Agenda of City Development Committee

7 28 November 2017

City Development Committee

13 November 2017

File: (17/1736)

Report no: CDC2017/5/305

Wharves Update

Purpose of Report

1. This report provides an update on the planned works for the four Council-owned wharves, following further specialist investigations. The report also presents a petition seeking a Council decision to retain and upgrade all of Petone Wharf.

Recommendations

That the Committee recommends that Council:

(i) notes the geotechnical report from Tonkin + Taylor on the Waiwhetu Aquifer, as attached as appendix 1 to the report, which concludes that work on the piles at Days Bay, Rona Bay and Petone wharves are unlikely to have any impact on the aquifer;

(ii) notes that officers have commissioned further investigations in respect of the Point Howard wharf, following advice that some of the piles are likely to have penetrated into the aquifer at a point which is above the transition zone of the aquifer and covering aquitard as it adjoins the greywacke bedrock along the eastern side of the harbour;

(iii) notes that officers will report back on future options for the Point Howard Wharf once this information is known;

(iv) notes that a full underwater condition assessment of piles at Days Bay, Rona Bay and Petone, have been completed which show that Rona Bay Wharf is in the poorest condition;

(v) notes that officers have contracted GK Shaw to undertake the upgrade works at Rona Bay Wharf following the recent completion of essential repairs to Petone and Days Bay wharves and that these works are expected to take up to a year to complete at an estimated cost of $1.4M;

(vi) notes that Council has received a petition signed by approximately 2200 people who urge Council to reconsider its decision to remove part of Petone Wharf and instead retain and refurbish the wharf in full; and

(vii) requests officers to provide a detailed financial analysis of the two options (retain and refurbish full wharf or partly demolish wharf head and refurbish the balance of the wharf), to assist it in making a final decision on the future of Petone Wharf as part of its resource consent application and in finalising next year’s Long Term Plan.

Background

2. At its meeting of 8 June 2017, the Community Plan Committee considered a report on the future of the City’s four wharves, having undertaken consultation as part of the Community Plan engagement process. The Committee resolved as follows:

“That the Committee:

(i) notes the summary of responses to the consultation on the future of the wharves;

(ii) notes that officers are seeking further specialist advice regarding the possible effect of piling works, including the removal of piles, on the Waiwhetu aquifer;

(iii) agrees in principle to implement the following options, subject to the specialist advice on the aquifer;

(a) Days Bay Wharf – fully refurbish

(b) Rona Bay Wharf – fully refurbish

(c) Petone Wharf – partially remove approximately 50 metres of the 393 metre wharf and fully refurbish the rest

(d) Point Howard Wharf – demolish and do not replace

(iv) agrees that the funding in the draft budget be amended to reflect the recommended options and likely timing of works as follows:

(a) 2017/18 $1.4M

(b) 2018/19 $2.5M

The Waiwhetu Aquifer

3. Tonkin and Taylor was engaged to undertake the desktop geotechnical study on the depth of the Waiwhetu Aquifer (the aquifer) to determine if there would be any risk to the aquifer from planned piling works or removal of piles.

4. The report, which is attached as Appendix 1, concludes that both the Days Bay and Rona Bay wharves are not likely to be located above the aquifer and therefore refurbishment works are considered to present a low risk to the aquifer. The Days Bay Wharf sits atop a relatively thin veneer of recent marine deposits overlaying greywacke bedrock, while the Rona Bay Wharf is on a sandspit which is likely to be greater than 15 metres in thickness, overlaying greywacke bedrock.

5. The report finds that Petone Wharf, while sitting above the aquifer, is directly underlain by a confining layer of material (the aquitard), known as the Petone Marine Beds of approximately 20 to 30 metres in thickness. As the piles penetrate less than half of the depth of the aquitard, (indicated to be somewhere between 2.7 and 3.4 metres based on design specifications), the report finds that risks to the aquifer associated with the trimming of piles is relatively low and that the pile stumps embedded in the aquitard can be left in situ or removed.

6. The Point Howard Wharf on the other hand may have some of its piles driven into the aquifer. The wharf is situated across a geological boundary between greywacke rock along the eastern side of the harbour and alluvial sediments (consisting an aquitard overlaying the aquifer), which abut the rock and extend westwards out into the harbour. The wharf begins on top of the rock but then is constructed over the aquitard, which appears to be thin as it approaches the geological boundary. While the report assumes the likelihood of some piles having been driven through into the aquifer, it is not known where along the wharf this penetration has occurred. The information also references documented historical instances of ongoing groundwater leakage around some of the existing piles. However the current status of leakage is unknown.

7. The report concludes that the removal of the wharf structure at Point Howard would present a significant risk of pile stumps being displaced by artesian pressures and that this is most likely to occur closer to the beginning of the wharf, where the aquitard is at its least thickness, noting that the aquitard is at least 10 metres thick at its western end. Officers have commissioned Tonkin + Taylor to assess options for further investigations to better define the extent of the risk. Any final decision on the extent of works for Point Howard Wharf would not be made until further investigations have been completed, which is not expected until next year.

Dive reports on the condition of wharf piles

8. All piles on Petone, Days Bay and Rona Bay wharves have been the subject of a full underwater condition assessment. These assessments were undertaken by Undersea Construction Limited under sub-contract to GK Shaw Limited, between August and October this year.

9. The Rona Bay Wharf piles are adjudged to be in the poorest condition with 57% rated as poor or very poor. As there is a medium to high potential risk that structural failure could occur in heavy seas, work on this wharf has been programmed to commence as soon as resource consent has been obtained. The wharf will be closed to the public from mid-November and works are expected to take up to a year to complete. The cost of this work is estimated to be $1.4M to complete.

10. The hardwood timber piles supporting the Petone Wharf are in better condition with 28% rated as poor or very poor. Some of these piles on the outer head are not required to retain structural integrity and could be removed. Observations reveal that the piles on this wharf have an infestation of Teredo worm which have impacted the structural integrity of some piles. Representative cross sections taken from broken pile stumps show that as much as 50% of a piles structural integrity could be impacted by the infestation. Non-structural protective measures that will effectively eliminate the existing infestation and provide protection against further damage are being sourced and the piles treated as soon as possible.

11. Officers are considering re-opening Petone Wharf for public use over the summer period. Some remedial works will need to be completed to enable this to happen.

12. The survey of the Days Bay Wharf piles shows that 24% are rated as poor or very poor. Works have been carried out over the past three months to repair piles on the walkway approach and on one corner of the wharf head where the pile had completely failed. A resource consent application will be lodged for the refurbishment work for Days Bay Wharf and the contract tendered early in 2018.

Petone Wharf Petition

13. Since making its decision in June, a “Save Petone Wharf “campaign, spearheaded by the NZ Labour Party, has attracted approximately 2200 signatures. The petition urges Council to act now to stop the partial demolition of Petone Wharf and instead retain and refurbish the wharf in full.

14. Council made the decision in June to remove part of the head of the wharf on the basis of recreational need and the short and long-term cost implications. With the information that has been gathered on the state of the piles, officers will review the costs associated with the refurbishment works and provide Council with up to date estimates for retaining the full length of the wharf, so these can be compared to the estimate for partial demolition. The difference in ongoing costs would also be compared. This information is likely to be required as part of the resource consent application given the heritage status of the wharf.

Discussion

15. The information obtained on the aquifer and the piles has resulted in officers prioritising Rona Bay Wharf as the top priority for refurbishment. Works are expected to commence on this wharf shortly, once resource consent is obtained. Consent is being sought in two stages, first for the walkway and then for the wharf head.

16. Works on refurbishing Days Bay Wharf will be the second priority with resource consent and tendering programmed for early 2018. The timing of works for Petone Wharf will occur later in 2018 to enable further information on costs to be evaluated as part of the resource consent application.

Options

17. This report provides an update on the further investigations carried out to date on the wharves. As such there are no options to consider.

Consultation

18. There has been no further public consultation carried out on the wharves since earlier this year as part of that undertaken for the Annual Plan.

Legal Considerations

19. Demolition and refurbishment works will require resource consents. It is proposed that a final decision on Petone wharf be made once information required for the resource consent is available.

Financial Considerations

20. Council has included $7.3M in its budget over the next three years to undertake refurbishment or demolition works on the wharves. While it is difficult to precisely assess the costs of refurbishment due to the nature of the works, (timber supports directly under the concrete deck are not able to be fully assessed until the deck has been removed), assumptions have been made which make a reasonable allowance for replacing timber in poor condition. The works on Rona Bay Wharf are expected to be within the budget previously estimated ($1.37M).

21. It is likely, given the timing of works, that not all of the 2017/2018 wharves refurbishment budget of $1.4M will be spent this financial year. A carry-over of any unspent budget will be sought in June 2018.

Other Considerations

22. In making this recommendation, officers have given careful consideration to the purpose of local government in section 10 of the Local Government Act 2002. Officers believe that this recommendation falls within the purpose of local government in that it considers the future of existing Council assets.

Appendices

No.	Title	Page
1 ⇩	Report on Wharves and Waiwhetu Aquifer T&T	12

Author: Bruce Hodgins

Divisional Manager, Parks and Gardens

Approved By: Matt Reid

General Manager City and Community Services

31 28 November 2017

City Development Committee

30 October 2017

File: (17/1680)

Report no: CDC2017/5/306

Jackson Street Streetscape Design

Purpose of Report

1. To seek Council’s endorsement of the Jackson Street Streetscape Design Report (JSSD) and the following recommendations.

Recommendations

That the Committee recommends that Council:

(i) endorses the Jackson Street Streetscape Design (JSSD) report as Council’s long term master plan for Jackson Street, attached as appendix 1 to the report;

(ii) endorses that heritage buildings are the economic ‘heroes’ of the Jackson Street retail precinct and combined with the pedestrian environment these are the top priority for Council protection, further work and funding;

(iii) notes that officers will investigate options for protection and enhancements of these heritage buildings and report back to this Committee at the next meeting;

(iv) endorses that any new street furniture shall be sourced and installed in Jackson Street in accordance with the JSSD;

(v) endorses that any public art shall be sourced and installed in Jackson Street in accordance with the JSSD and

(vi) notes that staffing and funding will need to be considered to implement further work on the JSSD.

Background

2. The Jackson Street Streetscape Design (JSSD) is a priority project from the Petone 2040 Spatial Plan (P2040) which Council approved in 2017.

3. Council approved the JSSD terms of reference toward developing a high level master plan which could guide future work and investment (public and private) in and around Jackson Street.

4. The JSSD would consider Jackson Street’s entire 2.5km length, provide design options (with ballpark costs) to upgrade Jackson Street retail precinct between Petone Railway Station and Cuba Street (1.5km), give direction for the selection of new street furniture and give direction for the installation of public art (eg, Petone Clock Walk) in Jackson Street.

5. The JSSD has been facilitated by the Urban Design Manager and overseen by the P2040 Community Group (which includes one Harbour Ward Councillor, the Deputy Chair of the City Development Committee, the Chair and Deputy Chair of the Petone Community Board, one Jackson Street Programme board member and three other members from the general community).

Discussion

6. The Problem: Council has historically been lobbied to carry out various projects on Jackson Street. These include upgrading of street furniture (lights, bins, seats, signage etc.), protection and enhancement of heritage buildings, managing car parking, providing walking and cycling, better enabling retail and business and more recently supporting the Petone Clock Walk project. Problematic for Council is understanding how to simultaneously resolve, manage and fund these projects.

7. Infrastructural influences sit over (sometimes without our full comprehension) the above topics and can dictate long term outcomes that over-ride short term easy to achieve local projects. Transport (Petone network and city network), in-ground and overhead infrastructure, economic growth (city and regional), social progress, public transport, sustainability and resilience. Also space in Jackson Street is limited and there is only so much that can be achieved within it.

8. It is important to understand what is important to business, community, iwi and the region. Petone is significant to Lower Hutt and the regional economy. Further Council needs to understand what is important to Council - there are several Council policies applicable to Jackson Street eg, P2040 Spatial Plan (previously Petone Vision), Jackson Street Study 2006, Integrated Vision, Infrastructure, Urban Growth, Leisure and Wellbeing, Community Facilities, Valley Floor Reserves and Vision Seaview Gracefield. Resilience, Climate Change, Car Parking and Heritage Overlays are at varying stages of development. Mapping all these together to understand their relative hierarchy, overlaps and gaps is difficult.

9. Petone cannot be considered in isolation of the rest of Lower Hutt. Petone is the movement gateway between Wellington and the Hutt Valley and any changes at Petone will inevitably have city-wide effects. State Highway Two, Cross Valley Link and Petone to Grenada all lap at Petone’s doorstep. Jackson Street’s role needs to be carefully considered for today’s criteria and tomorrow’s future.

10. Council and the community want best value for rate payer money therefore Council needs as full a picture as possible to understand the opportunities and risks when making decisions for Jackson Street.

11. Resolving the Problem: Wraight Associates Ltd was selected as lead consultant with assistance from McIndoe Urban Ltd. Mike Cullen (Urbacity) was appointed as urban and retail economist, Amanda Waijers as art advisor and Ian Bowman as heritage advisor.

12. The City Development Committee was briefed by the full consultant team upon the final JSSD report. The following discussion does not summarise that entire briefing or the JSSD report but focuses upon the key topics of interest that require a steer from Council. The full JSSD report is under separate cover to this report (Link to full JSSD Report).

13. Street Furniture: there has been keen and ongoing interest in the look and feel of Jackson Street, particularly the Area 1 heritage retail precinct. For several years the Petone Community Board (PCB) and the Jackson Street Programme (JSP) have urged Council to make improvements to the aesthetic condition of Jackson Street.

14. For many years seats, bins, signage, street lights etc have been installed adhoc throughout Jackson Street and Ian Bowman (heritage advisor) confirms there are several historical periods represented throughout Jackson Street. He advises that no single period should be singled out as more important or relevant than any other. Best practice promotes authenticity and that genuine heritage should be protected and not confused by replication or the use of false heritage.

15. The JSSD recommends that new street furniture should be contemporary though neutral and timeless in style. This would respect and not detract from the genuine heritage by not imitating it and providing a contemporary, period-neutral, inert and consistent medium to bond together the various historical periods potentially along the entire 2.5km length of Jackson Street

16. Petone Clock Walk: During late 2016 councillors confirmed ‘support in principle’ for the Petone Clock Walk Project which proposes the installation of clock based public art at six locations on Jackson Street. A precedent for this is the one at Gastown (shown inset) which shows that work can be large scale. Large scale art requires space for the art object to breathe and sufficient space so that crowds can gather around and also stand back to appreciate the art in its fuller context.

Fig 1: Gastown Canada

Capture2

Fig 2: Petone Clock Walk concept for corner of Jackson and Buick Streets

17. Economist Mike Cullen says that Jackson Street is in the ‘adolescence’ of its development and that heritage buildings are the ‘heroes’ of Jackson Street. These heritage buildings are key to unlocking Jackson Street’s full potential and it is advised that this is where Council should prioritise its attention and resources. Therefore the JSSD recommends that public art needs to be carefully selected and placed in order for art to support, not detract from, or compete with Jackson Street’s heritage.

18. The Petone Clock Walk team proposed six locations between Petone Railway Station and Buick Street. However due to infrastructure, utilities and considering space available and the priorities identified by community and business (c/- workshops and meetings) the JSSD has identified three locations appropriate for larger public art such as Petone Clock Walk.

19. The JSSD section on public art (p93) lists the broad performance criteria that needs to be considered when procuring public art – Council does not have a policy or guidelines for this. Council’s existing mechanism for public art is the E Tu Awakairangi Public Art Trust. In lieu of any other document being available the JSSD suggests the development of an implementation strategy for Jackson Street.

Capture

Fig 3: JSSD location map for public art – refer full map in JSSD Report p94

Options

20. The Committee recommends that Council endorses the JSSD report and the recommendations made. The JSSD report is supported by the P2040 Community Group. The JSSD report is based upon best practice and endorsement would be consistent with Council’s desire to develop highly livable and highly desirable places by using robust planning processes. Endorsement would be consistent with Council’s approval of the Petone 2040 Spatial Plan and the realisation that a comprehensive long term plan is needed for Jackson Street and Petone to reach its full potential. The JSSD process has been inclusive, transparent and rigorous. The consultants employed are some of the most respected and credible available to Council.

21. The Committee recommends that Council does not endorse the JSSD report or the recommendations made. Conversely this would not be consistent with Council’s appetite to create well thought out and highly desirable areas within the city. Rejecting the JSSD and the recommendations reverts Council back two or three years to not having a plan and developing Jackson Street adhoc. This would perpetuate the status quo of the last few decades where Jackson Street has meandered toward what Economist Mike Cullen describes as the ‘adolescence’ of its development. There is no fast track option available to us but it would be unfortunate for Jackson Street to be sidetracked by not having a good road map.

22. The Committee recommends that Council partly endorses the JSSD report. If Council wishes to seek alternatives to the recommendations made then further work and funding would be required to seek additional advice and stakeholder and community engagement. This work could take several months. Both the Street Furniture and Clock Walk projects have been seeking direction for quite some time now and to not give them a steer now would impose more uncertainty for their projects. Further it is quite possible that new work may result in similar recommendations to those already achieved.

Consultation

23. The following consultation took place:

· P2040 Community Group has had regular involvement within the JSSD process;

· two community workshops (included Iwi, Petone Community Board and Jackson Street Programme, Heritage NZ, retailers, businesses and general community);

· officer/agency workshops (included HCC, GWRC, Wellington Water and NZTA);

· targeted meetings with Jackson Street Programme, Petone Clock Walk Project Team and E Tu Awakairangi Hutt Public Arts Trust and

· City Development Committee member briefing 20 November 2017.

FullSizeRender

Fig 4: One of two JSSD Community workshops 2017

Legal Considerations

24. There are no legal considerations.

Financial Considerations

25. Ballpark costs were obtained for high level concept designs for various sections of Jackson Street. Costs were discussed at the briefing of the City Development Committee.

Other Considerations

26. In making this recommendation, officers have given careful consideration to the purpose of local government in section 10 of the Local Government Act 2002. Officers believe that this recommendation falls within the purpose of the local government in that:

· The process to achieve the JSSD report and its recommendations was endorsed by Council and led by the P2040 Community Group (who also led development of the Council approved P2040 Spatial Plan).

· The recommendations are the most cost effective and best value because they are based upon best practice; they best reflect the wider aspirations of community and business and they reflect the wider objectives of key stakeholders and Council policies.

Appendices

The Jackson Street Streetscape Design Report is under separate cover.

Author: Paki Maaka

Urban Design Manager

Approved By: Kim Kelly

General Manager, City Transformation

37 28 November 2017

City Development Committee

30 October 2017

File: (17/1679)

Report no: CDC2017/5/8

Activity Report: Local Urban Environment

Purpose of Report

1. The purpose of this report is to outline the results of a review of the Urban Design activity.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Committee:

1. notes the information contained in this report;

2. notes that this review also meets the intent of section 17A of the Local Government Act 2002; and

3. agrees that a full section 17A review should not be undertaken at present for the reasons outlined in the report – see clause #21.

Background

2. Activity Reports provide regular information about Council activities, so that activities can be analysed and their future direction considered. They also address the requirements of section 17A of the Local Government Act 2002 (LGA) that regular reviews be undertaken of the cost-effectiveness of current arrangements for meeting the needs of communities for good-quality local infrastructure, local public services and performance of regulatory functions.

High-level description of Activity

3. Urban Design’s purpose at council is to provide design leadership across a range of council projects, strategies and policies.

4. Areas of design expertise include landscape, architecture and urban design (object, building, site, street, precinct and city scales).

5. The Urban Design team consists of two staff. The manager is an architect registered (NZRAB #2835) with the NZ Registered Architects Board and a landscape architect registered with the NZ Institute of Landscape Architects.

Reason for the review

6. This review is required because four years have passed since this Activity was last reviewed.

Rationale for service provision

7. Circa 2006 Council was seeking in-house capacity to deliver urban design projects including:

a. NZ Urban Design Protocol

b. Heritage Policy 2008

c. Heritage Building Inventory 2008

d. Built Heritage Incentive Fund

e. CBD revitalisation – Making Places Project

f. Suburban Shopping Centres Improvements

g. E Tu Awakairangi Public Arts Trust

h. Technical, abstract and critical thinking across council projects, strategies and policies eg, Vision Seaview Gracefield 2009, Hillary Court/Mildenhall Park, Naenae Railway Station etc.

Present arrangements for governance, funding and service delivery

8. The Urban Design Manager reports directly to the General Manager City Transformation. The Urban Design Manager provides project updates to councillors on significant and topical projects such as Making Places, Riverlink, CBD Bus Stops and the Petone 2040 Spatial Plan etc.

9. Funding is allocated in the Long Term Plan and currently as follows:

a. E Tu Awakairangi Public Arts $50K/yr up to & incl. 2019-20

b. Built Heritage Incentive Fund $52K/yr up to & incl. 2019-20

c. Petone 2040 $100K 2017-18

d. Suburban Shopping Centres $300K/2-yrs up to & incl. 2034-35

e. Making Places $2M 2017-2019

f. Riverlink $39M 2017-2034

10. Service delivery is as follows:

a. Built Heritage Incentive Fund allocations are typically

· $10K+GST (Heritage NZ Category 1)

· $7K+GST (Heritage NZ Category 2 or listed in the district plan)

· <$5K+GST (structures not listed pending external advice).

b. Making Places funds various CBD based initiatives including:

· First Assembly/Lightning Lab

· Bus Stop investigations

· Walking Improvements

· Retailer Incentives

· CBD Public Art

· CBD Spatial Plan.

c. Riverlink is partnered between GWRC, NZTA and HCC and currently governed by the Hutt Valley Flood Management Sub-Committee of GWRC (membership includes three Hutt City Regional councillors, HCC Mayor, HCC Deputy Mayor and one other HCC councillor). Project officer structure includes CEO Group, Management Group (GMs) and a Working Group.

d. Suburban Shopping Centres Improvements are funded $300K every two years from 2018-19 to 2028-29. During the last four years projects have been completed at Naenae, Stokes Valley, Taita, Walter Nash and Waterloo. The following projects are planned tentatively in the following order:

· Mitchell Street 2018-2019

· Epuni 2020-2021

· Alicetown 2022-2023

· Park Avenue 2024-2025

· Maungaraki 2026-2027

· Fairfield 2028-2029

Suburban Shopping Centres: Waterloo Trafalgar Square completed 2016-2017

e. E Tu Awakairangi Public Arts Trust will install Lightwing in Seaview during early 2018 and are expected to add further installations along the Waiwhetu Stream.

f. Petone 2040 was led by community and approved by Council in 2017. This spatial plan maps out a multitude of opportunities and risks that can be managed over the next several decades. Fifteen priority projects were identified. Council prioritised a master plan for Jackson Street to produce high level design options for the 2.5km length of Jackson Street. Included are options for the retail precinct with recommendations for the installation of street furniture and public art. The Jackson Street Streetscape Design is reported upon separately.

g. CBD Spatial Plan: this project is to update the 2009 Making Places strategy and into a spatial plan format similar to Petone 2040 and to consider a more global role for the central city. Making Places projects were implemented to varying degrees over the last eight years and a stock take is currently being reviewed. For Making Places the global financial crisis kicked in, some initiatives did not deliver as planned, the circumstances of some stakeholders changed, some factors have become more prominent (eg, resilience, climate change, environmental sustainability, smart cities etc) and a recent change of government is signaling significant policy change. The central city is critical to the future growth and prosperity of the city and the region. Accordingly the CBD Spatial Plan needs to articulate contemporary views and also predict how the wider environment could change in the much longer term. For example, WCC predict a doubling of their central city population within the next 20 years and that high rise is the only way to achieve this – however is this practical given climate change and natural hazards? An ageing population is expected but what happens when there are no more Baby Boomers? What does the world and the person in the street look like in 50 years?

h. NZTA/GWRC projects: Council’s Urban Design team where possible inputs into third party infrastructure projects. For example, NZTA’s SH58/Haywards Interchange for which good design has been promoted since 2009. The Urban Design team supported Council’s Road and Traffic team to negotiate the inclusion of good practice regarding: walking, cycling, public transport, public safety, landscape and urban design. Tenacity has resulted in superior outcomes.

SH58

SH58/Haywards artist night time impression 2015 (based upon 2009 concepts)

i. The Urban Design team provides less formal advice across a number of council divisions, community and other agencies. For example:

· HCC/NZTA Network Operating Framework

· Rockefeller Resilient 100 Cities

· Selection of project consultants for Riddiford Gardens

· Selection of project consultants for Council Administration Buildings, Town Hall and Events Centre

· Design drawings for retail environments in the CBD eg, Buzz Café, Hot Gossip Café and landscaping at Queens Street Wainuiomata

· Bespoke heritage display units and ANZAC Memorial landscape for the Eastbourne Community Board etc.

Current and future risks likely to have a significant impact on this activity

11. Urban Design team not having satisfactory involvement or influence with some council projects.

12. Capacity to deliver eg, Riverlink which is Council’s most significant project is being led by Council’s smallest team.

Total operating and capital cost of the service over the last 3 years and next 10 years

13. Last three years 2015 – 2018 CAPEX = $9.2M OPEX = $3.2M

14. Next 10 years 2018 – 2028 CAPEX = $26M OPEX = $3M

Highlights since last report.

15. 2013: convener for the NZIA Wellington Architecture Awards.

16. 2014: Riverlink project formed between GWRC, NZTA and HCC. Full flood protection one step option mandated by community and approved by GWRC. Public support consistently exceeding 80% in favour for Promenade and riverside apartment growth. $39M LTP funding approved by council and business case indicates project will pay itself back within 20 years. More recently Council decided to acquire key properties on Daly Street to control and facilitate implementation of the Promenade.

17. 2017: Petone 2040 Spatial Plan approved as Council’s first ‘spatial plan’.

18. 2017: CBD Spatial Plan (update of Making Places) is about to start and is expected to be complete third quarter of 2018. Council was briefed on this at the November 2017 retreat.

Fig. 2. Riverlink Public Display Highlight Festival October 2017

Issues of significance to Council

19. The NZTA Hutt Growth Story being written by NZTA is crucial to the prioritisation of Hutt Valley transport projects. This story is being partnered between HCC, GW and NZTA care of HCC’s General Manager of City Transformation. NZTA’s list of nationwide roading projects is long and with projects such as Kaikoura, Auckland and Manawatu Gorge somewhere at the top of the list.

20. NZTA want to understand if there are greater benefits (beyond road efficiency, safety or resilience) that could improve the prioritisation of Hutt projects. NZTA are interested in the city and region’s growth aspirations and how transport (in all its modes) may enable benefits to the economy and community locally, regionally and nationally. Resilience and sustainability are also of interest and as discovered through Riverlink, there may be synergies to benefit NZTA’s objectives. For example, how growth and transport can be planned together, how benefits can be maximised, how costs can be shared, how consenting can be strengthened, how land can be managed and economies of scale for construction etc. The new Transport Minister is also Minister for Housing & Urban Development and it would be opportune for Council to consider the commonalities between city, region and central government and to make Council’s ambitions and priorities clear.

Reasonably practical options for the governance, funding and delivery of this activity

21. The current process is the most reasonable with regards to governance, funding and delivery of this Activity. That is that funding is agreed by Council during Annual Plan discussions and that governance arrangements are made as appropriate for the projects being undertaken eg, more formal and multi-agency governance arrangements for projects such as Riverlink vs officer oversight of Suburban Shopping Centre upgrades.

Appendices

There are no appendices for this report.

Author: Paki Maaka

Urban Design Manager

Approved By: Kim Kelly

General Manager, City Transformation

44 28 November 2017

City Development Committee

01 November 2017

File: (17/1306)

Report no: CDC2017/4/235

General Managers' Report

Purpose of Report

1. The purpose of this report is to provide the Committee with updates on a number of projects that it has previously identified. This will be done on a regular basis.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Committee notes the updates contained in the report.

Background

2. At the beginning of the 2013-2016 triennium, the Chair of City Development asked for a General Managers’ report to be provided at each meeting. This would mainly be for update purposes but from time to time could include items for decision making.

Discussion

3. An update of a number of projects is provided below. The items to be included were discussed by the City Development Committee and may change from time to time.

City Wide and CBD Remissions Policy and Funding

4. A City Wide and a CBD Remissions policy were adopted from 1 July 2012. Council approved continuing the Development Incentives and Rates remission schemes until 30 June 2020.

5. As of this financial year – 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2018, 20 new applications have been received. Fees and rates waived and grants made are as follows:

CBD Remissions	Appns	Approved	Declined
A new apartment development of at least 8 attached residential dwelling units OR of at least 500m2 in floor area	1	1	0
A new commercial development or new building extension of at least 500m2 floor area	0	0	0
A new development with a mix of apartments and commercial space of at least 500m2 in floor area	0	0	0
Total CBD	1	1	0

City Wide Remissions – anywhere in the City including the CBD	Appns	Approved	Declined
A medium or high density residential development	16	15	1
New non-residential building or building extension of at least 500m2	2	2	0
A conversion of a building from any use to residential apartments	0	0	0
Total City Wide	18	17	1

Rates Remissions and Economic Grants for Economic Development Purposes	Appns	Approved	Declined
Rates remissions	0	0	0
Economic Development grants	1	1	0
Total	1	1	0

	Appns	Approved	Declined
Total All Policies	20	19	1

Fee type remitted 1 July 2017 – 30 October 2017	$ Amount
Rates remissions	$169,591
Economic development grants	$32,358
Development contributions	$105,444
Reserve contributions	$101,043
Resource consent fees	$59,642
Building consent fees	$87,760
TOTAL	$555,838

Total Fees Remitted Annually From 1 July – 30 June
FY2012-2013	$159,000
FY2013-2014	$873,000
FY2014-2015	$712,000
FY2015-2016	$548,000
FY2016-2017	$1,137,747
FY2017-2018 (Year to date)	$555,838

6. The figures in the above table reflect the amount of applications for remissions received and not the total number of developments being built.

7. Additional remissions were approved for another three year period at the Annual Plan 2017-18 including the introduction of Economic Development Grants.

Town Hall and Events Centre

8. Since the last report:

a. installation of the floor in the Town Hall commenced

b. Town Hall roof installation complete

c. glass in the Laings Road side of the atrium installed

d. completion of the structure in the back of house area.

9. The programme has been delayed due to the complexities of the project. Practical completion is now scheduled to be at the end of April 2018, rather than the previously forecast of early April. Handover to the Manager is now planned for May after a commissioning period.

10. The work in the upcoming period will include:

a. completion of timber flooring to Town Hall

b. completion of the glazing installation

c. commencing the internal contraction and some fit-out

d. completion of work to the Clock tower.

CBD Promenade – Riverlink

11. Since the last report the project continues work on:

a. finalising costs

b. methodologies for agencies to share costs

c. acquisition of properties (Pharazyn, Marsden, Daly Streets)

d. consenting strategy

e. Melling Interchange and Train Station

f. Hutt Story

g. GWRC, NZTA, HCC partner agreement.

12. The Riverlink partners GWRC, NZTA and HCC work together through the following for a:

a. Hutt Valley Flood Management Sub-committee (HVFMS) which includes Mayor Ray Wallace, Deputy Mayor David Bassett and Councillor Chris Milne

b. CEO Group

c. Management Group (GMs)

d. Working Group (Officers).

13. The (HVFMS) is expected to agree a decision with HCC and NZTA on project costs and sharing during March/April 2018. From that point Riverlink will commence into detailed design and consenting.

DRAFT Riverlink timing

14. Melling Bridge and Melling Train Station are being considered through the Melling Interchange DBC (detailed business case) led by NZTA which is due April–June 2018.

15. The ‘Hutt Story’ is being written between NZTA, GWRC and HCC to understand benefits wider than transport eg, growth, resilience, economics, sustainability etc. This story has potential to improve the prioritisation of Melling (and other Hutt based projects) over other NZTA projects across New Zealand.

City & Community Services Group and Community Facilities Trust (CFT) Significant Projects

16. The status of these projects is as follows:

Riddiford Gardens

17. Concept design options for Phase 3 work were prepared and considered by Council in confirming the 2016/17 budget. A meeting with key stakeholders was held on 12 July 2016 to consider the concept design before the detailed design commenced. Phase 3 design has been the subject of value engineering, which pushed the work into the 2017/18 financial year.

18. Senior Leadership Team (SLT) agreed that the Phase 3 works be negotiated with Naylor Love, the incumbent contractor, to ensure continuity and coordination with the Events Centre work. Negotiations, following further value engineering, were completed at the end of August with work commencing in September, with the works expected to be completed within the current financial year.

Avalon Park

19. Tenders closed for the third stage of upgrade works for Avalon Park at the end of October.

20. A contractor is expected to be appointed mid-November and commence works in late January with works completed by 30 June 2018.

Fraser Park Sportsville Stage 2 – Multipurpose Sports Building

21. The Fraser Park Sports and Community Hub is well under construction with approximately 40% of the foundation and floor slabs down. The first of the external tilt slabs are in place as is the steel work to support the roof and second storey. By mid-December it is anticipated that the main structure of the building will be in place.

22. Fundraising for the project is also going well with a total of $1.2m raised. A total of $1.813m remains to be raised to meet the funding target of $13.1m. A pleasing outcome from the last two months was a significant grant from the Hutt Mana Trust and very useful support from the Hutt Valley business community. Funds raised from small businesses who have agreed to sponsor parts of the project have now reached $287,000.

Walter Mildenhall Park Redevelopment

23. The club is now fully operational with members enjoying the new facility. Total membership of the club is climbing rapidly and has now passed the 550 mark, making the club the largest bowls club in New Zealand. The club is actively working to attract local regional and international tournaments.

24. Hawkins Construction is completing final landscaping works around the site. Repairs to the Ferrari roof which was damaged during the final stage of construction will be undertaken in the first two weeks of December. The post installation fine tuning of the artificial turf will be completed after the roof repair work is completed. This will likely occur in January 2018.

Stokes Valley Community Hub

25. The building part of the project is now officially completed. This has been on schedule with the project team promoting a Spring 2017 opening since the beginning of the project. A successful opening ceremony was held on Friday 27 October and public open day on Saturday 28 October with approximately 3000 visitors attending. The project team would like to thank all partners, Officers, councillors and the community for their support, guidance and encouragement throughout the last two years.

26. The fit-out budget and post-contract works are still being completed. It is expected that final costs for the project will be known before Christmas with a final project budget available in January. It is forecast to be significantly under budget.

27. Operationally we face some challenges with staffing levels. These will be worked through with staff over coming months.

Wainuiomata and Petone Sportsvilles

28. A preliminary business case has been completed by Visitor Solutions for both Wainuiomata and Petone Sportsvilles. Both organisations are now refining these plans to meet their operational needs and desired outcomes. Wainuiomata Sportsville will present this to founding clubs for sign off prior to further design development taking place.

29. In the case of Petone an alternative development option is being explored. This essentially follows the withdrawal of two clubs from Sportsville. If an alternative development option is the preferred scenario then Council will need to consider and endorse this alternative before any further work is undertaken.

30. In regard to both sportsville developments it has become clear during business case development, that lease costs (which includes rates and insurance) will be challenging for clubs if they are based on capital values as is currently the case. A report on rates chargeable to sportsvilles is due to be considered by Council early next year.

Healthy Families Lower Hutt

Turning the Tide

31. Turning the Tide is a movement to make Lower Hutt a healthier place to live, learn, work and play. Together we need to transform Lower Hutt to be a place where good physical and mental wellbeing is the new normal now and for future generations.

32. Since Turning the Tide went live in October we have 25 organisations signed up including a number of Council facilities leading the way.

33. Turning the Tide is being officially launched on Friday 24 November at Pomare School.

34. More information can be found here: http://www.turningthetide.org.nz/

Smokefree Lower Hutt

35. A 2016/17 implementation progress report against the Smokefree Lower Hutt Action Plan 2016-19 and a recommendation to designate Scott Court in Stokes Valley to become a smokefree area was submitted to the Policy and Regulatory Committee on 25 September 2017 and to Council on 10 October 2017. Scott Court was approved by Council to become smokefree and is the first suburban shopping area in Lower Hutt (and possibly New Zealand outside of CBDs) to become a smokefree area.

36. A workshop led by the Wainuiomata Community Board and facilitated by Councillor Briggs with community and stakeholders took place on 1 November 2017 to develop a work plan to increase awareness of smokefree areas in Wainuiomata.

37. Increasing signage across Lower Hutt and raising awareness of smokefree spaces has included engagement with Greater Wellington Regional Council (GWRC) resulting in all GWRC bus shelters to have smokefree stickers and working with Parks and Gardens on reserves and sports grounds to have smokefree signage.

38. Council’s Event Support Funding Application Form now references Hutt City’s Smokefree Outdoor Public Places Policy and encourages all events to be smokefree.

39. Implementing a ‘smokefree summer’ campaign which began in October and will go throughout the summer months which uses a variety of mediums to promote our smokefree spaces.

Go the H20

40. The first of seven new community hydration stations has been installed outside the new Koraunui Stokes Valley Community Hub. The next three to be installed will be outside Walter Nash Centre, at Hillary Court and between Treadwell Street and the basketball court in Naenae.

41. All North East schools have been engaged with around becoming water-only and have been provided with the Go the H20 toolkit. To date 10 schools are on the journey to becoming water only.

42. The two portable hydration stations have been well utilised and are continuously being booked out by schools, sporting and community organisations.

Fruit Trees 4 Marae

43. Two workshops have been held and hosted by Whai Oranga and Koraunui marae with approximately 30 attendees from three kaupapa Māori organisations and four local marae. This has resulted in 24 new fruit trees being planted including 10 at Koraunui marae, eight at Whai Oranga Medical Centre, three at Kokiri marae and three in the Waiwhetu community.

Science & Technology (STEMM) Funding and Activity

44. Council allocated $115,000 in the 2017/2018 budget for projects related to STEMM. Projects include:

· Scholarships for the Open Polytechnic Graduate Certificate in Primary Science Teaching; Weltec Engineering School and Postgraduate Certificate in Applied Practice by the Mind Lab.

· Wellington e-Velocity programme – a curriculum focused electric vehicle, design, build and compete for teams from high schools in the Region. Our support is for Lower Hutt based high schools.

· Hutt Science Programme - 40 primary schools in Lower Hutt and three in Upper Hutt (on trial) are currently enrolled in the Hutt Science Programme and the resource centre has been expanded at Naenae Primary School. A professional development programme for primary and secondary school teachers is now well developed along with a mentoring programme for secondary school science scholarship students. Hutt Science successfully applied for further funding totalling approximately $60K from MBIE to run a science programme in schools in the North East currently underway.

· Innovative Young Minds (IYM) programme developed and delivered in July 2017 – programme for 40 senior secondary school female students are immersed in STEMM experiences throughout a weeklong programme of organisational visits and structured programmes. Planning is underway to run this programme again in 2018.

· STEMM Festival – 3^rd year of this growing event showcasing the best in science and technology in the city. Run over a two weeks period and incorporated in the national Tech week a full programme of events was well supported across the business and education communities. International guests (NASA scientists) were a key new element. Planning is underway for the 2018 festival.

45. 1^st Assembly – Innovation Hub

Further funding was approved at the Annual Plan for the continuation of 1^st Assembly – the Innovation Hub based at 125 High Street operated by Creative HQ.

The space now accommodates six ventures Conduce, Makegood, Fre3Formd, Quamcom, Yali and Simutech.

Regular mentoring clinics are being held with established but early stage businesses as they focus on growth.

A regular programme of workshops and events is in place.

Due to the unknown NBS rating of the existing building alternative premises with a certified minimum of approximately 70%NBS rating are being sought, as required by the CHQ board.

46. Maker - Space (Techshop) Feasibility - TechShop makerspace market assessment

Maven Group recently undertook a study to identify possible sources of funding that might be available to establish and operate a TechShop as proposed in the Market Assessment Study. The report concluded that there were limited sources of funding available within New Zealand for such a venture with no single source of funding that will deliver the level of funding required to support a TechShop and funding from multiple sources, assuming they could be secured, still falling far short of the funding requirement for a TechShop.

Urban Growth Strategy Implementation

47. The Urban Growth Strategy 2012 - 2032 was adopted in 2014. It targets 6000 new residential dwellings built by 2013 (average 300 p.a.) and a population of at least 110,000 by 2032.

48. Progress to date:

New Residential Dwellings Completed (net after demolitions/removals):

· Year to 30 June 2013 179

· Year to 30 June 2014 198 Cumulative 377 Average p.a. 187

· Year to 30 June 2015 258 Cumulative 635 Average p.a. 212

· Year to 30 June 2016 232 Cumulative 867 Average p.a. 217

· Year to 30 June 2017 325 Cumulative 1,192 Average p.a. 238

No. of new dwellings consented:

· 12 Months to 30 June 2015 338 (Dept. of Stats) Average p.a. 338

· 12 months to 30 June 2016 445 (Dept. of Stats) Average p.a. 391

· 12 months to 30 June 2017 213 (Dept. of Stats) Average p.a. 332

· 3 Months to 30 Sept. 2017 81(Dept. of Stats)

Population 2013: 101,200 2016: 103,400

Statistics population medium projection for Lower Hutt in 2033 is now 108,100 (revised up from 102,100)

49. Implementation projects being worked on include:

· Wainuiomata - extension of Wise Street – One subdivision consented and houses under construction. Other landholdings along this extension are considering future residential development.

· Upper Fitzherbert, Wainuiomata

Officers have selected a consultant team to prepare a best practice framework for the urban development of Upper Fitzherbert Road, Wainuiomata. This work, when completed, will inform a District Plan change to enable residential development as proposed in the urban Growth strategy 2012 – 2032.

· Upper Kelson – extension of Major Drive – currently working with owner on proposed plan change to enable this site to be developed into approximately 90 lots and brought to market.

Kaitangata Crescent, Kelson – existing consent for approximately 140 lots – Owner is preparing resource consent for a development proposal increasing the number of lots to be developed to approximately 180.

· Stokes Valley – extension of Shaftsbury Grove – Titles have now issued from LINZ. Urban Plus has now completed the sale of the amalgamated parcels (12ha) at Shaftesbury Grove. It is understood that the purchasers intend to develop the site as soon as possible – with potentially over 80 residential sections.

· District Plan Work Programme – Plan Change 43 is now out for public consultation. The plan change would enable medium density housing and a wider range of housing types to be built in the city. Consultation is open for four months until 9 March 2018.

· Housing New Zealand has announced plans to build 330 new homes and refurbish 383 homes in Hutt Valley, nearly all in Lower Hutt.

· Council approved continuing the Development Incentives and Rates remission schemes until 30 June 2020.

CBD

50. Current CBD activity includes:

· hotel development – Building consent for the foundations is with Council for processing now that an engineering solution has been determined by the developer. A request for further information has been made by officers early November.

· 2 Connelly Street – Construction of a large commercial building is currently underway due for completion early 2018.

· Fitout of ex-Mint Music store for new café

· Ex-TAB site has been sold for Super Loan shop

· a major new office tenant to the city is locating into the Public Trust building early 2018.

51. Completed CBD activity includes:

· Premier Hair Academy has opened in ex Evan’s building on High Street

· ex-NZ Post office Building – 16 apartments. Baseline and Barnado’s have relocated into ex-NZ Post Building ground floor

· ex-ANZ Building – new TAB

· Gibson Sheat Building – Car parking building completed and tenanting of retail spaces now underway including Fellow Café kiosk and A1 Homes

· 531 High Street – six year lease to Kiwibank

· Centre City Plaza – call centres reoccupied after earthquake repairs

· Big Save Furniture opened

· ex-Jina’s Fruit shop leased

· 47 Dudley Street leased to Ceylon Spices

· 2 Waterloo Road leased to Wellington Christmas Company.

52. Retail activity in the CBD showed a -3.2% decline in spending for the month of October 2017 vs October 2016 (cf. -3.1% for quarter ended 30 September 2017) as the CBD recovers from the November 2016 earthquake. The Queensgate Shopping Centre reopened the remaining retail space on 6 April 2017 after completion of the demolition of the Event Cinemas and associated carparks building b and has been undergoing major renovations for the introduction of a number of new retailers and also existing stores. International retailer H&M opened in late October 2017 with a number of others including Seed Heritage, Macpac and Mecca Maxima to open prior to Christmas.

City wide Car Parking

53. The city-wide Parking Policy has been consulted on, consultation ending 3 November 2017.

54. A new parking app ‘PayMyPark’ has been launched. It lets you pay for your parking space from your smartphone or PC. The app offers a start-stop function letting you pay for the exact time you occupy the space so no need to guess how long you need to park for. It will also alert you when your paid parking is about to expire and as long as you are within the maximum time limit you can extend your parking time remotely from your smartphone or PC.

177 High Street

55. We are progressing the development of future options for 177 High Street for the Council to consider and in that regard Colliers International have been appointed to market the property on Council’s behalf to seek Expressions of Interest for sale offers inclusive of development options and sale offers for the property as it is. The marketing process commenced Saturday 11 November and will continue to 12 December.

Suburban Shopping Centres

56. There is no 2017-2018 funding or projects.

Petone 2040 Spatial Plan

57. The Jackson Street Streetscape Design (JSSD) final report is reported separately to this committee, but to summarise the JSSD indicates:

1. options to develop the entire 2.5km length (in separable portions) of Jackson Street with ballpark costs

2. the heritage retail/business precinct be treated as Council’s priority.

3. direction for the placement of new street furniture

4. direction for the placement of public art

5. at the Community Plan Committee meeting in June 2017, officers were requested to provide further information in response to annual plan submissions on a number of issues as set out below.

CBD Spatial Plan

58. The CBD Spatial Plan is to update the Making Places strategy of 2009 and to better consider contemporary issues, policies, economic and social drivers such as:

a. Resilience

b. Natural Hazards

c. Climate Change

d. Riverlink

e. NZTA Hutt Story

f. Urban Growth Strategy

g. Intensification

h. Ageing and ethnic mix of population (possibly post Baby Boomer).

59. The CBD Spatial Plan is being led by the Urban Design Manager and a group of Divisional Managers. The project will involve engagement (similar to Petone 2040) with community, stakeholders and decision makers and completion is expected August – October 2018.

Greening of Queens Drive

60. Whilst there is no budget to cover $1m to $2m potential cost to “Green Queens Drive” the largest risk for doing this work is that officers do not fully understand the changes required of the CBD transport and road network, how CBD car parking will work once 600 car parks are lost from the riverbank car park and the full role of Queens Drive in the future CBD. Analysis will be done through the Riverlink detail design phase which is programmed for 2018-2020.

61. Officers advise that Council currently has no funding allocated in its 20 year plan for either investigating or undertaking such capital work.

62. Council is about to start on a review of Making Places which will include a spatial plan for the CBD going forward. Streetscape will be looked at, for the whole of the CBD as part of this process.

Options

63. There are no options. Information is for noting only.

Consultation

64. No consultation was required for this report. Consultation relevant for the specific projects outlined above have been undertaken as required.

Legal Considerations

65. There are no legal considerations.

Financial Considerations

66. There are no financial considerations. All funding discussed in this paper has been approved at previous meetings or were reported as budget implications to Council on 16 February.

Other Considerations

67. In making this recommendation, officers have given careful consideration to the purpose of local government in section 10 of the Local Government Act 2002. Officers believe that this recommendation falls within the purpose of the local government in that it is mostly a noting paper on current activity. It does this in a way that is cost-effective because it provides timely information to Council.

Summary Table

The table below provides an overall summary of the timing and status of each of the projects mentioned in this report.

Project	To be completed by 30 June 2017	Project completion date	Status
Events Centre	Significant progress in the structural construction of the Event Centre. Significant progress in the reinstatement of the Town Hall. Operational fit-out agreed.	Early 2018	Revised
Riddiford Gardens	All Phase 3 landscape works, bridges, car park and Laings Road improvements.	June 2018	Contract negotiated with Naylor Love and work commenced early September
Avalon Park	All Stage 3 landscape works between the southern end car park and the new playground.	June 2018	Design reviewed and retendered in October. Works to commence late January 2018.
CBD Promenade - Riverlink	Design and Costing stage	July 2017	On track
Regional Bowls Centre	Complete. Fundraising 95% achieved	Mid 2017	Completed
Huia Pool Development	Construction complete	July 2017	Completed
SV Community Hub	Construction complete	October 2017	Completed
Fraser Park Sportsville Stage 2	Construction underway	November 2018	On track
UGS – Wainuiomata Wise St	Draft design and cost estimates completed. Discussions with residents commenced		Completed
UGS – Upper Kelson	Revised design and cost estimates completed. District Plan team to progress Plan Change	June 2020	On track
UGS – Stokes Valley	Draft design and cost estimates to be completed. District Plan team to progress Plan Change		Possible private sector development
UGS – Wainuiomata Development Plan	Plan being finalised		Completed. Coordinator appointed April 2016.

Appendices

There are no appendices for this report.

Author: Parvati Rotherham

Manager Development Liaison

Author: Gary Craig

Divisional Manager City Growth

Author: Paki Maaka

Urban Design Manager

Author: Bruce Hodgins

Divisional Manager, Parks and Gardens

Author: Bruce Sherlock

Strategic Projects Director

Author: Allen Yip

Strategic Projects Manager

Approved By: Matt Reid

General Manager City and Community Services

Attachment 1

HCC International Relations Work Programme 2017-2019 - November 2017 Update

4. WHAT WE WILL DO IN 2017 – 2019

INITIATIVES	WHEN	TARGET	BUDGET	PARTNER/S	STATUS	NOTES RE: STATUS INDICATOR
ALL SECTORS
*ALL RELATIONSHIPS – Further define strategic framework for international relationships*
Reaffirm each active relationship with 3 year statements of intent	By Dec 2018	All relationships have signed MOUs with 3 year outcomes	-	Sister and friendly cities		Intent with all relationships reaffirmed. Tempe re: STEMM focus. 2016-2018 agreement in place with Taizhou. Regular education and cultural engagement with Minoh. Re-engaged with Xi’an in education sector.
Update international relations policy to define framework for ongoing international engagement.	June 2017	Policy complete				2017-19 work programme approved by City Development Committee in May 2017.
*ALL – Provide leadership and facilitate connections for Lower Hutt’s international relationships*
Maintain city to city relationships	Ongoing	Regular communication with all relationships	-			Regular communications with Minoh and Taizhou. Council in touch with key contacts across all cities.
Coordinate with the Mayor’s office for hosting inbound business, cultural and education delegations, where appropriate	Ongoing	All sister city and friendly city visits have Mayor interaction	$2,500 annually	Specialists		Xi’an #26 Middle School group. Thai education agents hosted at The Dowse. Chinese education agents and Taizhou delegation expected in December.
Assess and investigate beneficial opportunities presented to HCC.	Ongoing	All assessed	-	-		All enquiries responded to. Ongoing. Hosting Sydney-based director from CLAIR (Council of Local Authorities for International Relations), Japan - for a week-long internship to progress Japanese partnership opportunities with council and other local organisations.
Lead and coordinate outbound delegations to develop opportunities and strengthen existing relationships for Lower Hutt – that include city representatives such as businesses, schools, cultural groups.	Ongoing	One visit every 2 years	Budgeted throughout this plan.	All partners		Opportunities for next year being scoped. October 2018 is the 10 year anniversary with Taizhou, China.
Raise our city profile by developing resources to help our locals appropriately promote the city.	Ongoing	All requests are supplied with Lower Hutt city profile and promotional material.	$1,000 annually	-		No requests to date.
*ALL - Grow awareness of opportunities, maintain networks, identify and promote stakeholder mutual goals*
Develop a communications plan to raise awareness and promote international relationships through local networks including the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce	Sept 2017	Across all key HCC channels. Promotion visible across community.	$1,500	All partners		Sister city opportunities promoted to schools. Hutt Japan Day event support to help raise profile of sister city connection.
Engage with Sister Cities New Zealand (SCNZ) to share experiences and leverage network	Ongoing	Annual membership of SCNZ. Participate in SCNZ conference.	$700 annually	-		Attend all regional SCNZ member events. Leading SCNZ conference hosting in Lower Hutt for May 2018. Delegations from our sister cities invited to conference.
INITIATIVES	WHEN	TARGET	BUDGET	PARTNER/S	STATUS	NOTES RE: STATUS INDICATOR
Partner with WREDA and Wellington City Council to leverage regional promotional platforms	Ongoing	Enhanced visibility for Lower Hutt in media and collateral. Content on WREDA promotional channels.	-	WREDA, WCC		Formal agreement in place to leverage international student growth work.
Rekindle local iwi connection to international relationships.	Ongoing	Involved in at least one project	-			No specific projects in progress.
Promote Wellington City mayoral trip to China / Japan / Seoul in November as lead in to 2017 NZ China Mayoral Forum.	By Dec 2017	Interest from community	-	HVCoC, businesses		Details passed on to relevant parties. Weltec attending WCC mayoral delegation.
*CHINA - Leverage relationships by working through regional partners*
Coordinate activity via Wellington City Council’s relationship with Xi’an	Ongoing	Regular communication and feedback	-	WCC		HCC to take a lead in regional activity with Xi’an.
Work with government and national agencies primarily through WREDA and Wellington City Council, to provide specialist inbound and outbound advice and support, including: Participate in NZ China Mayoral Forum in Wellington 3-5 December championing economic, tourism and education opportunities and subsequent forums hosted by LGNZ.	Ongoing Dec 2017	Regular communication between all partners Mayoral attendance	- $3,000	WCC, WREDA		Liaison with agencies continues as required. Opportunity for participation scoped. WREDA will lead opportunities for tourism and business for the region.
Contract a specialist / Chinese speaking “cultural bridge” to provide advice and support with China relationships	Ongoing	Contract in place. Specialist is consistent HCC partner	$3,500 annually	HCC, partner		Contractor in place providing advice and hosting for sister city visitors and international education agents.
Carry out market research of Taizhou from an in-market agent to assess student market potential. Cultural and market research of Taizhou and Xi’an for relationship opportunities.	June 2018	Share with schools	$2,500			Taizhou has extended invitation to pair with their local schools and international student attraction cluster of local schools offered opportunity from Taizhou. Contractor to carry out research. Initial advice gained from WREDA education specialists.
CULTURAL SECTOR
*ALL RELATIONSHIPS - Grow community participation and ownership of our international relationships*
Support the Hutt Sister City Foundation’s desire to develop their programmes and increase participation in their activities between our sister cities to strengthen ties and promote the relationships.	Ongoing	Increase in membership, programmes and engagement in all sister city relationships.	$2,000 annually	HSCF		Contract in place for student and teacher exchanges and foundation development activities.
Support the student and teacher exchange to Tempe via Hutt Sister City Foundation.	Ongoing	4 students, 2 teachers	$4,400 annually
*ALL -* *Support cultural exchange through international grants / scholarships*
Support Rotary / Miyun District teacher exchange programme and research mutual economic benefits to cities.	2017/18	Four teachers on exchange	$2,400	Hutt Valley Rotary		Attended presentation from Rotary on experiences in China. Now awaiting reciprocal travel to NZ and relationships gained through exchange partnerships to progress to allow other opportunities to be explored.
INITIATIVES	WHEN	TARGET	BUDGET	PARTNER/S	STATUS	NOTES RE: STATUS INDICATOR
Support Minoh Teacher Exchange (MINTEX)	Ongoing	Two teachers outbound and inbound every two years	$2,000 annually	HMHFT		Inbound teachers hosted in August. Outbound teachers to be organised for October 2018.
Review grants/ scholarships, third party funding sources and develop grants awarded for innovative programmes to maximise international relationships.	2018/19	Criteria defined. All council grant recipients are leading innovative and effective projects.	To be determined.	All partners.		For 2018/19. Not yet actioned.
*JAPAN - Support cultural engagement and value of our international relationships*
Promote Tomodachi Day led by Hutt Minoh House Friendship Trust.	2017	Event promoted through council’s key channels.	-	HMHFT		Marketing support given to the HMHFT-led Hutt Japan Day and included in key council promotional channels.
Support Hutt Minoh House Friendship Trust activities to grow. Provide administrative & venue booking support and financial review support	Ongoing	Increase in membership, programmes and engagement in Minoh and Japanese relationship.	-	HMHFT		Administrative and booking support maintained.
Manage Hutt Minoh House as a Japanese cultural hub for Lower Hutt	Ongoing	Trust is able to retain rental revenue for cultural projects.		HMHFT		Urban Plus manages Minoh House for all property related matters. Tenancy manager coordinating tenant matters.
Support existing regular/permanent Skype links across city between schools	Ongoing	Regular interaction between linked organisations.	-	Schools, Libraries, HMHFT, HSCF		Tui Glen School connect each week and Epuni School still active. Supported new link between St Peters & Pauls School. Have handed over library Skype link to Hutt Minoh friends and reciprocal organisation in Minoh.
Leverage opportunities around Japan Rugby World Cup 2019. Reignite rugby connections.	2018/19	Clubs involved in Sister City ties	-	Community		Not yet actioned.
EDUCATION
*ALL RELATIONSHIPS – Support local schools and contribute to Wellington International Student Growth Plan*
Undertake a stocktake of international connections across our education sector.	Sept 2017	Database of relationships	-	Schools		7 schools with international students. 15 schools are currently signatories to the International Student Code of Practice. Full survey to be completed in November 2017.
INITIATIVES	WHEN	TARGET	BUDGET	PARTNER/S	STATUS	NOTES RE: STATUS INDICATOR
Enhance local education provider network to increase collaboration between institutions and support shared practice. Develop a strong and uniquely Lower Hutt proposition within the Wellington regional brand Work with WREDA to develop a suite of Lower Hutt focussed promotional material including new translated material for local education providers to use and a single enrolment process Establish and enhance a Lower Hutt portal within studyinwellington.com Host education agent familiarisation tours with Mayoral support/hosting.	Ongoing.	Double the number of equivalent full-time (EFT) international primary and high school students	$15,000 annually	Signatory schools to the International Student Code of Practice / Education Wellington partners. WREDA		Regular liaison with four high schools continues including scoping shared marketing opportunities with within WREDA’s targeted marketing approached. New online portal for Study in Lower Hutt offers and experiences to be launched before the end of 2017. Mayor hosted education agents from Thailand and also Xi’an #26 Middle School students and teachers alongside local schools. Lower Hutt footage utilised in student attraction videos for schools created via WREDA. WREDA education attraction coordinator visited Minoh.
Participate in annual regional student welcome Host the regional student welcome in Lower Hutt Events Centre.	Annually April 2019	Lower Hutt showcased in regional event. Host event as regional partner		WREDA		Not yet actioned. Scheduled for March 2018 and 2019.
BUSINESS SECTOR
*ALL RELATIONSHIPS – engage with our business community*
Promote the sister city links and drive organisations and business to leverage these through campaigns, networking events, city events.	Ongoing	Every project is an opportunity for city to city link awareness	-	WREDA, WCC, HVCoC, business community		Council, schools, WREDA hosted Xi’an No. 26 Middle School
*USA -* *Champion STEMM engagement between Tempe and Lower Hutt* *and encourage inbound visits.*
Engage with Tempe City Council’s economic development team [and their partners including Arizona State University(ASU)] to identify mutual opportunities and learning for Lower Hutt’s STEMM sector.	2017/18	Regular communication that leads to direct business engagement with Tempe.	-	Tempe City Council		Re-engaged contacts at Arizona State University to be involved in 2018 STEMM Festival.
Invite and host a speaker from Arizona State University / Tempe to Hutt STEMM Festival 2018.	May 2017 May 2019	One speaker	$2,500 every two years	Tempe, ASU
Potential mayoral / business delegation travel in October 2018.	2018/19	< 6 businesses to join	$18,000	Business community		2018/19 activity. Not yet actioned.
Promote soft-landing opportunity in Arizona and Houston, Texas with ties to Lower Hutt.	Ongoing	LH Companies aware of soft-landing opportunity	-			Ongoing networking with Hutt Chamber offers opportunities to inform business.
Council officer / city representative to visit Tempe regularly, if in USA, to maintain valuable face to face links (over and above digital links) with established networks so we can leverage as our STEMM projects grow.	Ongoing		$1,000	Tempe City Council		Potential opportunity in 2018.
INITIATIVES	WHEN	TARGET	BUDGET	PARTNER/S	STATUS	NOTES RE: STATUS INDICATOR
*CHINA -*
Encourage connection between Callaghan Innovation and China Medical City, Taizhou	2017/18	Connection and/or business partnership created	-	WREDA, Callaghan Innovation		Door open with Taizhou – ready for local business to assess value and opportunity.
Promote soft-landing opportunity in Xi’an via NZ Hub to local businesses.	Ongoing	Lower Hutt businesses have opportunity to pilot trading in China	-	WREDA, WCC		WREDA leads opportunity with existing connections with Wellington based businesses operating in Xi’an.

Cr C Barry	Cr G Barratt
Cr M Cousins	Cr S Edwards
Cr T Lewis	Cr M Lulich
Cr G McDonald	Cr C Milne
Cr L Sutton (Deputy Chair)	Mayor W R Wallace (ex-officio)

	WHO	NATURE OF RELATIONSHIP
Lower Hutt	Hutt Minoh House Friendship Trust (HMHFT)	Collaborate to showcase Japan and relationship Give administrative support
	Hutt Sister Cities Foundation (HSCF)	Support to develop programmes
	Lower Hutt schools, businesses and organisations	Understand goals, inform of city to city potential
	Lower Hutt community & local iwi	Promote engagement with city to city links
	Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce (HVCoC)	Partner to engage business
	Relationship / cultural specialists	Cultural advice, research, hosting & translation, assistance to manage relationship
Wellington	Wellington City Council (WCC)	Collaborate, utilise specialist resource, Leverage Wellington’s recent new relationship with Xi’an and raise awareness to the New Zealand hub.
	Neighbouring Wellington councils	Collaborate to leverage connections
	Wellington Regional Economic Development Agency (WREDA)	Partner with, utilise specialist resource
National	Councils with neighbouring sister cities (and NZ Core Cities China members)	Leverage connections in-market
	Sister Cities New Zealand (SCNZ)	Advice, connections, learning & knowledge
	Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT)	Advice, support, consulate support in-market
	New Zealand Trade & Enterprise (NZTE)	Market advice and connections, specialist business input
	Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ)	NZ Core Cities updates, China Mayoral forum coordination
International	Sister Cities’ and Friendship Cities’ contacts	Regular communication on opportunities of mutual interest
International	Relevant organisations, such as, CLAIR	Regular communication on opportunities of mutual interest

Description	Author	Cycle 1, 2018	Cycle 2, 2018	Cycle 3, 2018	Cycle 4, 2018	Cycle 5, 2018	Pending
GMs’ Report	K Kelly	x	x	x	x	x
Activity Report: Water Supply	B Sherlock/WWL	x
Activity Report: Wastewater	B Sherlock/WWL			x
Activity Report: Promotions and Events	C Steed				x
Activity Report: Transport	J Gloag					x
Activity Report: Stormwater	WWL						Cycle 1, 2019
Activity Report: City Growth	G Craig						Cycle 2, 2019

Determine and where relevant monitor:

Review and make recommendations to Council on:

General:

Conduct: