5 minute read
IT’S ALL HAPPENING IN SOUTH TARANAKI!
SCOTT WILLSON CAN’T WAIT TO SIT IN A GREEN SPACE IN CENTRAL ŌPUNAKĒ AND EAT CHICKEN AND CHIPS WITH HIS FAMILY.
The Business Development Manager at South Taranaki District Council says the coastal settlement where he lives with wife Monica and their two children is one of five towns with CBD revitalisation projects under way. The others are Waverley, Pātea, Eltham and Manaia.
In the long-term plan, the council has put away around $2 million for each town.
“Co-design groups have been formed in these towns and some designs will be put out for public consultation soon,” says Scott.
Design ideas the groups are considering include green spaces, recreation areas, wayfinding, safety improvements, art and local story telling. Business owners in each town are also encouraged to do up their shop fronts.
“If you have got beautiful town centres, that’s got to be good for liveability and for business,” he says.
Scott and his family moved from Wellington to Ōpunakē seven years ago for a lifestyle change. He and wife Monica owned their own business, Kete Aronui, an art gallery and online store in the coastal town. Meanwhile, Scott was working as a New Zealand Cricket marketing manager before landing the council role.
He started the job on the first day of the March 2020 covid lockdown. “It was the weirdest first day you could hope for.” His role was established so the South Taranaki District Council had one point of contact to be responsive and proactive towards the business community and work across council services and provide solutions.
“My role is to promote sustainable economic growth throughout the district.”
The business development team is involved in a raft of council endeavours to boost the South Taranaki district.
One project is the South Taranaki Business Park being developed on the northern outskirts of Hāwera to promote business growth in the district. Support for the park is in the council’s long-term plan and includes more than $15 million of infrastructure upgrades to the area around Kerry Lane and Fitzgerald Lane.
“It came off the back of feasibility work in 2019 – there was a lot of demand for business to expand or establish but not enough suitably zoned land or infrastructure,” says Scott. Through the district plan, 70 hectares of land is tagged for rezoning as commercial and industrial. Council is working with several local developers, including CJ Mahony, who bought land in 2020 and is creating a 30-lot commercial hub within the Business Park.
“We are building a high-quality area set up for business, with wide roads, high-speed internet, underground power and newly established stormwater and wastewater infrastructure adjacent to State Highway 3,” says Scott. “A major milestone was reached in February when the intersection upgrades and road sealing were completed on the extension of Fitzgerald Lane and Waihi Road.”
The next phase of construction, to upgrade the rest of Fitzgerald Lane, Little Waihi Road and Kerry Lane, began at the end of February and should take about 24 months. Nearby to the business park is a large master-planned residential subdivision called Longview, which has 259 sections.
Other projects on the horizon or already happening with council backing include renewable energy – wind (onshore and offshore), solar and hydrogen. In Hāwera, the first co-working space and enterprise hub in South Taranaki, Te W’anake The
Foundry, celebrated its first birthday after Waitangi Day this year. The revamped 1905 building on High St offers hot desks, dedicated desks, private offices and meeting spaces. It’s also the base for Bizlink Hāwera, the local business association, which aims to empower and connect local businesses, create vibrancy and drive growth in the town.
Across the road is Te Ramanui o Ruapūtahanga, which will be home to the new library, cultural centre, information desk, art gallery and café. “That’s going to open later this year.”
The council also fully supports Branching Out, a Venture Taranaki-led programme focused on high-value ways of diversifying the use of land in the region, through food and fibre offerings. Scott, who is on the Branching Out governance group, says people are growing a variety of crops, including hops, hemp, medicinal herbs, ashwagandha (known as Indian ginseng), gin botanicals, and avocados.
The district has also seen a rise in tourism, particularly a substantial increase in international visitors. Many of those visitors are in the region for the Centuria Taranaki Garden Festival (NZ’s favourite event for 2023), Taranaki Arts Trail, Taranaki Sustainable Backyards Trail and the Taranaki Fringe Garden Festival.
South Taranaki, especially Ōpunakē, is the perfect place for a classic Kiwi holiday by the sea, or a surfing trip around the coast to some of the best breaks in New Zealand – and the world. “Last year, Airbnb named South Taranaki as the secondmost hospitable district in New Zealand, according to reviews,” says Scott.
Contact Scott: scott.willson@stdc.govt.nz 021 265 4092
