Motueka 2030 project evaluation begins

October 1st, 2015
[by David Armstrong]

At least 1000 Motueka people will be interested in seeing the conclusions of the giant community-wide consultation held this May to look at the long-term future of the town.

That's roughly the number of people who took part in one way or another in the programme run by Vision Motueka Development Trust called "Motueka 2030: A stronger future together".

There was a questionnaire answered by over 500 people online and outside the museum. There were five themed public events and meetings including economic and youth summits. And there was an extremely active discussion forum on Facebook (which is still going) with now over 700 people involved.

With such a long view ahead, Vision Motueka is in no hurry to come up with quick and easy answers, but last week our board of trustees began analysing the findings of the consultation with a view to plotting a course ahead.

We hope to have a report of the analysis available to the public in a month or two. But in the meantime the actual findings of the consultation - what Motueka people think about the local issues - are already public.

The document containing the findings is in the reference section of the Motueka Library, and can be viewed and downloaded on the Vision Motueka website, www.visionmotueka.org.nz.

The Vision board - which includes representatives of the Community Board, Our Town Motueka, TDC, Keep Motueka Beautiful and the two local iwi - have started out by sorting the identified projects into groups:

ones that are happening which Vision is already involved in,
ones that are happening without our involvement,
future ones which Vision could lead or partner in, and
ones which Vision need not or could not play a part.

Key questions are: Which projects offer the most bang for buck? And how can limited community resources - human and financial - be best applied?

Already we've seen that a promising number of highly beneficial projects are under way. (And remember, we're basing "highly beneficial" on what people told us during Motueka 2030 what they wanted.)

These include bidding for ultrafast broadband, building an indoor swimming pool, planning for a new library and community hub, adding more cycle and walking paths, painting murals, restoration of Riwaka and Motueka wharfs, planting urban food forests, and improvements to parks and reserves.

We also have a very clear steer on up to a dozen developments that are clearly popular. And while some are largely out of our hands, many are achievable by an active, forward-thinking community that does not expect council to do everything for them.

Vision Motueka's final report will not be the last word. New ideas and developments will emerge and can be added to the list. That's what makes it so exciting - and challenging!

(This article was written for publication in the "Voice of Tasman" column in the Motueka "Guardian" newspaper, and was published on September 30th)

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