The introduction of a strategy to formally collate and assess information about the Queenstown Lakes District will become an essential and widely-used tool for future decision making in the area, QLDC planning and strategy manager Vicki Jones said.

The new strategy would combine the statutory obligations to monitor the effectiveness of the District Plan and the Community Outcomes, as set down in the 2004 Council Community Plan (CCP) and flagged last year by QLDC chief executive Duncan Field.

The Council had already spent a considerable amount of time working with the community to decide where it wanted to be, she said.

"We are proposing to focus on information to measure progress that will help us identify what activities are helping us move forward, and which need further improvement," Ms Jones said.

The work that the Council had already undertaken in collecting hard information about growth placed it in a strong position to influence what happened in the district.

"Already agencies like Transit New Zealand, the Ministry of Education, health providers and the police are relying on our forecasts to influence their decision making," Ms Jones said.

Much of the information required for the strategy was already sourced from existing locations, such as population figures and crime statistics, although the job of research, sourcing and collating the information was still considerable.

"Initially we have engaged Opus International Consultants, which has already developed monitoring strategies for Councils throughout the country. We are utilising work done in other communities, particularly Taupo, to minimise the cost to the district," Ms Jones said.

In December Opus worked with QLDC staff to develop draft monitoring priorities, which will be debated by the Council next month. These priorities are likely to include issues such as affordable housing, community services, transport, facilities, economic diversification, landscape and ecosystem protection and public access.

"Developing our understanding of how the district is working and where the Council and other agencies can effectively intervene to address problems will proceed over several years. We will start with high priority areas and extend our measures progressively," Ms Jones said.

Councils were required to develop these indicators relating to Community Outcomes under the Local Government Act 2002 in time for them to be included in the next Council Community Plan (CCP) in 2006.

"One of the key objectives will be to produce the right information in a form that can be easily accessed and interpreted by the community, the Council and other agencies", Ms Jones said.

The development of the monitoring strategy and indicators had real value for the Council and community.

"It is very clear that the Government is much more motivated to support communities on a whole range of issues where they can produce a well researched case setting out their pressures and show how progress can be measured," Ms Jones said.

The Queenstown Lakes District Community Outcomes are:

• Sustainable growth management.
• Quality landscapes and natural environment and enhanced public access.
• A safe and healthy community that is strong, diverse and inclusive for people of all ages and incomes.
• Effective and efficient infrastructure that meets the needs of growth.
• High quality urban environments respectful of the character of individual communities.
• A strong and diverse economy.
• Preservation and celebration of the district?s local cultural heritage.

ENDS

For further information please contact Vicki Jones 03 441 0499.

By: Tamah