MEDIA RELEASE

Friday 27 April, 2012

Final week to have your say

Residents and ratepayers are being encouraged to act quickly to have their say on the future of their region with submissions to Horizons Regional Council’s draft Long-term Plan closing 5pm Friday 4 May.

30 submissions have been received to date on a range of topics including the reinstatement of a fortnightly Taihape bus service alternating destinations between Wanganui and Palmerston North, the exclusion of stages 2 and 3 from the Lower Whanganui flood protection scheme and the extension of the rates remission to include properties used as one but owned by different people.
Submissions have been made on 56 different points with a number of people commenting on the need to keep debt and rate caps as low as possible.

Horizons chairman Bruce Gordon said “Throughout the planning process we have been conscious of the need to find the right balance between providing the services our communities require and keeping rates rises and debt levels to a minimum”.

“As a council we’re satisfied that the plan we’re presenting is a balanced one, but we need to hear from our communities whether they think we’ve got it right.”

Horizons final Long-term Plan will guide the way the region’s land, air, water and transport resources are managed over the next 10 years. It includes activities around water quality and quantity, pest control, biodiversity, emergency management, flood protection, public transport, land management and the provision of information.

Like all councils, Horizons operates a three-year planning cycle starting with the Long-term Plan which looks at the next 10 years. Every year the council has an opportunity to make amendments to this plan through the annual plan process. However, the Long-term Planning process is the best opportunity for communities to have their say and help shape the region’s future.

Submissions to the draft Regional Land Transport Programme which prioritises the region’s key transport projects and activities to be put forward for funding from Central Government also close 5pm Friday May 4.

Copies of the draft Long-term Plan and summary document can be found online at www.horizons.govt.nz and are also available from public libraries and Horizons offices throughout the region.

Submissions may be made online, via email to submissions@horizons.govt.nz or by mail and submitters have the opportunity to speak in support of their submissions with special hearings to be held between 22 and 24 May.

Ends

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