I don’t usually respond to the small group of self-appointed “community advocates” whose sole passion in life appears to be abusing Auckland Council, Auckland Transport and members of the Waitemata Local Board (without ever letting the facts get in the way of a good rant).
But, as we head into this year’s local body elections, this is a good time to reflect on what it takes to make a positive difference to this vibrant and unique community that we live in.
Let’s start with the importance of telling the truth. If you’re going to write letters to the editor of the Ponsonby News, get the facts right, or you’ll mislead people about important community issues (and make a fool of yourself in the process). If things in our community need fixing or improving, then, by all means, bring your suggestions to the Local Board. That’s what we’re here for and we welcome the many deputations and informal feedback we receive from community groups and members of the public. A lot of these deal with issues outside the Local Board’s remit – such as Auckland Transport or Watercare issues – but, where that is the case, the Local Board has a close working relationship with the other parts of Council and can advocate on behalf of the Waitemata ward. Not every suggestion is a good one, but the Local Board’s role is to listen and to distil a commonsense approach out of all of the input that it gets. But please – don’t do your community a disservice by telling porkies.
Dignity and basic decency also play a key role in building the fabric of a community. Constant whining and expletive-laden tirades have the opposite effect. It’s healthy to have and to express different points of view, but everyone just tunes out if you don’t respect your fellow community members. 99% of the people who interact with the Local Board understand the importance of good manners. Sadly, it’s the other 1% who make all the noise.
Then there’s the most important issue of all – striving to make our part of Tamaki Makaurau Auckland better than it is now – being aspirational and having a vision of the future. A common theme from the most vocal critics of Council and the Local Board is that they just don’t like change. They’d really prefer everything to stay the way it is. They don’t like Meola Road being transformed. Never mind that it was falling apart, dangerous and prone to flooding. They’d prefer the Liquorland at 254 Ponsonby Road, instead of the magnificent new public space – Te Rimutahi – which has replaced it. They don’t want Karangahape Road made more pedestrian-friendly so that it can be used safely by more people. They don’t like money being spent to build world class precincts around the new CRL stations. They appear to have an allergic reaction to anything which might encourage public transport, even though every other city in the world sees this as critical.
The bottom line is that cities which don’t transform and modernise just stagnate. They are not nice to live in, they don’t foster community spirit and pride and they don’t support local businesses or property values. The grinches who don’t get this are out of touch with reality.
If you get all of this right – and if you don’t let the serial whingers rain on your parade - you get a strong community that actually knows what’s going on (without being misled by some distorted reinvention of the facts). People are then encouraged to make suggestions – and even to stand for elected office – without fear of being abused. You get a sense of togetherness by being respectful and polite. Most importantly, you get a community that evolves and thrives – not one that gets stuck in the 1980s.
So, to Roger Hawkins and those like you, before you write any more letters to the editor – like the one which appears in the July edition of Ponsonby News – try getting your facts right. Try to display some basic good manners, try to embrace change. And try smiling – you might even enjoy it!
#ponsonbynews #iloveponsonby #loveponsonby #auckland #aucklandshippestrip #onlyponsonby #ponsonbyroad #Greylynn #freemansbay #westmere #ponsonby #hernebay #stmarysbay #archhill #coxsbay @followers #followers @everyone #everyone #waitematalocalboard @highlight
