion involved the Councillors working from a ‘programme logic’ model linked to the four wellbeings, economic, cultural, social and environmental, as our guiding principles. Councillor Gray engaged the Councillors in some higher-level strategic thinking, all done in a fun and informal format.
Members of the public also had a chance to participate.
“If we are all well-aligned with our principles and directions then the LTP process will better reflect the intentions and aspirations of the Councillors and the community,” Councillor Gray added.
The next steps involve Council Officers workshopping the outputs from this session to identify those activities already in motion and should continue, those that can be released and those which should be added to achieve the outcomes identified in the four wellbeings.
You can get more information and stay up to date with the Long-term Plan process by registering for the upcoming consultation.
