Foxton Community Board provides substantial voice, says new member

Nola Fox

Nola Fox scored the highest number of votes of all elected Te Awahou Foxton Community Board members: 1089 as of last Saturday night.

Other members elected to the board are John Girling, Trevor Chambers, David Roache and Brett Russell. Only Nola and Brett are new members.

Nola, who has been involved with the Foxton Wildlife Trust and the attempts to save the Foxton Memorial Hall said the number of votes she got "pleasantly surprised" her.

She's raring to go. "I am fully prepared to commit to the community board and do all the work needed."

She said she has made sure the wildlife trust is in good nick, so she can step back quite a bit.

"We are in discussions with the council about the War Memorial Hall and I think once that is up and running I can hand over to an administrator."

Council communication and transparency are high on her agenda.

"Foxton people do not understand what the council does or that it has done a lot for Foxton and has invested substantial amounts in both communities. They just haven't been able to communicate that well enough."

She believes the council must hear what the locals want and its processes must reflect that.

"People need to be able to see the benefits. Greater engagement is needed."

She said Foxton's big issue involves drainage.

"It needs a lot of work.

"Foxton is growing as a destination, but we must find a way to keep the distinctive Foxton vibe.

"We would also like a better understanding of the Foxton Beach withholding account too. We need much more information on that."

She said Foxton's two covered up dumps, at the beach and the King's Canal, also need dealing with.

While the community board's role is to advise the council, Fox said she believed community boards are a much better system than ward councillors.

"Our board provides a significant voice at council for both Foxton and Foxton Beach."

She said she's going to have a go at chairing the board, provided returning chair David Roache doesn't want it.