Napier Mayor’s Column: Kirsten Wise proud to be part of Hawke’s Bay’s community

Napier Mayor Kirsten Wise. Photo / NZME

OPINION

We’ve just had the kind of weekend that makes you proud to be part of Hawke’s Bay’s community.

Thousands of visitors came to enjoy our scenery, hospitality, and facilities for the Hawke’s Bay Marathon.

It’s not just athletes who come for marathon weekend; it’s also their supporters and families, and together, they create quite a buzz.

Although locals do take part, the marathon is popular with people who live elsewhere in the country. We even have competitors coming from overseas. The marathon helps keep Hawke’s Bay on the map of attractive destinations. It’s a great feeling to have so many people in town, enjoying all we have to offer.

It’s not just the vibe that’s good for us. Having successful events is great for our economy too. When Tom Jones played McLean Park earlier this year the financial benefit to Napier was $1 million. That includes things like visitor accommodation and hospitality spend.

As a council, we have a role to play in events like the marathon and music festivals. Depending on the size and particular needs, we get involved at different levels and with different types of contributions both in terms of resources and finances.

Often, our role is more in logistics and local knowledge than funding. It’s in our region’s best interests to ensure that events can happen here seamlessly and sustainably so that they become regular fixtures.

Every event requires different things from us, so we are flexible and adaptable, working directly with the organiser on their specific and nuanced needs. It’s not an area traditionally associated with the council, but Napier itself has always been a hub for happenings.

We’re lucky we have spaces and places where we can host visitors. Ensuring we have quality events to put in our venues is just as important as helping make Napier a desirable destination.

From traffic management to safety, we have many roles in ensuring our city and surroundings are fit for purpose and can host events of different types and sizes.

We’ve done much work to improve safety and have more in the pipeline. This includes our dedicated Napier Assist team of city kaitiaki, plenty of street and landmark lighting, CCTV and rethinking public places and spaces.

Our city is not just a backdrop for events; events are not just nice. Events entice people to Napier and leave them wanting more. Events increase visitor nights and visitor spending.

Events cement the relationship between a person and a place so they feel good about being here and want to come back.

The council actively ensures that our city hosts events because it is imperative for economic development and good for us.

Events connect people and give them a common purpose. They build wellbeing and social capital. Locals feel pride when Napier hosts events because they give us a reason to invite our out-of-town friends to join us for the weekend, whether it’s for a shakeout or for a show!