Hākinakina Iwi Kāinga: Proposed changes in local sports funding could offer opportunities

The newly elected Rotorua Lakes Council is about to present its first budget for the annual plan. Photo / Ben Fraser

OPINION

Hākinakina Community News is a weekly update about our own local community sports and athletes.

We voted in a council for change and, as the current mayor put it, “stop spending”.

The newly elected Rotorua Lakes Council is about to present its first annual plan budget and the draft suggests community sport will not be spared, with proposed cuts in funding, staff, services and resources.

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It would be easy to criticize the council for some of the key changes proposed to the sports and leisure portfolio, including reducing the level of service to clubs and codes, and attracting and supporting sporting events.

The draft also proposed a pause in capital work to improve athletic fields at Westbrook, Smallbone and Ray Boord parks. This would include replacing the lighting for the No. 2 Stadium hockey turfs and field, repositioning and improving field layouts, and upgrading toilets and changing rooms at Ray Boord Park.

A pause in improving hiking and mountain biking trails and facilities in the forests of Whakarewarewa and Titokorangi is also proposed.

But let’s be part of the solution.

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While this is only part of a much larger picture, these few points offer a potential opportunity for our sports community to focus on and help keep our codes from becoming stagnant and losing momentum.

The risk of introducing these changes without a collective plan to close these gaps will have a major impact on our community, which I think the Council would like to mitigate.

We already have a generation of kids who have had two or three seasons in community sport that have been affected by Covid. As a community, we cannot be seen as creating more barriers to play.

A hiking trail in the Whakarewarewa Forest. Photo / Andrew Warner

So how can we help?

Let’s be realistic, I think cuts are coming. But can we have a say in what editions are available?

Are there other ways the sports community can support the Council in meeting its wellbeing goals while keeping our athletic members attractive and interested in gaming?

There are some passionate and creative people in our sports community.

I think we can examine and direct our volunteer capacity into some of the usual Council activities to reduce their scope. Will there be opportunities to partner with clubs and associations to help with some operations and maintenance tasks?

Perhaps create a working group or model club to initiate service delivery.

Free delivery of other council locations for unique training options, meetings and events. There will be some standards, health and safety, communications, usage restrictions and delivery monitoring to reassure, but it will also instill in users a sense of ownership and pride, which is a key goal of the Wellbeing Council.

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We can make our case that community sports resources and facilities have been neglected for years and I think we would have a strong case.

The short to medium term situation suggests even less support from our city guards, but criticism will not help our children and the community who need organized sport in attractive facilities.

Please join the feedback phase on the draft annual plan, which ends on May 12, and bring your ideas on any resolutions.

Council priorities include smart investing, community trust, a vibrant reputation, purposeful growth, safe and proud communities, trusted stewards of resources, and authentic engagement.

Hakinakina Iwi Kainga – community sport – combines all of these elements and further enhances the feedback on our local codes.

We’re all in the same boat.

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