“Cyclone Gabrielle and ongoing heavy rain have caused considerable damage across Tairāwhiti, including cutting roading links to the region. This package will support transport initiatives with $125 million to rebuild roads and increase regional resilience.
“The package also includes $64 million for flood protection work to help protect category 2 properties. Some of this flood mitigation work may take time to complete but the council can now get on planning. The agreement is subject to community consultation which the council will begin shortly.
“The Crown will also facilitate a zero interest, 10-year $30 million loan for the Gisborne District Council. This recognises the cashflow challenges the council faces as it remediates the worst of the flood damage. The Crown covering the interest costs of this facility is valued at about $17 million.
“Like the Hawke’s Bay agreement, the Government will support the council to purchase Category 3 homes by contributing half the net cost of any buyout. The net cost is the agreed buyout value less any insurance payments the homeowner receives. We are expecting the Government’s contribution to the buyout to be up to $15 million.
“I want to take this opportunity to commend the mayor, the council and local Iwi for their collaborative approach to planning the recovery for Tairāwhiti. Continuing this inclusive approach will bring meaningful results for the people of the region.
“We also have a parallel pathway for dealing with whenua Māori in category 3. This pathway recognises there are unique legal provisions governing Māori land, and duties that sit with the Crown rather than with councils. We are continuing to engage with whānau, hapū and iwi on these issues. I expect to make announcements on this in the coming weeks.”
The offer will total $204m. The $64m going towards flood protection and investigation work is for areas including Te Karaka, Tolaga Bay, Tokomaru and Makarika.
“The negotiation team have pushed hard, which has resulted in an offer that provides wider benefits for our community,” Mayor Rehette Stoltz said.
“While Government indicated that this has been a locally-led centrally supported process, Council is effectively implementing new government policy.
“We’ve had to undertake an enormous amount of work in order to be in the position we are in now.
“Our overarching goal has always been to ensure our communities are safe, connected and protected and we wanted to ensure that the people of Tairāwhiti aren’t left shouldering an impossibly heavy financial burden.
“We’re grateful to the Government for supporting our region. However, more investment is still required for us to fully recover, and we look forward to further discussion with the Government in the coming months.
“For those in our community whose properties are subject to the voluntary buyout process, this will empower them to make informed decisions and provide greater certainty about their future.
“There’s a great deal of work to do between now and when we can consult. We need to prepare and approve a consultation document so that our community knows what is being asked of them as this is a significant change for the Council. We also need to develop the buyout process and policy.
“We will be consulting in October in order to move the agreement forward.
“Once that consultation is finalised, we will be in a position to implement the next steps for the buyout process.”
Labour List MP and Labour Party East Coast candidate Tāmati Coffey welcomed the news.
“I’m pleased to see our local Council and the Government come together to support the rebuild. While the rebuild will take time, this package will provide further certainty to homeowners and council as we continue with the recovery.”
