6 May 2013
Media Release
For Immediate Release
Tauranga City Needs New Vision
Tauranga Chamber of Commerce today appealed to Tauranga City Council to adopt a new vision statement to provide a new
sense of purpose and direction.
CEO Max Mason was presenting the Chamber submission at the Annual Plan hearings when he made the appeal.
He compared Auckland’s five word vision statement of ‘The world’s most liveable city,’ with Tauranga’s 67 words, which
‘was designed by a committee and is bland and boring’.
He said Tauranga had been through a long period of hard infrastructure development, and now that was largely in place
the city needed to change into a new paradigm of soft infrastructure development, and an inspiring city vision would
help achieve it.
“First and foremost we need to grow our local economy to create good jobs and grow our quality of life. Unfortunately we
have a thin economy, over dependent on a few big industries, with low wages, that is vulnerable to external economic
events. The city needs to attract businesses and people who can create wealth. However they don’t just come here for
business opportunities, they are equally attracted by good educational provision, arts and cultural institutions,
international quality events and sporting facilities, and an attractive urban environment with public art and great
architecture. Add to that a strong sense of community vision and identity and it’s a winning combination,” said Mr
Mason.
He said if Tauranga had an aspirational city vision such as ‘New Zealand’s best city,’ Council staff and elected members
would make better decisions looking through that lens.
“For example,” he said, “Take a planner who is processing a pile of resource consents. If they had a mindset of us being
the best city by having full employment, and one resource consent is likely to create more jobs than the others then
they should be encouraged to deal with that one first.”
“If you apply this attitude throughout the Council organisation there will be a culture change which will have far
reaching results throughout our community,” he said.
Mr Mason referenced a book with the title of, ‘What got you here, won’t get you there,’ and said the city’s past focus
on infrastructure development and short term cost control now needed to evolve into a longer term investment perspective
in economic and community development. “This is less about money and more about leadership,” he said, “And with a new
CEO in Garry Poole, and new senior managers, the timing was perfect for culture change.”
ENDS
See below for reference material on other city’s vision statements.
Short statements:
• Auckland – The world’s most liveable city
• Christchurch – A vibrant, invigorating and prosperous city and wider region.
• Rotorua - Living the dream. World Class in every way
• Dunedin - a city that treasures its heritage as a living inheritance from its past and a legacy for future generations.
• Hastings - Great living, for a sustainable future
• Gisborne - First to see the light. First choice for lifestyle and people, enterprise and environment. Ka mau te wehi
Long statements:
• Tauranga - According to the people who live, work and play here Tauranga will be a place that is: Easy to move around, Living
well, wasting less, Built to fit our hills, harbour and coast . There will be: Vibrant, healthy and diverse communities,
Actively involved people. We will have a: Clean, green, valued environment, Strong and sustainable economy. And it will
be: A great place to grow up
• New Plymouth District - will offer an attractive living environment that compares favourably both nationally and internationally. It will do
this to attract and retain the skilled labour force our community needs to grow and prosper.
• Invercargill - Creating an exciting, innovative, safe, caring and friendly City offering lifestyles based on a healthy environment
and diverse growing economy.
• The City of Hamilton - is a safe, healthy, sustainable community and a great place in which to work, live and play, that offers residents and
businesses growth and opportunity. It is a city of diverse communities, led by Council, which together with staff,
spends wisely and governs in an open and accessible manner.
• Mission statement - The Napier City Council - will provide the facilities and services and the environment, leadership, encouragement and economic opportunity to
make Napier the Best Provincial City in New Zealand in which to live, work, raise a family and enjoy a safe and
satisfying life.