Palmerston North City Council

Expect clear return on investment to the community and city as a priority for all big spending decisions made by council staff.

Open the council to more cross-regional partnerships instead of empire building. Learn from and support NZ’s wealth of experience.

Take a balanced approach to decision making for the city using triple bottom line approaches – financial, social/community and environmental.

Encourage more public meetings for the public to be part of council consultation.

Ensure council listens to concerns of the people of Palmerston.

Ensure that council staff prioritise council engagement as a first policy.

Pilot new ways to conduct public engagement to reach more people and move with the times and facilitate easy communication with council.

Offer annual budgets with low, medium and high investment options so residents can see the tangible effects of different levels of spend.

Continue to uphold the world-leading civic relationship with Rangitāne o Manawatū, the mana whenua and kaitiaki of Palmerston North.

Advocate for a smaller council with effective connections to local communities.

Strengthen decision-making, transparency, cost-effectiveness and partnerships with iwi, government and other key stakeholders.

Turn up at the hundreds of community events invited to each year and make time to talk and listen.

Ensure council's engagement and consultation with the community is effective and inclusive.

Ensure council services are provided in an efficient and professional manner and that staff have a positive working environment.

Work in partnership with iwi and ensure an inclusive and welcoming community for all living here.

Entrench local communities' rights for local decision-making in a constitutional framework that limits interference by central government.

Consult with the community on their preference for participatory budgeting, offering test implementation in the next budget cycle.

Establish a local climate forum to guide council's response to the climate crisis and empower it to influence council and community.

Hold evening and weekend public meetings so working people can have their say without taking time off work.

Make elected members more accountable with regular public Q&A sessions.

Support Māori wards and other representation that ensures all voices are heard.

Enhance engagement with ethnic communities through culturally appropriate outreach and multilingual communications.

Implement training for council employees on cultural competency and mental health awareness to better serve diverse communities.

Promote digital tools and platforms that enable ongoing community involvement in decision-making, regardless of location or schedule.

Encourage open, transparent public engagement to ensure every voice is heard and valued in Palmerston North City Council decision-making.

Respect and strengthen Māori representation by fostering meaningful engagement with iwi and Māori communities in Palmerston North.

Reform the council's size and role to improve efficiency, accountability and better serve the needs of Palmerston North City Council residents.

Support Māori wards and establish meaningful representation for Māori on council if wards are disestablished through the referendum.

Support shared services with other local authorities to gain efficiencies.

Retain Māori wards permanently to ensure fair representation and stronger decision-making that reflects all communities in our city.

Ensure renters, marginalised voices and grassroots community advocates have a real seat at the council table to shape decisions.

Publish clear, plain-English summaries of all council reports so every resident can understand and engage in local decision-making.

Support reducing the size of the council at the upcoming six-yearly representation review.

Listen to public feedback and make decisions that are well informed by community consultation.

Increase the size of the residents survey to get a better understanding of key issues for our people.

Engage with all parts of the community to ensure as much as possible everyone is moving in the same direction.

Ensure that council staff have a can do attitude in the knowledge that Palmerston North City Council will not make scapegoats of staff if something goes wrong.

Ensure decisions are based on local knowledge and experience with minimal use of outside consultants where possible.