Editorial: Future what we make it

Mayor Steve Chadwick is expected to deliver on her vision of the new Rotorua. Photo/Andrew Warner.

Well, Rotorua, you voted for change.

Now new Mayor Steve Chadwick will be expected to deliver.

At a function yesterday Mrs Chadwick presented a vision of Rotorua's future and made it clear that to make change happen it takes a community working together.

This inclusive approach puts the onus on all of us to be part of the solution including perhaps those who in the past have been content to merely point out the problems.

Our new-look council has drafted a vision of what Rotorua should look like by 2030 with seven goals to work towards, as noted in today's lead story.

All seven, including safe, liveable neighbourhoods, a "vibrant" city heart, and "unspoilt" environment, are worthy goals we should strive for, even if 2030 seems a long way away.

But it's not. We're almost four years into this decade already. Long-term goals mean long-term planning and long-term development and growth. We need to get it right now to begin what Mrs Chadwick terms our city's "journey" towards the end of the next decade. That's where you first come in. Take this opportunity to tell the council what you think. The mayor promises that our councillors will be listening.

In the meantime, we now know what to expect from our new council in the current term. By 2016 we should see a much-improved CBD, growth in existing and new business, healthy homes citywide and an effective, efficient council with affordable rates.

If our council can pull all that off in the next three years, then we're off to a great start.