You're pushing all of this onto the council though Rick, and whether consciously or unconsciously highlighting other areas of funding that you disagree with as unimportant, which others not of your political persuasion will no doubt disagree with. In fact you're deliberately highlighting areas that those on the right tend to look down upon with scorn, but hey, that's up to you.
If we're all agreed that there's 40 years of neglect and infrastructure deficit going on here, perhaps there's an underlying mechanism that has contributed to that. More than one maybe - for example privatisation.
Or neoliberalism, which tends to completely drive the policies of our successive governments.
So yes, you would think this would be the priority. And clearly it was, through three waters.
So, you're saying that all those years of council neglect are not their fault? Lets go back to 2004 when the 3 waters, handled solely by the city and Hutt councils was integrated into a council run and operated scheme called Capacity Infrastructure Services. CIS operated the plants until being merged with the rest of the Wellington region councils in 2014, culminating in Wellington Water being formed. Notable that Veolia has been the operator of choice there since 2004 as well, and in the eyes of council(s) must be doing ok as they are still the incumbent.
I'm unsure how you see privatisation as a problem there. Veolia only operate the plants (as they do for many other councils in NZ) They may have an input into Capital Works but that always has been and still is a Council decision. In this case through Wellington 3 Waters
One would think that 20 odd years is enough time to get your shit together (pardon the pun) and get some decent infrastructure going for a basic council requirement.
Unfortunately Neo liberalism is not to blame for all the ills of the world and especially in this case where successive councils have not spent enough or wisely enough of the rate payers hard earned nor borrowed enough to get the job done.
My political persuasion is not the point nor is it driven in this discussion. As I have said, in my opinion the Council has lost the focus of what they are there for and in many cases gone off on vanity and idealistic projects that are again in my view, economic vandalism, when clean water and safe sewage/stormwater disposal should be the major priority of all councilors.
I'm also not putting scorn onto what others think are appropriate items for council to be engaging in, rather it's the cost of said items. My end point still is that if Wellington ratepayers are happy then good luck to them but stay away from the hand wringing and running to Govt for help..
To finish up as the bar is just opening here, people are all different, your idealistic thoughts are not mine for sure. However, that doesn't mean yours are right and mine wrong or vice versa. And in my book that's a fortunate thing.
In fact I really don't know what you stand for at times other than that neo liberalism is the plague of the world. I know a few others have asked this question but I'll throw it out there again, what is it that you really stand for and if not society as it is (warts and all) what is your success plan for the future?
