Auckland Council shares lessons learned from Super City amalgamation

Three years on, lessons learned from Auckland’s Super City transformation were shared today at Local Government New Zealand’s annual conference to an audience of local authorities from around New Zealand.

Auckland’s Mayor Len Brown, Auckland’s Deputy-Mayor Penny Hulse, the Auditor-General Lyn Provost and Local Boards Services Manager for Auckland Council, Karen Lyons, amongst others, spoke out on the successes of the amalgamation and future challenges the city is likely to face.

Auckland is facing a unique challenge – how to prepare for one million new residents by 2040 including a significant cultural diversity and growing migrant communities.

Deputy Mayor, Penny Hulse, confirmed, “Cultural diversity and working closely with migrant communities is key; linking that engagement into decision-making and council processes, an area where further enhancement is planned.”

Despite these challenges, the new Super City is delivering to expectations.

A key message for any region considering amalgamation was the requirement for strong regional leadership. Essential is a clear regional vision and strategy, which integrate services from both local and central government such as transport and affordable housing.

Another strong theme was the criticality of local boards within the governance structure and the important focus on local community engagement.

“Engagement with citizens is at the heart of everything the new council is doing - it is vital to take the community with you,” said Mayor Len Brown.

“Big challenges ahead include completing the Unitary Plan, making progress with transport, economic growth and affordable housing.”

A key area of questioning by local authorities yet to go through amalgamation was the role of local versus regional governance and decision-making, specifically where funding and responsibilities lie.

Ms Lyons said the guiding principle is that decisions on initial investment for amenities, such as playgrounds, parks, libraries and leisure facilities, are made at a regional level by the overall governing body. However, to ensure local success, more detailed implementation decisions are made by the local boards on behalf of their communities. Within Auckland, around 25 per cent of funding is controlled by local boards.

Speakers were quick to point out that the new structure has actually increased focus on the local communities, rather than weakening it as some may have considered would be an issue.

It was suggested that local boards are actually performing more effectively than the former community boards in representing their communities. They have a clearer role, stronger stakeholder engagement and a budget to deliver to their constituents’ needs.

In concluding, Ms Hulse said, “Local Boards concentrate on local matters and it seems to be working well. There is now one voice, one community and one course of action. Local rivalry has gone.”

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