Penny Hulse the former Deputy Mayor of Auckland will be in Raglan at the end of the month to deliver a talk about council mergers currently being planned around the country. Raglan Naturally and Raglan Community Radio are hosting the Strengthening Our Voice In Local Government event at the Town Hall at 2pm Sunday 28th. Waikato District Mayor Aksel Bech will also be speaking.
Penny Hulse will bring her experience building connections with the community when she was Deputy Mayor of Waitakere Eco City along with the experience of trying to maintain democratic responsiveness when Waitakere was incorporated into the Auckland Super City.
Waikato District Council is launching a social media campaign this week to highlight the important mahi rubbish and recycling contractors do for our communities. The campaign comes in response to increased aggressive behaviour and verbal abuse towards collection crews and, in one case, physical abuse.
This behaviour has not been happening in Raglan and Whaingaroa where Xtreme Zero Waste’s collection crew is still very popular with the community who often leave them presents at Christmas.
Council staff say these incidents in other parts of the district often arise when items are left behind because they don’t meet collection requirements. Crews have been told not to pick up oversized bags, inorganic items like TVs, mattresses and toilets, non-recyclable materials, or bags and wheelie bins without the correct pre-paid stickers or tags .
An exhibition celebrating raranga harakeke and whakairo is opening at the Old School on Thursday with works created by local weavers and carvers on display until 29th June. Visitors are also invited to demonstration events planned for the weekend.