Glen McMillan Okara Ward A POWERFUL VOICE FOR OUR COMMUNITY

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Okara Ward Whangarei and glenmcmillan.co.nz are social media pages ‘All content/images contained on these social media pages/channels are authorised by Glen McMillan 61 Riverside Drive Riverside

Glen McMillan Okara Ward 2019 for better representation. I become disabled at the age of 10 after falling off my bike. I have disabilities from a childhood accident I also have abilities, the abilities outnumber the disabilities.

I would like to work with the council to change things for the better for all our residents with a focus on Okara Ward

I take a common-sense approach to life. I face many barriers, as do many disabled people. I have been removing these barriers for more than 40 years and I would bring this skill to the council.

I moved to Whangarei 6 years ago having lived in Auckland running my own businesses. I purchased a house tucked into the bush in Riverside close to the Riverside Marina. Whangarei is now my home.

I am Co-chair on the WDC Disability Advisory Group.

I like what Whangarei District Council (WDC) is doing with infrastructure in Whangarei.

I have a disability and I drive a V8 but I use a mobility scooter or a wheelchair as well I have a voice disability and a video channel glenmcmillan.co.nz

Please turn the volume up so you can hear me.

Okara Ward Whangarei 2019 Core needs

Revitalising the CBD. My solution would see Whangarei CBD evolving as a place for small boutique retailers, cafes, bars, restaurants, and inner-city apartment living.

Employment employ locals listen to locals their needs and ambitions. The large projects often go to Auckland businesses, only to suffer large cost overruns this has got to stop.

Rail for Northland Whangarei council needs to push for rail to go-ahead. We need to make the city safer day and night.

Whangarei needs better roads and footpaths, water runoff into our rivers needs to be stopped to keep our harbour and rivers clean.

We need to push for and promote the northern rail link, this will have many benefits including making our roads safer by taking trucks and freight off the roads

Council should be using local firms and local people for local projects, we need to stop employing Auckland companies to do work that local companies can do.

Revitalizing Whangarei city CBD. Our main CBD has for a very long time been underutilized there are empty shops everywhere the strand arcade is in steep decline. Retail shops are either struggling or closing

I would like to work with the council to change things for the better.
I take a common-sense approach to life. I face many barriers, as do many disabled people. I have been removing these barriers for more than 40 years and I would bring this skill to the council.

Glen McMillan Okara Ward 2019 for better representation.

I moved to Whangarei 6 years ago having lived in Auckland running my own businesses. I purchased a house tucked into the bush in Riverside close to the Riverside Marina. Whangarei is now my home.

I am Co-chair on the WDC Disability Advisory Group.

I like what Whangarei District Council (WDC) is doing with infrastructure in Whangarei. I have a disability and I drive but I use a mobility scooter or a wheelchair. I have a voice disability please turn the volume up so you can hear me.
I become disabled at the age of 10 after falling off my bike.

Investing in Whangarei

Promoting growth better public transport. Make Whangarei safe again

Whangarei needs to spend wisely and invest in projects that will give a return on investment

These investments need to be scrutinised and questioned investment that fails to return it a lost opportunity. Our population is small budgets are limited

As a candidate for Okara Ward Whangarei if elected I would be wanting to know how money is invested or spent by our council. I have run successful businesses, I understand budgets.

Sports and recreation facilities car parking at some sports grouds is out of control and inadequate.

We need a second public hydrotherapy pool or private business running from the current pool need to be reduced and more public time made available

We need the northern rail link, this will have many benefits including making our roads safer and promoting tourism and providing jobs.

The council needs to invest wisely, with an opportunity to earn a return from investments, we need to avoid white elephant investments such as expensive carpark leases carparks the are mostly unused.

Council should be using local firms and local people for local projects, we need to stop employing Auckland companies to do work that local companies can do.

Cost overruns, we need to be protected from cost overruns, the people of Okara ward see a lot of money wasted the same roads being repaired time and time again.

Let's do it once and do it right Glen McMillan Okara Ward Whangarei.

Make Whangarei safe again

Promoting business Make Whangarei fun again

Northland residents and visitors don’t feel safe in the Whangarei CBD at night.

Do you feel safe going into the Whangarei CBD at Night? research tells me many visitors and residents don’t feel safe in CBD at night, women elderly and the disabled in particular don’t feel safe.

Our business community needs people in our city, to socialize, to enjoy themselves and feel safe. More cameras are needed, we need to identify areas that need better lighting and signage.

We need people living in the CBD we need to relax the rules to make it economical to develop inner-city living

Parking and shopping areas need to be safe for people coming to and from the CBD or to social events work sports and leisure activities.

We need to bring people and income into our CBD. People need to know they can safely leave their cars, get money from bank machines and walk around without fear or intimidation.

The more people we can bring into the CBD the safer we will all feel.

Staying away which is exactly what happens now will only exacerbate the problem of having deserted streets after dark.

What can WDC council do to help make Whangarei a safer, more accessible and safe place to live. They can listen to the people.

WDC needs to spend our money wisely and stay green and clean

Vote for change

Whangarei harbour and our waterways are under threat

Whangarei harbour and waterways are under threat from pollutants, runoff from developments fill our harbour with mud and pollutants, farming practices are reducing the water quality in our streams and rivers.

All over the world cities are being polluted largely by development one year's pollution can take two years to clean up we are sliding backwards this needs to be stopped. only strong enforcement and if needed heavy fines are needed to control the rule-breakers.

I am doing my part I have a section of stream that crosses my land, over four years I have stripped the overgrown stream bank and created a mini wetland, it is small but full of life including very rare fish.

Some parts of Whangarei's waterways have rare fish in small numbers we want more clean water is needed I personly would like to see more enforcement of cattle or sheep getting into our waterways.

Mud I so often see the Hatea river full of muddy water, where is the mud coming from.

WDC needs to spend our money wisely I will look at ways to save while still delivering

Vote for change

Okara Ward 2019

Whangarei CBD is facing the challenges of changing times.

The way we go about their lives and in particular how we spend our money has changed CBD’s all over the world over are struggling to remain relevant against competition from online and big brand retailers and as offices move to a home base and work from the cloud. Big brand outlets are based out at Okara shopping center, a better connection needs to be established between the CBD and Okara shopping center

My solution would see Whangarei CBD evolving as a place for small boutique retailers, cafes, bars, restaurants, and inner-city apartment living.  That would be the long term goal but it is time to start the ball rolling evolution is needed provincial towns across NZ are taking the initiative by taking action now.

Whangarei council needs to look at removing parking meters from the CBD or alternately provide 2-hours free parking if people get the opportunity many would make shorter visits to the CBD which would help retailers.

A pedestrian walkway needs to be designed and built that will take CBD shoppers to Okara and back again, we currently have the Hatea loop which leads not only around the loop by also to the small pocket park on Port road from there is a pedestrian crossing over to Okara shopping center. This is too far from the CBD.

 

CBD revitilisation is needed

Revitalising the CBD remove parking metres

Many councils around the world are making parking free, with a time limit. It’s a simple thing for a council to do, there is a lot our council can learn from shopping centers around New Zealand about how to attract shoppers- free parking is a major one.

The Tauranga City Council and the Rotorua District Council have also had discussions around free parking as one of the ideas to come from community brainstorming meetings.

There are other things Whangarei council can do. Relaxing planning regulations so the conversion of properties to residential use can happen easily rather than through an uncertain and frustrating resource consent process that is hard to navigate and expensive.

Take a look at Melbourne City Council they have revitalized there CBD. They encouraged the conversion of old industrial buildings into new residential spaces by changing regulations and improved the street level environment. As a result, the number of residential units in Melbourne’s CBD population grew by more than 30,000 in just 15 years.

This sort of initiative requires leadership and forward thinking. CBD landlords will be forced to adapt or be left behind. They need to reduce rents and become more creative about how they structure their lease arrangements. The standard commercial lease that locks a tenant in for years is redundant by modernization. Landlords could by offering their space on a week by week basis to meet growing demand from  “pop up stores”. Pop up retail is big business. There are advantages for tenants.

1# It will better suit business unsure about the long-term viability of their business in a location, it will encourage hope for retailers, having so many empty shops in the CBD is lost opportunity.

2# It suits those who want to off-load stock at a location or those who want to target a particular selling period e.g. Christmas.

3# It gives those with products the opportunity to test the market response. Bricks and mortar retailing can be high risk for start-ups, the chance to rent a pop-up store and test the market will lead to some staying and create some excitement.

4# It’s also advantageous to a landlord who would otherwise have vacant space removing cash from their bank account. Most pop up shop tenancies ranges from 1 week to two months.

Investing in Whangarei harbour

Keep our harbour clean promote Riverside Development

Investing in Whangarei

Promoting growth better public transport. promote as a tourism destination