Your chance to respond to Council spending
Go to the NPDC website and select 10 Year Plan . It states ; "Every three years, residents help us build our draft 10-year work programme to manage $4 billion worth of assets and $3 billion budget.
This year, we want you to GIMME FIVE by filling out our online survey. Everyone who completes it goes into the draw to win one of five $300 shopping vouchers" .
Ratepayers are being asked to pay for a rates increase well above inflation on the basis of "catching up' .In additon NPDC are planning for more "vanity projects" so they can add more "Targeted Rates ( like Yarrows Stadium). This is while the Council previously stated rates would be capped at 7% , and in addition to that the council sit on the vast permanent investment fund . There seems to be no strategy for how the Permanent Investment Fund should be used ,maybe ratepayers should give them some suggestions ! .
🧩😏 Riddle me this, Neighbours…
I am an odd number. Take away a letter and I become even. What number am I?
Do you think you know the answer?
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Some Choice News!
DOC is rolling out a new tool to help figure out what to tackle first when it comes to protecting our threatened species and the things putting them at risk.
Why does this matter? As Nikki Macdonald from The Post points out, we’re a country with around 4,400 threatened species. With limited time and funding, conservation has always meant making tough calls about what gets attention first.
For the first time, DOC has put real numbers around what it would take to do everything needed to properly safeguard our unique natural environment. The new BioInvest tool shows the scale of the challenge: 310,177 actions across 28,007 sites.
Now that we can see the full picture, it brings the big question into focus: how much do we, as Kiwis, truly value protecting nature — and what are we prepared to invest to make it happen?
We hope this brings a smile!
Have you got New Zealand's best shed? Show us and win!
Once again, Resene and NZ Gardener are on the hunt for New Zealand’s best shed! Send in the photos and the stories behind your man caves, she sheds, clever upcycled spaces, potty potting sheds and colourful chicken coops. The Resene Shed of the Year 2026 winner receives $1000 Resene ColorShop voucher, a $908 large Vegepod Starter Pack and a one-year subscription to NZ Gardener. To enter, tell us in writing (no more than 500 words) why your garden shed is New Zealand’s best, and send up to five high-quality photos by email to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz. Entries close February 23, 2026.
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