To begin with David Trewavas, feigns surprise that the three yearly local body polls have come around again.
“Is it election time? you’re joking. Oh god…”
But then he knowingly admits this may well be his swansong.
If re-elected as mayor, Trewavas will equal the five terms served by Joan Williamson (her first of which was during the final term of the Taupō Borough Council before it merged with the Taupō County Council to become Taupō District Council during local body amalgamation in 1988/89.)
He was certainly keen, he said.
“It’d be just nice now to get back and really concentrate on looking after the people.”
The current team at the council had set the district up well for the future, he felt, with facilities like the new airport terminal, Waiora House, the public space at Te Ātea Tapuaeharuru.
“With the events now secured, you know Supercars and the World Ironman, I think there's been enough on the actual place and now it's all about the people being able to afford to live here, and be part of it and enjoy living here, to enjoy the environment… That'll be I think the campaign that I'll be running anyway.”
Trewavas will have at least one adversary with Zane Cozens, a former councillor and mayoral candidate having declared his bid, though candidate nominations don’t close until midday August 1, with candidates’ names publicly notified on August 6, so more may yet emerge.
It was a challenge Trewavas said he welcomed.
“It's an honour and a privilege to do this job. And I'd like to think I started off trying to be the mayor for all and I've tried to sort of live to those values.”
However, he could understand current cost pressures on households were tough.
“Including our own, and it's a privilege to live here, of course and unfortunately, you know it comes… with a bit of cost and we're just going to keep an eye on those.”
Of the big issues currently facing the council, he felt it was in a healthy position to meet the requirements of Local Water Done Well with the preferred option of keeping control of three waters in-house.
“We do have the benefit of not deferring any maintenance over the years. We've spent the money. We've upgraded the water plants if they've needed doing. That's why our initial thought in the consultation will be… hey let's give it a couple of years and just let it settle in and do a few shared services and then if we need to join another entity at that stage.”
That good bill of health held for other areas too.
“I think we're in a very, very strong position and with the AA+ credit rating you know, we've got a good balance sheet… We've got a bit of debt of course that we will need to address as well over the coming years, but you know, we've had incredible growth.”
The residential development at Kokomea and industrial area at Ashford Park were good examples, he said.
“But now I think it's you know it's time to sort of consolidate a bit and make sure people can still live here and it’s affordable. So, I've got the team looking at what are the rates around the North Island. If you've got a house that's worth $700,000 what are you paying? You know, so we're not too far off the mark.”
A second town bridge across the Waikato River had to be seen as another reasonable priority, he said, with some money set aside in this year's Long-Term Plan for research. People’s views, growth on the northern side of the river and the fact the bridge conveyed wastewater pipes to the treatment plant were all factors to consider.
“We're certainly working on that.”
Keeping rates affordable was also always a challenge.
People didn't realise councils had a cost-neutral balance sheet, he said.
“So we don't make any money as such, we formulate our costs and divvie it up from there… We're so lucky we've got commercial users that you know, they're paying a bit of a differential which helps out the resident ratepayers as well, but we don't want to pick on one sector over another.”
New ratepayers moving into the district also spread the bills around, he said.
“Spreads the workload, the operating costs around a bit. But you know the old retailer in me; operating costs are one of my pet subjects.
“If we can save some money we'll do it, but you know there is a balance here between level of service as well… So it's all very well cutting this and cutting that but then your level of service drops down of course.”
Accompanying the vote for councillors and mayor this October will be a local referendum on the district’s Māori ward – Te Papamārearea.
Having the ward’s two councillors, Danny Loughlin and Karam Fletcher, at the council table had worked well, said Trewavas.
“I enjoy the company and the inclusiveness of our Māori representatives.”
Ngāti Tūwharetoa was a big landowner in the district, he said.
“And we're making decisions on some of that land. Now we have some, you know, representatives around the table. It just makes sense. Absolutely makes sense… they've been wonderful contributors and certainly I'm still supportive. There's nothing in my history that's changed my view on that in the last triennium so I'd like to think that the referendum would view it that way, but we will go with the decision of the people, of course.”
David Trewavas’ voting record in mayoral races
2013 – 4,968, nearest rival Bernhard Chrustowski 2,592
2016 – 8,203, nearest rival Christine Rankin on 2,182
2019 – 7,028 nearest rival Zane Cozens 3864, then Christine Rankin 1,989
2022 – 6,601 nearest rival Christine Rankin 4,762
