Public life beckons

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The main reason Bill Milbank is putting himself forward for election to Wanganui District Council is his desire to protect the city's built heritage.

Bill Milbank

"It's rich. It needs to be nurtured and it needs some solid weight of council decision making over the next period of time to see us through what's obviously a crisis," he said.

Brought up on his parents' farm near Raetihi, Mr Milbank first came to Wanganui with the ambition to get involved in its architecture. He worked in town planning for the council of the day for seven years, and then he got a job at the Sarjeant Gallery and eventually became its director, until losing that job "as a result of a political change".

Since then his focus has been on his own dealer gallery, the WHMilbank Gallery, and on his consultancy business WHM Consulting.

But his great-great- grandfather John Handley was the chairman of Wanganui's first town board, and after a period outside public life he's feeling the need to contribute again.

As gallery director he's had a lot to do with Treaty of Waitangi issues, and was the chair of a national art gallery and museum association as it moved to a bicultural structure. So another motivating factor is what he can contribute at a time when treaty settlements are coming to the fore in the district.

"I think a council that's sensitive to iwi needs will be invaluable at this point," he said.

He's been involved in arts for decades, but said the council already had councillors who were strong advocates for the arts and he was supportive of the direction the Sarjeant Gallery was going.

Where funding is concerned, he won't be wanting any rates blowouts.

"I think we have to find new ways of bringing back in funds that may be privately held in the community or can be drawn in by partnerships. Those sorts of partnerships do exist and are growing in the corporate world."