I want to ensure that Wanganui is an attractive place for our families to live and thrive. My ambition is for our city to progress to the level of prosperity that we all know Wanganui is capable of. I have extensive governance experience with various organizations associated with Council, and a comprehensive understanding of how important civic leadership is to the growth of our community. I have proven strengths as a team player and always contribute to lively and robust debates. I am 50 years old and married to Barbara Charuk. Together, we have two adult children, two teenage sons, and three lively grandchildren. I believe in the importance of family as the cornerstone to a strong community. Increased wealth and economic growth throughout our district is crucial to our future and must be accomplished by sustainable means. A vote for Rory is a vote for a vibrant future. www.roryforcouncil.co.nz

 

Top 5 Issues

1. · Enhancing the Wanganui District Council’s policy on attracting new families and new businesses. The Council is on the right track here but there is much more that we can do to consolidate this locally, and to promote Wanganui as a fantastic place to live and work to a wider New Zealand audience. Promoting a safer Wanganui is an important aspect of marketing the assets of our community.
2. · Team Sport in our schools. There has been some great work done by this Council over the last six years in encouraging youth participation in decision-making processes. I want to take this to another step in improving opportunities for our young people. Organised sport has fallen away in our local schools over the last few years and I believe that the Wanganui District Council can play a key role in turning this trend around.
3. · Footpath maintenance. The Council needs to maintain a focus on its basic services for the health and safety of our ratepayers. Some of the footpaths in our city are simply not safe! All of us - particularly the elderly and differently abled - have the right to move around without fear of injury.
4. · The Agriculture sector is the backbone of Wanganui’s economy. It is easily our region’s largest earner and will remain so. Therefore, Council maintaining an emphasis on rural issues is critically important to all of us.
5. · Council debt will be an issue for some years to come. Improving economic development and employment opportunities will enhance the wealth in our community. Addressing population issues is vital to increasing our ratings base in the city and district.

Personal Profile

Hi there, I’m Rory Smith. I have a strong and passionate belief in the qualities of both our City and our Region. It was for this reason that my wife Barbara and I decided seventeen years ago that Wanganui was where we could realize our dream and start our own tourism business - The Tamara Backpackers Lodge. Five years ago we started up a second business; Whanganui River Road Tours. I am 50 years old and feel this is a perfect age to realize another ambition: to represent our community on the Wanganui District Council. begin_of_the_skype_highlightingend_of_the_skype_highlighting

Barbara and I have been married for over twenty years. We have two very active teenaged boys and enjoy supporting their cultural and sporting activities. I also have two married adult children and three delightful grandchildren. In my spare time you can catch me out cycling, on the side of a sports field, or supporting one of our fine Wanganui Cafés. I love to travel but family commitments have put that mostly on hold for now.

Our River City is blessed with a great location and a wonderful climate. The majestic Whanganui River enhances the glorious setting of our district as it flows from the mountains to the sea. It’s a great place to raise a family. Enhancing the aspirations and wellbeing of our families provides the cornerstone to a strong, healthy, and vibrant community. As your Councillor, I will work to ensure that Wanganui progresses to the level of accomplishment and prosperity that we know we are capable of.

I have been involved in a variety of governance roles for the advancement of Wanganui, most notably with Destination Wanganui in which I served in the role of Chairperson, providing the visitor marketing function for the Wanganui District Council for the best part of a decade (1995-2005). I have been involved with various regional Tourism organizations as a board representative and I was a member of the Mayoral taskforce that was responsible for the design and implementation of the highly successful Wanganui Millennium celebrations. I have spent many years coaching junior sports – both football and rugby.

As a candidate, I believe in total accountability to the ratepayers in decision-making around the Council table. In my liaison with Council, I have always been firmly focused on transparency. I have proven strengths as a team player, and my diverse experiences reflect my skills in working with many different kinds of groups (collaboratively) across the business and community sectors.

Campaign Initiatives:

I believe that for future growth we need to work toward three primary goals; enhanced Health, Prosperity, and Safety. The target areas for change that I will promote are:

• Enhancing the Wanganui District Council’s policy on attracting new families and new businesses. The Council is on the right track here but there is much more that we can do to consolidate this locally, and to promote Wanganui as a fantastic place to live and work to a wider New Zealand audience. Promoting a safer Wanganui is an important aspect of marketing the assets of our community.
• Team Sport in our schools. There has been some great work done by this Council over the last six years in encouraging youth participation in decision-making processes. I want to take this to another step in improving opportunities for our young people. Organised sport has fallen away in our local schools over the last few years and I believe that the Wanganui District Council can play a key role in turning this trend around.
• Footpath maintenance. The Council needs to maintain a focus on its basic services for the health and safety of our ratepayers. Some of the footpaths in our city are simply not safe! All of us - particularly the elderly and differently abled - have the right to move around without fear of injury.
• The Agriculture sector is the backbone of Wanganui’s economy. It is easily our region’s largest earner and will remain so. Therefore, Council maintaining an emphasis on rural issues is critically important to all of us.
• Council debt will be an issue for some years to come. Improving economic development and employment opportunities will enhance the wealth in our community. Addressing population issues is vital to increasing our ratings base in the city and district.
• Volunteers. There has been a decline in volunteer numbers over the last six years and I believe we need to remobilise this magnificent resource that helps make our community tick, and improves our community wellbeing.
• Kerbside recycling. This is a key issue for our future. It is something I feel strongly about and we need to find some practical solutions to be sustainable into the future.

Supporting initiatives and services in our suburbs and rural communities is vital to our overall wellbeing. This means maintaining facilities like the Wanganui East swimming pool as viable and affordable recreational options for our families. This is a wonderful open-air facility and if closed would be sorely missed by all those that have supported the pool for generations, especially those on lower incomes, or those folk who may be unable to frequent the Splash Centre as much as they might like.

The present administration has overseen some positive infrastructural improvements to our district, best exampled by the airport makeover, the southern road entrance, the riverbank walkway and the Splash Centre extension. Whilst I support the new Visitor Information Centre it does appear to have incurred far too many additional costs. Cost overruns in general, and the transparency of financial accountability needs to be questioned as our community debt increases.  Lessons learned need to be transferred to future projects so that the ratepayers can be better informed when making referendum decisions. We must consider the effects from central government, including extra regulatory expenses, which have added to the costs of homeowners and ratepayers. There are many people on set incomes that struggle with rates increases and for that purpose there is a need for a more robust effort from Council in the streamlining of the rates rebate scheme.

A vote for Rory is a vote for a vibrant future:

 

I want to ensure that Wanganui is an attractive place for our families to live and thrive. Let’s work together to re-connect with our communities, and to build on our success to create a vibrant future for all of our people.

 

 A prosperous community

 

 A healthy community

 

 A safe community

 

 Vote Rory Smith for Council

 

 

 

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