Yesterday, I asked Christchurch mayoral candidates Phil Mauger and David Meates what they thought was the biggest challenge facing Christchurch.
And what a let-down that was.
Phil Mauger answered first, and he said Bromley. The Christchurch suburb that has become synonymous with the appalling odour that’s been coming from the burnt-out wastewater plant and the longstanding composting plant. Unfortunately for the people living there, the word Bromley is like Madonna or Prince - and one word says it all.
It didn’t really surprise me that Phil Mauger thinks that’s the biggest challenge facing Christchurch because, as he says himself, he’s the kind of person who likes to get stuff done and fix things. Practical stuff. That’s what he’s known for and, as far as some people are concerned, loved for.
Remember he announced the other day that if he’s elected mayor, he’ll set-up a roving pothole repair crew. Can we fix it? Yes we can. That’s Phil Mauger.
Then it was David Meates' turn. And he said Bromley too. Which I couldn’t quite believe and I wondered at the time whether he was just saying that because that’s what Phil had said. I suspect if I’d just been talking to him on his own, he might have said something different.
But, either way, they both think sorting out the Bromley odour situation is the biggest challenge facing Christchurch.
But, not wanting to upset the people of Bromley (who have been treated appallingly by the Christchurch City Council), I think if these mayoral candidates think that’s the biggest challenge facing Christchurch then don’t go looking to the city council for any big thinking over the next three years if either of them are running the shop.
To borrow a word used by the Prime Minister yesterday, the city council’s handling of the Bromley situation has been a complete cluster. But is it really the biggest challenge facing Christchurch?
It’s a big clean-up job and re-building trust with the people of Bromley are two big tasks on the Council’s plate - but, in my mind, it certainly isn’t the biggest challenge facing the city. It’s challenging for the people living with the terrible smell - but it’s not the biggest challenge facing the city.
So what is?
I think the biggest challenge facing Christchurch is sorting out this ridiculous situation we have where three local councils operate in complete isolation of each other. Christchurch, Selwyn and Waimakariri. That’s what I think is our biggest challenge.
And it needs to be sorted, because at the moment the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing and for that to be happening in a place the size of Greater Christchurch, is just nuts.
There have been many examples of left hand/right hand, and there was another one yesterday with a recommendation that an 820-home sub-division go ahead in Selwyn, which will increase the size of Prebbleton significantly.
Another example recently was the uproar in Lincoln over plans for a housing development with 1700 new houses.
The Carter Family is behind that one. They want to increase the number of houses in the Lincoln area by more than 50 percent and chew up a huge chunk of farmland in the process.
And while all this is going on in Selwyn, we’ve got the Christchurch council desperately trying to get more people to come and live in the central city. Effectively, Christchurch, Selwyn and Waimakariri are competing against each other.
Which, in my mind, is a massive challenge. Way more of a challenge than cleaning up that shambles in Bromley.
Bromley’s going to be sorted - eventually. Yes, the people in Bromley will probably only believe that once it happens. And yes, the wastewater plant will be sorted well before the composting plant is moved somewhere else. So the smell is going to linger for quite some time yet.
But, as far as I’m concerned, it is not the biggest challenge.

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