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Pre-election report 2025
While Pre-election Reports are legislatively required and produced every three years as part of our local elections process, they’re way more than just a report for potential candidates. A Pre-election Report is also for voters, and anyone interested in our community.
Pre-election Report 2025
Prepared by Chief Executive Darren Edwards, the Pre-election Report 2025 outlines the role of Council governance (Elected Members) in addressing local needs and summarises our strategic direction, and major projects and finances over the past and next three years. It also outlines the major challenges and issues facing our district, encouraging informed discussions and debates.
We might be biased, but we think it’s a great read and a document we and the community should come back to time and time again. It’s about where we have been and where we are going, and what might make that path tricky along the way.
There is a huge amount going on in local government right now, which will have a significant effect on the future of our district, so we want everyone – especially those who aspire to be leaders in our community, to be as well informed as possible. We encourage you to read the Pre-election Report and learn more [PDF 5.22 MB].
“As we move into the next triennium, it will be essential that our Elected Members approach their roles with an open mind. Understanding the implications of historical decisions, funding choices, and the scale of our high-value asset portfolio will be key to ensuring sound decision-making and responsible governance,”
Chief Executive Darren Edwards.
Building a resilient future for Kāpiti
The work of local government is complex, but its impact is real - it shapes the everyday lives and the future of our communities. Our focus continues to focus on delivering on our community outcomes of place, people, and partnership to ensure:
- our place is resilient and liveable for current and future generations
- people are supported to live, work and play in our district
- we partner with others to connect, facilitate, and advocate for the good of all in Kāpiti.
Council has made good progress over the past three years, delivering significant key infrastructure such as the first of two new water supply reservoirs and progressing a major upgrade to the wastewater network in Ōtaki. We’ve addressed critical flooding concerns in Paraparaumu, Waikanae and Ōtaki, are halfway through a $22 million upgrade to the Waikanae Water Treatment Plant and have almost completed the Paraparaumu Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade. If a previous Council hadn’t made the decision to install water meters more than a decade ago, this investment wouldn’t have been possible, and we wouldn’t have been in the position to retain our three waters services in-house under Government’s Local Water Done Well reform.
We’ve also progressed transport enhancements on parts of the Old State Highway 1 passed onto Council, reopened access to Blue Bluff along the Ōtaki Gorge Road, and enhanced public transport connections with a new Transport Hub in Paraparaumu.
Toi MAHARA has enriched the cultural fabric of our district, Maclean Park skate park is open and proving popular, and innovative solutions for repurposing building materials and reducing landfill waste can now be found at the Otaihanga Zero Waste Hub.
Council has also adopted Plan Change 2 to the Operative Kāpiti Coast District Plan and established an independent Affordable Housing Trust to respond to Government's requirements to accommodate more residents. And we’ve introduced a financial strategy that focuses on sustainable funding, debt reduction, and strong asset management.
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Looking ahead
Council has set an ambitious programme of capital works with a focus on improving asset performance and resilience as well as our project management maturity and capability. Works include progressing a second reservoir and continuing wastewater and stormwater improvements in Ōtaki, stage two of the Waikanae Water Treatment Plant upgrade, further work at the Paraparaumu Water Treatment Plant, and significant stormwater improvements for Kenakena and the Te Atiawa Stream.
Like-for-like replacements of the Paekākāriki and Raumati seawalls will begin, and more than $15 million of investment will be used for roading, footpath and street lighting renewals over the next three years.
Stage two of Vision Kāpiti is turning our community’s aspirations into action with town planning to ensure our centres are vibrant and fit for purpose. A highlight for Waikanae will be the construction of Te Ara Whetū, the new library for Waikanae, as well as a refresh for Waikanae Park. We also aim to invest $1 million per year to implement the recently adopted walking and cycling Pathways Network Plan 2027-36.
Key challenges
From continuous Government reform, a growing population, the need for more affordable housing, a changing climate, and the reliance on rates and debt funding there’s much we need to navigate together.
We know many of our residents are dealing with significant economic pressures in both their households and businesses, Council is facing similar pressures alongside large costs associated with our assets and infrastructure. Our reliance on rates and debt funding means we require more core services than we’re able to provide. We need Government’s support in key areas such as health, education, transport, and housing.
Our low-lying coastal district also comes with risks, particularly in relation to severe weather events and natural hazards. We have prioritised enhancing our own emergency management capability through adopting an ‘all-in’ approach to staff training and standing up a recovery function. However, a big event such as Cyclone Gabrielle will impact Council’s ability to operate business-as-usual functions, as our immediate focus will be on the response, potential long-term recovery efforts, and managing the impact on our infrastructure.
“In the interests of good representation, we need people from all walks of life. We also need those people to be able to work together to make decisions in the best interests of the entire district,”
Chief Executive Darren Edwards.
Chief Executive Darren Edwards.