The BFD | Puketapapa: An Absolutely Biased Guide to Auckland Local Elections

Puketapapa Local Board

RATINGS GUIDE:

$ to $$$$$ with $ being a leftist trougher and $$$$$ being small government dynamo

For some, however, a clown is more appropriate. More than one may be awarded.

As Vote Auckland.co.nz has started giving candidates the opportunity to add more information to their profiles online, I’ll be linking that information here also.

In 2016, this 6 member Local Board was made up of 5 Roskill Community Voice (i.e. City Vision) and 1 C&R – Communities and Residents members.

You may cast up to 6 votes in this FPP contest.

I spent many of my formative years growing up in this area. I attended Lynfield College, though I think they’ve probably wiped my name from the records and stood in my first election in 2002 as an Independent for Mt. Roskill. Yes, I finished last.

This is one of the most ‘diverse’ local boards in the city. As an individualist, I think there is nothing more diverse than tens of thousands of individuals as opposed to 100 ethnic groups. These candidates obviously don’t and will mention it as many times as they can to get your support.

Tina Chen – C&R – Communities and Residents $

Tina mentions bringing different ethnicities together and the diverse ethnic make-up of Puketapapa multiple times. I personally don’t care about people’s skin colour and treat each as an individual in his or her own right. Given how dead-red this board has been over several terms, I’d understand if a candidate was planting token warm fluffies to play the game but she seems pretty genuine.

Her first priority once elected is to find out how the council system works. Madam, if you haven’t done your research now, it’s already too late. Your financial expertise won’t help in this den of leftist troughers, well entrenched in the petty politics of local board politicians with parliamentary egos.

Anne-Marie Coury – Roskill Community Voice $

As president of one of Grey Power’s branches, Coury is at least up front about her intentions which is to advocate more cash for her core constituency. I worry that her plan to get seniors back riding bikes again may prove counterproductive.

Anne-Marie is leading the fight (during the brief moments Cathy Casey shuts up) to expand social housing for seniors, using the land from Liston Village to improve Monte Cecilia Park to increase the social housing on the site. Social housing is a central government function and I doubt having multiple local board members interfering is going to improve it.

They speak of concern at reducing open spaces for communities (a result of their support for regulatory intensification, while building more council-funded houses on existing open space.

Inconsistency is a prerequisite for being on this ticket it appears. However, as an incumbent maybe she has some tricks up her sleeve.

Harry Doig – Roskill Community Voice

Doig is current Chair of the local board. He doesn’t live in the area. I don’t personally care but you might.

There are lots of photos in the suburban rags of Doig cutting ribbons for the Puketapapa Community Driving School which seeks to help migrants get driver’s licences. The articles didn’t mention any local board funding but a bit of digging reveals they were approved a $5000 grant to help purchase a Driving Simulator from China. Youthline Auckland Charitable Trust’s request for the same amount was declined. Another $5000 request from Roopa Aur Aap seeking to provide mental, physical and well-being workshops got turned down as was Mika Haka Foundations request to help fund the ‘YES’ – Young Entrepreneur Social Money Club.

I think they should focus on community amenities but if you’re going to throw out grant money, I don’t think they’ve done it well.

Finally, Doig chairs the Local Board with the biggest spend on member catering; $59,622 over the last five years. Doig described the figures as “quite astonishing” and couldn’t understand how it cost so much.

Julie Fairey – Roskill Community Voice

Julie Fairey topped the vote count in 2016 with 7294 and has been Deputy Chairman for the latest term. Fairey is undeniably active, effective and hard-working. It is essential she is unemployed from October 11.

She spear-headed the fight to preserve social housing at Liston Village and claims to have supported affordable housing developments. That second claim is absolute bullshit as Puketapapa Local Board have spent many years fighting Fletchers over the housing development in the former Winstone Quarry, dragging out the commencement of construction by five years. Where do you think those costs are going to be recouped?

Fairey’s local political career is one littered with sticky-beaking into businesses with her failed attempt to prevent a new Warehouse building on Pah Rd, a previously unused, overgrown ‘heritage tree’ site. She’s also taken a leaf out of the Simeon Browne guide to wowserism, successfully campaigning to block a new Three Kings liquor store opening in 2018. Nobody would be more pleased than neighbouring liquor stores preserving their market share.

It is no surprise that Mt. Roskill town centre slides into decline with Puketapapa Local Board now rolling out a ratepayer funded project to revitalise the area. That delay in starting on the Dominion Rd tram has probably given existing businesses a chance to escape before construction bankrupts them.

Jeffrey Johnson – C&R – Communities and Residents $$$

Jeffrey lives on the border of Puketapapa and Mt. Albert and, as a retired police officer, has dedicated many years to Blue Light and other police-related charities, seeking to help young people avoid a life of crime.

Jeffrey has attended the Puketapapa Local Board open meetings for the last three years so deserves a medal and your vote for that level of dedication.

Shail Kushal – Roskill Community Voice $

OK…this guy has been using the Simeon Browne Guide to Wowserism, fighting new bottle stores AND appearing 12 years old. Additionally, he has been working to get more lighting.

He also is volunteering with the local Community Patrol to help keep Mt. Roskill safer. Probably has to sit and wait in the van.

Ella Kumar – C&R – Communities and Residents $$

A veteran of nine years on the local board. Much of what she has done seems to be related to cultural events, food, heritage festivals and attending them. She also made a token appearance in a suburban newspaper article requesting people don’t make religious offerings in the Manukau Harbour where it is leading to pollution of the shoreline.

Somehow she might find the time to “prioritise wise spending of your rates money to enable rates to be kept down.”

She’s been on the board long enough to know that she can’t make a dent in the rates, even if she successfully refused any allocation of funding from Auckland Council (which she won’t).

Fiona Lai – C&R – Communities and Residents $$

Fiona is also standing for the Auckland DHB, where I recommended giving her a 4 in the STV election. Perhaps she would be better suited there with her pharmacological background rather than Local Board with her fresh ideas which look pretty similar to everyone else’s.

Ashwin Ranchod – C&R – Communities and Residents $

Ashwin believes the voice of the community is not being heard. I believe there is no such thing as a “community voice.” There are tens of thousands of voices living in close proximity which constitutes a community and if he thinks that is a voice, he hasn’t even listened.

He has a background in IT but virtually no clue about local government. He believes his experience in large-scale projects means he “will hold Council and Auckland Transport accountable, ensuring local priorities are delivered on-time and on-budget.”

If elected, he’s going to need that sense of humour.

Bobby Shen – Roskill Community Voice $$$

Booby has a background in architectural design, which he mentions several times, already working to consult with the community on a vision for revitalising Mt. Roskill shops. It doesn’t involve taping Julie Fairey’s mouth shut everytime a business opens, so I guess he will go for the expensive alternative.

Bobby has done a lot of volunteer work up until now (not just Architecture for Humanity), so I’m confident he will be one of the better offerings Roskill Community Voice has put forward.

Jonathan Subritzky – C&R – Communities and Residents $$$$$

This guy is a university student studying something actually useful (Law & Commerce) supplementing his income as a part-time labourer having also worked in dairy farming, retail and hospitality. He also serves on the Lynfield College Board of Trustees.

His focus is getting the basics right. That’s all I really want to hear from a first-time candidate. It’s all I want to hear from any local board candidate.

Jon Turner – Roskill Community Voice $$

Jon decided from a young age that fun wasn’t for him, reading Local Board meeting minutes for many years and submitting on as many proposals as he could. I guess we can’t ask Jeffrey Johnson how many times he had seen Jon Turner at Local Board meetings because Turner probably reads them off the internet. I’m not going to google Turner’s submissions but quantity is not the same as quality.

Turner has done plenty of the sort of volunteering that requires rolling one’s sleeves up: weeding, pest trapping, coaching football and athletics.

His biggest priority is protecting and restoring the Waikowhai Coast. I don’t know how many Chinese driving simulators or architectural revitalisations that will cost but it is one of the worthier local board pipe dreams.

MY RECOMMENDATIONS: You have six votes in this FPP contest. You don’t have to use all of them.