Retired councillor still keeping an eye on local politics
“I’m not a born-and-bred Golden Bay local but I feel very connected to the place and I felt that I could represent it well.” Photo: Neil Wilson.
Noel Riley, who resigned last month as one of Golden Bay’s ward councillors because of a recent health scare, says his health is now 100 per cent.
The former councillor has just returned from visiting family in far-northern Queensland and says he is looking forward to “enjoying life with my wife and family” after eight years in local body politics.
Health issues had prevented him from driving since last December, and the number of council-related meetings over the Hill meant that Noel’s endlessly patient wife Kath had to become his chauffeur. Though he expects to get the all clear to drive when he visits a specialist in about six months’ time, he said his work situation had become unsustainable. Noel had been on sick leave and, though he continued to do council work and keep up to date with developments, he decided to resign.
“I waited till after a particular meeting with the aquaculture industry before I resigned,” says Noel. “Port Tarakohe is one of my main concerns. It was part of the reason I decided to stand for council in 2004. It’s absolutely essential that nothing untoward happens to that port. In another time, the council saw fit to sell Port Motueka for $1. I wanted to make sure that didn’t happen here.”
The aquaculture industry needs a food-grade wharf at Tarakohe, Noel explains, and the council is saying the wharf has to be economically self-sustaining.
“The council’s enterprise committee, which I chaired, had the job of sitting down and hammering out the deal. I’m pleased to say there will be some action on this issue in the very near future. It was something I thought was really important to get done before I finished.”
Noel says that he is grateful for the support he received while he was on leave and the expressions of appreciation that poured in when he resigned.
“Richard Kempthorne and Trevor Norriss were particularly helpful and supportive while I was unwell. There are some people I’ve worked with on the council that I’ll really miss. Trevor and the former councillor Elaine Henry are two who stand out for me. Some others might be quite pleased to see the back of me.”
Noel says he didn’t go into local body politics to kiss babies or to revel in the opportunities for what he calls “backslapping and social small-talk”.
“I am very proud to say I’m from Golden Bay. I wanted to serve the community - our community over here - as well as the wider Tasman community. I’m not a born-and-bred Golden Bay local but I feel very connected to the place and I felt that I could represent it well.”
Noel and Kath came to the Bay in 1985, when Noel was appointed to the job of building inspector for the Golden Bay County Council. He later became acting county clerk for that council and then service centre manager for the newly amalgamated Tasman District Council. When he retired in 2002, he was the service centre manager for Takaka, Motueka and Murchison.
Because his career spanned the period during which the last major amalgamation took place, Noel is taking great interest in the present proposal for the union of the Nelson and Tasman councils.
“I remember we’d gone right through the process of setting up a governance structure for the county to continue after the amalgamation of Motueka, Murchison, Waimea and Richmond. In October 1989, then-councillor Ann Lewis and I went over to a pre-amalgamation meeting where the LGC presented their verdict on what was going to happen and, in the second-to-last sentence, they announced that Golden Bay was to be part of the amalgamation too. It was a shock at the time and there are some people in Golden Bay who appear to be still fighting that battle.”
Noel reckons that the Bay’s population base is not big enough to generate the rates income to maintain our infrastructure, let alone improve it. He says that it was economically logical for the Bay to be included in the Tasman District. On the subject of the current proposal he is typically direct.
“I don’t favour the proposal in its present form. The so-called delegations aren’t strong enough to make councils do something. They could still say ‘we’re the ones who make the decisions here’, and override the boards. I think the delegations are a bit airy-fairy. They should be very clearly specified.”
Noel submitted on the issue and he intends to speak when the Local Government Commission hears submitters.
He says he is “a bit concerned” about the make-up of the transition committee that will oversee the melding of the two councils if the proposed union gets the support of the voters.
“It could be like a gang one side and a gang on the other - and they’ll never agree.”
Noel says that he has been lucky to have the support of Kath in his time in local body politics. For her part, Kath says that most people probably have no idea how hard ward councillors work for their constituents. She says Noel was a good councillor because “he’s honest and there are no grey areas with him”.
“He’s not afraid of what other people think of him and he knows when things don’t stack up. He’s never been part of ‘the club’ that can develop on councils. He’s too straight-talking to belong to this faction or that faction.”
Noel will continue to keep an eye on local body politics.
Neil Wilson
The following nominations for the Golden Bay By-election: Laurence Boomert (nominated by Victoria Davis and Joanna Piekarski), Sue Brown (nominated by Noel Riley and Desmond Clark), Paul Sangster (nominated by Graham Drummond and Lorraine Woods), Mik Symmons (nominated by Carolyn McLelland and Robin Manson).
Voting documents will be sent out from 12 September 2011, with voting closing at 12noon on Wednesday 5 October 2011.
Preliminary results are expected on Wednesday 5 October 2011, with final declaration on 12 October 2011.
