Local Democracy at stake as QLDC attempts to silence Niki Gladding

We certainly did not vote for QLDC's secret vision of our future.

Analysis.

Many members of the community will have noticed the increasingly hard line approach taken by the Queenstown Lakes District Council.

Apparently emboldened by their control of the Mountain Scene and hidden support from the “top end of town” they are now going for broke – literally.

They started digging a hole for themselves (again literally) by funding $100 million up front to the Australian Lakeview developers while given them (a very wealthy company) 20 years to pay for a $42 million plot of council land. In the commercial world shareholders would have wanted mass resignations over such a deal.

They lied over their procurement rules for over a year before revealing that 300 transactions a month were non-compliant totalling around $24 million.

They are still focussed on building a $50 million HQ for themselves in a complex and potentially risky land swap deal with Ngāi Tahu property.

We were never told the truth about why QLDC paid around $6 million for a rotting toxic house at 516 Ladies Mile – then demolished it for a sports field.

The mismanagement of the CBD cosmetic rebuild and the road to nowhere are legendary with another $100 million down the proverbial toilet.

You could not make this stuff up.

And recently we have been told for months that the Shotover sewage plant is working fine and discharges are compliant – before being told this week that discharges are “uncontrolled” and public health risks “can’t be managed.” Compliance has been impossible.

Where does all of this stop?

Like Aspen Colorado, property speculation seems to have replaced tourism as our main industry – and since when has property speculation been an open and transparent community activity?

There’s a chance for change at this year’s local elections. There’s also a feeling that “just in case” the Executive Leadership Team and Mayor will be pushing through as many contracts and deals as possible before those elections.

The community will need to make its voice heard very loudly to stop this slide into whatever it is that the powers behind QLDC see as our future.

Whatever it is, we certainly did not vote for it.