Facilitating across Departments and Agencies

Joint Officials Group on Land Transport

Everyone talks about promoting public transport, cycling and walking but no one can agree who should pay. We facilitated working groups from both central and local government to investigate the case for further Crown funding into managing demand and promoting alternative transport. We worked on five projects in total (from 2003 to 2008 in Auckland, Wellington, Bay of Plenty, Waikato and Christchurch). The result was a series of deals that everyone could understand and live with.

Shared Cemetery Operations

Merging operations involves more than just who pays for what, it commonly involves very different ways of looking at public good and responsibility. Hutt and Upper Hutt City Councils asked us to facilitate a joint approach to their future investment in cemetery operations. The result was a process which respected different community expectations and allowed the costs to be shared between the two communities.

Merger of Water Supply Operations in the Wellington Region

Major infrastructure involves complex decisions about maintenance and capital, and spreading the cost between different generations. We reviewed business plans and operational savings targets for the shared delivery of water supply between Hutt and Wellington Cities. This provided comfort to both Councils that the allocation of costs was fair and appropriate.

Tourism Demand Water Subsidy Scheme

Providing toilets for visitors at major tourist sites can be a major expense, especially for small local authorities whose ratepayers are bearing the cost. We worked with the Ministry of Health and Local Government New Zealand to design the criteria and processes for allocation of subsidy funds. The result was a system that dealt with the practicalities of isolated communities and fairness for public funds.