Agenda of Community Services Committee

COMMUNITY SERVICES COMMITTEE
Membership:	9
Meeting Cycle:	Meets on a six weekly basis, as required or at the requisition of the Chair
Quorum:	Half of the members
Reports to:	Council

7 01 March 2018

Community Services Committee

22 December 2017

File: (17/1903)

Report no: CSC2018/1/39

Activity Report - Parks and Reserves

Purpose of Report

1. The purpose of this report is to outline the results of a review of the Parks and Reserves Activity.

Recommendations

It is recommended that the Committee:

(i) notes the information in this report;

(ii) notes that this review also meets the intent of section 17A of the Local Government Act 2002; and

(iii) agrees that a full 17A review should not be undertaken at present.

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.

3. Section 17A(2)(b) states that a review must be undertaken within 2 years before the expiry of any contract or binding agreement relating to the delivery of infrastructure, service or regulatory function, though if the local authority is satisfied that the potential benefits of undertaking a review do not justify the cost of the review, it is not required to do so (refer section 17A(3)(b).)

4. Council last reviewed this activity two years ago in February 2016, resolving at that time to continue with its current method of delivery of services. With one of three major contracts (for the Maintenance and Operation of Sports Grounds) due to expire in June 2019, a review of services is required unless the costs of the review outweigh the potential benefits.

High-level description of Activity

5. The key task of the Parks and Reserves Activity is to provide, develop, maintain and protect a reserve network which contributes to achieving a healthy natural environment and improves the health and well-being of residents.

6. The Hutt City Council reserve network consists of 349 individual reserve properties totaling 2781 hectares. It forms part of a wider network of reserve land of almost 19,000 hectares, including the Rimutaka Forest Park and Belmont and East Harbour Regional Parks that is within the City’s boundaries.

7. Parks and reserves assets are diverse and managed to varying levels of service depending on their status and use. These service levels are encapsulated in contract specifications for the maintenance and operation of the assets, for which Downer Limited is the principal contractor. The following table provides a summary of the parks and reserves assets.

Asset Type	Description	Assets
Sports grounds	29 sports grounds comprising 303 hectares in area	200 sports fields, grandstands, amenity buildings, furniture, structures, paths, car parks, roads, irrigation, drainage, fences and signs
Horticultural/Civic Parks	18 parks comprising 8 hectares	Amenity buildings, gardens, trees, paths, car parks, roads, furniture, structures, fences and signs
Neighbourhood Parks	83 parks comprising 35 hectares	Gardens, trees, paths, furniture, structures and signs
Bush Reserves	67 reserves comprising 2074 hectares	Tracks, structures, furniture, car parks, paths, roads and signs
Cemeteries	Taita and Wainuiomata cemeteries	Lawn, gardens, paths, car parks, roads, furniture, concrete head beams and signs
Playgrounds	56 playgrounds including 3 skate parks	Play equipment, furniture, concrete skating structures
Foreshore	20 kilometres of coast line from Korokoro to Pencarrow	Wharves, jetties, boat ramps, amenity buildings, furniture, paths, car parks and roads
Street Trees and Street Gardens	11,500 street trees and 247 street gardens	Trees, shrubs, irrigation

Rationale for Service Provision

8. Parks and reserves form a network of community assets essential to the health and well-being of the city. This network contributes to the social, cultural, environmental and economic well-being of residents and the health of the natural environment. The assets are actively managed by a small team of ten staff to achieve these community and environmental benefits.

9. The key strategies and plans that guide and influence the development and management of the activity are as follows:

a. The reserves strategy was adopted in 2016. Its purpose is to provide for the long term planning and development needs of the parks and reserves network. The draft review groups actions under five strategic directions.

b. The Valley Floor Review considers current and future needs for the provision and development of reserve land in the most densely populated area of the City from Pomare to Petone.

c. Reserve Management Plans (of which there are twelve) provide a policy framework for the management and development of individual reserves (e.g. Hutt Park) or groups of reserves with similar purposes (e.g. bush reserves). The Plans are a requirement of the Reserves Act 1977. They will be reviewed over the next three years.

d. The Urban Forest Plan establishes the values of the urban forest and sets out principles and policies to guide its management. The Plan guides the future management of street trees throughout the City over the next 15 years. The Plan was adopted by Council in 2009.

e. Fields of Vision provides Council with a plan for the development and management of sports ground facilities. This plan was adopted in 2010.

f. Making Tracks provides Council with a ten year plan for managing and developing the Hutt City Council’s track network. The Plan was adopted by Council in 2009.

g. Go Outside and Play provides Council with a plan to guide Council’s provision of outdoor play opportunities for children. This document was adopted by Council in 2012.

Summary of the Asset Management Plan

10. The Parks & Reserves Asset Management Plan provides for the sustainable management of existing park assets over their lifecycles. The Plan is updated on a regular basis as more detailed and up to date information on the assets is obtained. While the Plan covers a 20 year period the main focus is placed on the first 3-5 years. The Plan is currently under review.

11. Assets are grouped according to the following activities: sports grounds, horticultural parks, reserves, cemeteries, playgrounds, wharves, public toilets and street trees. Asset condition surveys are undertaken for the built assets every five years, apart from the wharves which are on a four year cycle. Asset condition surveys were undertaken in 2017 for buildings, playgrounds and hard surfaces and for the wharves in 2016.

12. The renewals budget for asset types, such as park furniture, hard surfaces and buildings has been assessed based on the asset condition reports and moderated to provide an average annual renewal cost.

Present Arrangements for Governance, Funding and Service Delivery

13. Apart from the arrangement for the shared ownership and use of the Akatarawa Cemetery with Upper Hutt City Council, the Parks and Reserves Activity is governed and funded by Hutt City Council.

14. The delivery of the activity is split, with asset and contract management along with regulatory functions (mainly Reserve Act 1977 requirements) and policy advice carried out in-house while all physical works on maintaining and developing the assets are contracted out.

15. Downer Limited currently carries out the majority of parks maintenance works under three separate long term contracts. These are for Sports Grounds (June 2019), Reserves, Street Trees and Cemeteries (July 2021) and Horticultural Parks (September 2023).

16. Officers will review all sports ground contract documentation including specifications, this year before tendering a new contract to commence in July 2019.

17. In terms of the Section 17A review requirements, officers consider that the delivery of the maintenance of sports grounds cannot effectively be carried out in-house without substantial investment in plant and equipment and other resources. Council made the decision many years ago to contract out these services and a return to in-house provision would be a significant undertaking to put in place and likely be less efficient.

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

18. There are two main risks identified that are likely to have a significant impact on this activity. The first relates to ageing infrastructure and the costs associated with renewing or replacing assets that are unable to deliver required levels of service. A good example of this is the City’s four wharves, which require significant funding to refurbish.

19. The second main risk relates to climate change and the effect of such on the coastal and foreshore reserves with rising seas. The risk here is likely to be in the longer term, but measures such as the development of dunes along the Petone foreshore will help to mitigate this.

Current performance against KPI’s compared to historical and peer benchmarks

20. Residents are generally satisfied with the level of service provided by Council for the Parks and Reserves Activity. Surveys rate satisfaction levels in the high nineties which are generally on par or better than peer Council averages. The last four years results are included in the following table.

Measure	2013/14	2014/15	2015/16	2016/17
Residents satisfaction with sports grounds	98%	97%	96%	95%
Residents satisfaction with parks and reserves	97%	96%	96%	96%
Residents Satisfaction with Cemeteries	96%	97%	94%	95%

21. Hutt City Council participates in the Parks Yardstick project which measures performance of 24 territorial local authorities against a number of key indicators. The benchmarking includes service level indicators, such as the area and cost of actively maintained land per 1,000 residents or the number of playgrounds per 1,000 children, as well as management performance indicators, such as an adopted reserves strategy.

22. The Yardstick information is used to assist officers to better understand performance, particularly where it appears to differ from other similar organisations. The information is a reality check and helps staff to identify strengths and weaknesses, which can be further investigated.

23. The Yardstick Survey shows the provision of park land (owned and managed by HCC), equates to 28 hectares per thousand residents which is well above the peer group median of 18 hectares. This figure is considerably higher (190 hectares per thousand residents) if all publicly owned park land in Hutt City is included.

24. A comparison of overall operating costs per hectare of reserve included in the most recent survey for the financial year ending 30 June 2017, shows Hutt City to be $3,113 per hectare compared to the median for peer group local authorities of $4,237 per hectare.

25. Similarly the management cost on a per hectare basis shows HCC to be less than a third of the median for peer group local authorities.

26. Hutt City was ranked third of all participating Councils on a combined assessment of management key performance indicators, which covers operations, asset management, planning, environmental sustainability and social benefits.

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

27. The following table outlines the actual net operating and capital costs of the Parks and Reserves Activity for the past three financial years and that forecasted for the next 10 years as shown in the Annual Plan 2017/18. The increase in operating costs over the next ten years takes into account a reduction in revenue at different times during the period due to asset sales, lease terminations and discontinuation of first interments at Taita Cemetery.

	14/15 Actual	15/16 Actual	16/17 Actual	17/18 Budget	18/19 Budget	19/20 Budget	20/21 Budget	21/22 Budget	22/23 Budget	23/24 Budget	24/25 Budget	25/26 Budget	26/27 Budget
Opex	10,723	10,761	11,578	12,650	13,164	13,471	13,745	13,956	13,895	14,125	14,500	14,788	15,119
Capex	5,516	9,424	3,930	8,899	3,854	4,956	1,411	2,141	1,573	1,486	2,073	3,135	2,724

28. The operational costs for the Activity can be broken down into four main budget areas as shown in the following table. The budget includes costs associated with a number of miscellaneous properties including public toilets as well as costs associated with processes required to make surplus property available for sale. These are included in the administration and property line.

	Operating Expenditure	Revenue	Depreciation and Finance Cost	Net Operating Expenditure
Sports grounds	$2,973,000	$595,000	$1,006,000	$3,384,000
Parks, Gardens	$3,029,000	0	$1,292,000	$4,321,000
Reserves	$3,016,000	$669,000	$601,000	$2,948,000
Administration & property	$2,343,000	$471,000	$125,000	$1,997,000
Totals	$11,361,000	$1,735,000	$3,024,000	$12,650,000

Implications of changes to budget allocations – either a requirement for a 10% reduction in net budget or 10% increase in net budget

29. The following table summarises at a high level the implications of a 10% change in budget allocation or level of service.

Budget area

Increase

Decrease

Operational Expenditure

Would enable Council to increase levels of service on selected assets, such as pest plant and pest animal control.

Would need to reduce levels of service (eg frequency of mowing) or cease to maintain some assets.

Likely increase in complaints and may result in cost of reactive maintenance increasing.

Capital Expenditure

Would benefit renewal programme which has some deferred maintenance particularly on assets such as hard surfaces.

Would further exacerbate issue with the level of deferred maintenance on particular assets.

Comparison of any significant fees or charges against peers

30. Cemetery fees and charges are generally in line with the Upper Hutt City Council fees for Akatarawa. This is in keeping with our joint ownership arrangement for that cemetery.

31. Sports grounds fees and charges vary around the region with Hutt and Wellington City taking a tiered approach with fees charges for different grades of fields, while Kapiti, Porirua and Upper Hutt generally have a single rate (though there are a couple of exceptions for their premier grounds).

32. Hutt City sports grounds charges are set as a percentage of the cost of providing the sports turf, markings and cleaning. It excludes the cost of maintaining the park at a general amenity level. There is some variation in fees across Councils in the region, due to the various levels of service provided. Officers will implement an increase in these fees in line with the CPI.

Current highlights or issues of significance to Council.

33. Significant capital investment in Avalon Park and Riddiford Gardens has been a highlight for the Division over the past few years with staff heavily involved in each of these projects. Earlier this month the new changing rooms at Te Whiti Park were opened.

34. The refurbishment programme for the City’s recreational wharves is a significant project which will roll out over the next three years.

35. We have started work on projects that were identified from the Valley Floor Review. These include the upgrade of reserves in Taita and Naenae and the development of a walkway between Bracken and Jackson Streets along the western bank of the Te Mome Stream.

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

36. Officers consider that it is impractical and not cost effective to undertake a full section 17A analysis of options for the governance, funding and delivery of this Activity at this time for the following reasons.

a. Council is locked into long term contracts for the delivery of parks operations and maintenance which is competitively procured, with the three main contracts not due to expire till 2019, 2021 and 2023 respectively.

b. Yardstick information indicates that total operating costs are on par or below the median for peer local authorities, suggesting that overall the delivery of this activity is efficient.

c. As community infrastructure requiring local decision-making and input, it is important that the governance function for parks be retained at a local level.

d. Officers continue to work closely with neighbouring authorities to explore opportunities for efficiencies. This is best handled on a case by case basis for particular assets as opportunities arise.

Other Considerations

37. 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 report falls within the purpose of local government in that it provides an overview to Council of a significant Council activity.

Appendices

There are no appendices for this report.

Author: Bruce Hodgins

Divisional Manager, Parks and Gardens

Approved By: Matt Reid

General Manager City and Community Services

15 01 March 2018

Community Services Committee

07 February 2018

File: (18/116)

Report no: CSC2018/1/41

Report from the Accessibility and Inclusiveness Plan Advisory Group

Purpose of Report

1. The purpose of this report is to advise the Committee about the outcome of the inaugural meeting of Council’s Accessibility and Inclusiveness Plan Advisory Group and the resulting recommendations.

Recommendations

It is recommended that the Committee:

(i) notes the minutes of the inaugural meeting of Council’s Accessibility and Inclusiveness Plan Advisory Group attached as Appendix 1 to the report; and

(ii) notes the actions made to be completed in time for the next meeting on 11 April 2018.

For the reason(s) outlined in the report below.

Background

2. Council approved its Accessibility and Inclusiveness Plan in March 2017. Nominations for membership were called for from the disability community in the city and the Advisory Group was established in August 2017. An initial meeting was held in October 2017 to establish processes going forward and to confirm meeting dates for 2018.

3. The first official meeting for the Advisory Group was held on 31 January 2018.

Discussion

4. A number of topics and issues were discussed at the Advisory Group meeting. These were:

a. Fraser Park

b. Disability parking and the Council’s Parking Policy

c. The design and building of Council’s community hubs

d. Submission to Council’s Long Term Plan

e. GWRC’s Public Transport Plan

f. Events and how the group might be able to provide assistance to those planning these.

5. The minutes and agreed actions are attached as Appendix I.

Options

6. There are no options to consider.

Consultation

7. The AIP Advisory Group was established in part to be available to Council officers where they are seeking advice from the disability community.

Legal Considerations

8. There are no legal considerations.

Financial Considerations

9. There are no financial considerations.

Other Considerations

10. 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 ensures that Council is meeting the current and future needs of the disability community within the city. It does this in a way that is cost-effective because it helps ensure that all residents are given the opportunity to make a full contribution to the future of the city.

Appendices

No.	Title	Page
1 ⇩	Accessibility and Inclusiveness Plan Advisory Group Meeting 31 January 2018	17

Author: Wendy Moore

Divisional Manager, Strategy and Planning

Approved By: Kim Kelly

General Manager, City Transformation

Attachment 1

Accessibility and Inclusiveness Plan Advisory Group Meeting 31 January 2018

ACCESSIBILITY AND INCLUSIVENESS PLAN ADVISORY GROUP MEETING 31 JANUARY 2018

Present: Genevieve McLachlan, Lois Ledingham, Paul Gruschow, Jenna Maugren, Jim Shiels, Alex Masina, Wendy Moore

Apologies: Lucy Knowles

Absent: Stew Sexton

Fraser Park

The Advisory Group wanted to know if the plans for Fraser Park were available as they would like an opportunity to look at them.

Action: Wendy to follow up with Matt Reid, GM Community Services Committee to find out where things are at and then report back to the group.

Disability Parking

The Advisory Group asked about progress with the disability park audit. Genevieve was able to tell them that the audit had been completed. They would like to see the audit report if possible.

Wendy told the group that Council’s Parking Policy had confirmed that:

· Mobility parking that is well-located, accessible and safe is crucial to enabling people with disabilities to easily access areas and destinations in the city. Hutt City Council provides a number of mobility spaces in Shop & Trade and Work & Learn areas in the city. A valid mobility parking permit must be displayed whilst parked in these spaces. Hutt City Council’s Parking Services Team proactively enforces restrictions with regard to mobility parking.

· Council will not generally provide mobility parking spaces in residential areas. However, officers will assess situations on a case by case basis.

· Reflecting that people with disabilities will often require more time to get around and conduct their business and activities, those with valid mobility parking permits are allowed to park for double the time in spaces which are otherwise restricted to 30 or 60 minutes.

Parking space	Concession
Spaces specifically designated as disabled parking spaces	People with a mobility parking permit can park for the time shown only. The default time for these spaces will be 120 minutes.
P30 time-limited	People with a mobility parking permit can park for 1 hour
P60 time-limited	People with a mobility parking permit can park for 2 hours
Paid parking areas of up to 1 hour	People with a mobility parking permit who pay for the time period shown can park for double the time period allowed. P30 – mobility parking permit holders can park for 1 hour. P60 – mobility permit holders can park for 2 hours.
P5, P10, P15, P120, P180, P240	There are no concessions for mobility permit holders in spaces with these restrictions.

· Hutt City Council will regularly review mobility parking to ensure that there is sufficient supply, that spaces meet design standards, and that spaces are located appropriately.

The WINZ disability allowance was discussed as it was initially thought that people could apply for assistance with parking costs.

Urban design – the group wanted to be assured that Council’s urban designers and the people responsible for designing Council facilities were aware of the requirement to have disability parking available.

Policy

The Advisory Group discussed Council’s policies and the opportunity to comment on these.

Action: Wendy to ensure that the group is advised about Strategy and Planning’s work programme so that they know what is coming up and can provide feedback.

Community Hubs

The group expressed a desire to contribute to the planning for these in Naenae and Wainuiomata.

Action: Wendy to let Mike Mercer know about the availability of the group and their desire to contribute.

Minutes from meeting in October

Some of the group didn’t receive these minutes.

Action: Wendy to follow up and send minutes out again.

Long Term Plan

The group discussed how they could get involved in the LTP.

Action: Paul has a list of issues and he will circulate these to the group for their feedback and for them to add to the list

Action: Alexa will work on part of the submission that is focused on ensuring Council’s ongoing commitment to the Accessibility and Inclusiveness Plan Advisory Group for comment from the rest of the group

Action: Wendy will assist with writing the submission

Action: All members to encourage their contacts and other groups they work with to make submissions to the LTP

GWRC Public Transport Strategy

Alexa attended a meeting on this and was interested to know what the results of the consultation were.

Action: Wendy will follow up with GWRC.

Invoices

Discussed how to go about getting these to Council.

Action: Wendy will send electronic copy of a blank invoice to group. If it is too difficult to print some off members will let Wendy know and she will send hard copies by mail.

Events

The group was interested in how they might input into the organisation of events

Action: Wendy will follow up with Carla Steed, Divisional Manager, Events and let her know that the group is available for advice purposes.

Other business

Jenna and Paul may not be able to attend the next meeting. Jenna is presenting at the NZ Disability Support conference.

Agendas will be sent out prior to each meeting by either Lucy or Wendy

Next meeting:

The next meeting is on Wednesday 11^th April, 3.30pm to 5.00pm

20 01 March 2018

- Community Services Committee

02 February 2018

File: (18/105)

Report no: CSC2018/1/40

General Manager's Report

Purpose of Report

1. The purpose of this report is to provide the Committee with a general update from the City & Community Services Group.

Recommendations

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

Background

2. The Chair of the Community Services Committee and General Manager City & Community Services agreed that a report from Community Services should be provided at each meeting.

Discussion

3. An update is provided below. Officers request Committee members provide feedback on the sort of information they would most like included in these updates.

Overall Comments from General Manager

4. The Community Services team now forms part of the new group City and Community Services. This is a really exciting opportunity for me personally, team members, and more importantly our communities and rate payers.

5. The focus and priorities of the new group are:

§ providing the very best core services

§ developing world-class public spaces, places and community facilities

§ improving the lives and futures for those living in our highest deprivation communities – especially the young as well as supporting the economic development of Hutt City

6. Especially in relation to the second and third areas of focus, I see real potential in a more integrated (one team) approach – including working closely alongside the rest of Council.

Museums

Events

7. Two new exhibitions have opened at The Dowse since the last report:

· Doreen Blumhardt: Jet-Powered Meteor is a collections-based exhibition looking at the influence of potter Doreen Blumhardt on the history of studio pottery in New Zealand. It draws heavily on the Blumhardt Foundation collection held at The Dowse.

· The Language of Things is a significant survey exhibition of international jewellery featuring works from artists in Asia, Europe, America, Australia and New Zealand from the 1980s to the present day. Works from The Dowse collection are included in the exhibition.

8. A new exhibition module about William Yan Foon and the history of Chinese gardens in the Hutt opened in December at Petone Settlers Museum. A new module about bodgies, widgies and the Mazengarb report will be installed in March.

9. Petone Settlers Museum was involved in the large-scale event Waka Odyssey on 24 February as part of the NZ Festival.

Museum Updates

10. Programming is in place at both museums to commemorate the 125th anniversary of women’s suffrage. A collaborative education programme across Wellington region museums and galleries is also in development.

11. Consultation has been undertaken and recruitment is underway for the Nuku Tewhatewha researcher position.

12. Unusually good weather has depressed visitation over the summer period at The Dowse (museums do better on rainy days over the summer break). We still look set to meet our visitor KPIs. The hot and humid weather has played havoc with the conditions at Petone Settlers Museum, which is not equipped with the proper air conditioning to manage these conditions. Temporary measures are in place and longer-term ones under consideration.

Community Arts Updates

13. The Summer in Dowse Square programme of music and performance on Saturdays has completed: a special programme was run on Waitangi Day and we are considering this for development in future years.

14. Planning has started for the Hutt Winter Festival, with a day-long workshop for HCC staff, community partners and performers/artists on 15 February. Pippa Sanderson will be leading the content of the festival, with a contracted project manager taking care of logistics.

Leisure Active

Highlights

15. Record high temperatures in December and January have seen a significant increase in users of our pools and programmes. Hours of operation at our outdoor pools were extended to allow residents to use the pools later into the evening. This has been well supported by the public and has now been extended into January.

16. Fitness Suites ran a new member initiative of replacing sign up fees with donations of cans to the Foodbank. This has proved popular with over 180 new members signed on in December and January which is traditionally a quiet time for sign ups. Around 1,500 cans of food were donated to the Foodbank.

17. Our Recreation team successfully negotiated an increase in funding for our Fundamental Movement Skills school programme which now sees lessons for Learn to Swim and sport skills to our low decile schools delivered for free in 2018.

18. Huia hosted the U14 National Waterpolo Championships in December.

19. Sponsorship from OPUS has enabled the establishment of subsidised swimming lessons for special needs children through the Swim City programme.

20. Play Initiative – Leisure Active have been funded by Sport NZ to research ways of extending a play culture into neighbourhoods and public spaces. Feedback from our community consultations is hoped to influence how Council incorporates play aspects into future infrastructure projects and programme development.

21. Council is currently involved in the development of a Regional Recreation Spaces and Places Plan aimed at identifying opportunities for regional and national facility developments.

22. Healthy Families continue to support community led initiatives that enable healthy communities. A number of initiatives that were seeded and mentored through the Hutt Real Food Challenge are now operating independently. These include:

§ Quick Kai (Wainuiomata) - distribution of healthy food by way of a home-cooked meal-in-a-bag as an alternative to chocolate fundraising at schools.

§ Kete Food Share (Naenae) – collection and redistribution of leftover food of small-medium food businesses.

§ People’s Kitchen (Petone) - A commercial kitchen space available for hire or gift to community members in Petone.

§ The Common Grocer - Access to good, healthy food through a membership-based grocery cooperative.

Challenges

23. The long hot summer and extended hours have put added pressure on our staff and has also resulted in a few unpleasant incidents with aggressive customers. In response staff are being rotated regularly through less intense jobs, staffing numbers have been increased and a handling aggressive customer course was run.

24. The very high attendance numbers have put pressure on our pool mechanical and filtration equipment with most running at capacity for extended periods. Usage of chlorine and other cleaning chemicals have been extremely high as is water usage. There is also an increased demand on mechanical servicing during this busy period.

25. We are currently awaiting renewal of our Healthy Families contract funding from the Ministry of Health. Current funding is due to finish in July.

Libraries

· We continue to develop the case for revamping War Memorial Library in the next financial year. We are hoping to increase public space.

· Naenae and Taita Clubhouses currently have a total of 315 active members. The quality of opportunities and engagement at Clubhouse is high as demonstrated by five members who received tertiary scholarships at the end of 2017.

· Our summer reading programme is called The Big Read. We had over 1200 kids sign-up and over 8,500 books were read!

o There is a lot of research that indicates that children who do not read regularly over the long summer holidays can lose literacy skills they have gained over the school year. This loss is often referred to as the “summer slide” or “summer reading setback”. Children who lose skills spend time at the start of the school year having to rebuild these skills, making them fall behind before they even get started. This negatively affects motivation and can lead to children no longer trying to learn.

o The Big Read summer reading programme is also designed to provide fantastic opportunities for staff to build relationships with children around their reading, and to encourage and support their reading interests. Through their interactions, children see that library staff support them and believe in them.

o This link with schools is also important in underlining the role that libraries have in supporting children’s literacy, reading and informational requirements. It also strengthens the natural partnership between schools, parents and libraries in building strong readers.

Community Hubs

26. Koraunui Stokes Valley: During November and December 55,000 visitors attended the hub. This has far exceeded forecast visitation of 150,000 per annum. Operationally we face some challenges with staffing levels as a result of this number of visitors. Regular programmes and services continue to increase over time as the new facility becomes better known in the community. Our partnership with Toy Library, Plunket and Police has been successful, with the Toy Library doubling membership post opening of the hub. A recent visit to this facility from a delegation from Singapore emphasizes Hutt City is leading the way in delivery of services.

27. Walter Nash Centre is coming out of a quiet summer due to a maintenance shut down which included resurfacing all five courts, and the installation of a high quality retractable seating bank. All works went well during this time. We now have capabilities to create a show court and seat over 800 spectators.

28. Wainuiomata Hub is bedding in a slightly amended team structure which aligns with other hubs. Currently hub staff are undertaking a significant planning phase with partners as they generally operate on a calendar year

29. A focus for hubs over the coming 12 months is to clarify and strengthen the offering across literacy, recreation, arts, and technology access, whilst maintaining commercial viability.

30. Overall, the three hubs are tracking above projected visitation levels for the financial year.

31. Naenae hub consultation has concluded and the analysis is currently taking place. In addition, background research and work to enable decisions on some key scope questions is commencing.

Community Partnerships & Relationships

32. Akoranga learning Programme (funded by MSD) was held in Naenae in January. A key requirement of this funding, is that the tamariki who attend are not already attending a holiday programme and it has to be free. The programme was another success with an average of 45 kids a day. Partners to this programme were: Matua Whitiri (delivered Maurakau); Naenae Badminton; Naenae Boxing Academy; Whitirea performers (showed the tamariki different styles of dance); Naenae Pools; Hutt Science; Naenae Library, and the Computer Clubhouse. The Naenae Police came to visit every day to support the kaupapa and have a positive interaction with tamariki. The children also visited Wainuiomata pools, some of our tamariki had never been over there before.

This year the tamariki put on a performance for their whanau which included kapa haka, Samoan and hip hop dance. As a result of feedback from whanau, a private Facebook page is being set up so they can be kept informed about what is happening in Council.

33. HCC City Safety has begun running Junior Neighbourhood Support (JNS) in 8 schools , and a new community patrol has been established for central Hutt. All Lower Hutt community patrols have received their direct operational funding, which was possible due to the restructure of the HSC Trust funding.

34. Te Awakairangi Access Trust awaiting approval from one key stakeholder, and then building pilot infrastructure around Rata Street School can occur.

35. Community Funding Strategy workshops will begin in February with community groups, and testing of new grants system is underway.

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

36. The status of these projects is as follows:

Fraser Park Sports and Community Hub

37. The Fraser Park Sports and Community Hub is well under construction with approximately 36% of the building now completed. The majority of the building structure including the first floor and roof beams are now in place.

38. Fundraising for the project is also going well with “only” $970,000 to now be raised to meet the agreed budget of $13.1 million. Funds raised from small businesses who have agreed to sponsor parts of the project have now reached over $300,000.

Wainuiomata and Petone Sportsvilles

39. 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.

40. 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.

41. In regard to both sportsville developments it has become clear during business case development that lease costs (which include 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 this year.

Other Considerations

42. 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.

Appendices

There are no appendices for this report.

Author: Sandra Mann

Divisional Manager, Libraries

Author: Melanie Laban

Divisional Manager, Community Projects and Relationships

Author: Mike Mercer

Divisional Manager Community Hubs

Author: Marcus Sherwood

Divisional Manager, Leisure Active

Author: Courtney Johnston

Director, Museums

Approved By: Matt Reid

General Manager City and Community Services

Cr L Bridson	Cr J Briggs (Deputy Chair)
Cr S Edwards	Cr M Lulich
Cr G McDonald	Cr C Milne
Cr L Sutton

Mayor W R Wallace

Determine and monitor: