Negative attitudes are Motueka's 'biggest threat'

May 17th, 2013
[by David Armstrong]

The biggest threat to the ability of Motueka to strengthen into the future lies within the minds of its people, too often expressed in negative attitude, says Community Board chairman David Ogilvie.

David was the guest speaker at Grey Power Motueka's AGM on Wednesday, addressing the topic of his vision for Motueka into the future. He spoke to a good crowd of about 25 who, while they may not have agreed with everything he said, nevertheless enjoyed the stimulating talk.

He divided his address into the factors driving our future, trends in future local employment, improvements needed to accommodate these changes, threats to putting these improvements in place, and the advantages and assets that the town has to see us through the changes.

"I think the biggest threat is attitude and negativity. I do get worried that we get people opposing some activities or services here in what I contend is the false belief that that is going to keep rates down," he said, in the most controversial part of his talk.

"We think that somehow opposing our library or facility or service is saving rates money, but it isn't. If rates money scheduled to be spent in Motueka is opposed [by residents], it will simply be spent elsewhere. It's not being saved, it's just being transferred to another centre."

He proposed that the two chief factors driving the changes we will experience were normal population growth and the technology revolution.

"Currently our population is about 8,500 in the township, he said. "We're looking at about 40 to 50 new dwellings per year, with a population increase of 125 to 150, so by 2030 . . . our population should be around about 11,000 to 11,500 people.

"If you take in the wider area, say from Tasman to Moutere, part of the valley and up to Kaiteriteri and Marahau, that population is currently around about 15,500. That will grow to around 21,000 in that 17 year period. That's an annual increase of about 1.2% to 1.6%, which has been the situation over the last five years."

The technology revolution will change so many things. "How is it going to affect our communication? How is it going to affect education? Will there be classroom teaching in the next five years? How will it affect employment?

"For example, many people can do the jobs at home rather than in offices. We're told that about 30% of all retail business is now done on-line. What impact will this will have on the number of shops in Motueka?" he asked.

He talked of new employment possibilities in tourism, care for the elderly, and food production. In his opinion, areas needing improvement include streetscaping, utilisation of the river and beaches, and industries around the airport.

And our advantages? "Our water resource, our lovely climate, our beaches and the national parks on our boundaries, our facilities and services, and our people - friendly, welcoming, always helpful," he said. "And it's a fantastic community that we live in."

The text of the whole recorded speech can be read by downloading this document.

Comment by Beth Bryant:
[Posted 20 May 2013]

Well spoken David. I think the issues you raised about rates and upgrades to Motueka facilities particularly relevant. New facilities for the community can and have been blocked by the mistaken belief that it will save rates. It doesn't! In addition, it would seem sensible to give encouragement to those who work so hard at trying to plan and gain these facilities for us. Thanks again, David, for your input into this area.

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