Still Can’t Work This Out

Still having trouble processing this

All good, I get it so far.

Then we have the expenditure which includes a transfer to ‘pool fundraising’

OK. I still ‘get it’

Here’s where I get confused

So why hasn’t the balance gone up by $50K?

The only way I can process it is if the $50K was transferred to the OFFICIAL  pool account (as in the new trust).  I won’t know if that’s the case until around September (I think).  The Treasurer made this comment in an email to Richard King.

To me it makes sense but my interpretation of it still leaves me with the question – Why hasn’t the balance gone up by $50K?

Could someone PLEASE explain it to me?  Private communication accepted since Bluffies seem to be scared of the comments feature:-)

What Is Urban Renewal?

I only started looking it up when it was mentioned by ICC, here’s a few definitions:

Rehabilitation of impoverished urban neighborhoods by large-scale renovation or reconstruction of housing and public works.

The process where an urban neighborhood or area is improved and rehabilitated. The renewal process can include demolishing old or run-down buildings, constructing new, up-to-date housing, or adding in features like a theater (s or stadium. Urban renewal is usually undergone for the purposes of persuading wealthier individuals to come live in that area. Urban renewal is often part of the gentrification process.

I recommend reading the gentrification link:-o.  Urban renewal was a bad choice by council I think, it implies council driven.  I prefer community development definitions:

Community development seeks to empower individuals and groups of people by providing them with the skills they need to effect change in their own communities. These skills are often created through the formation of large social groups working for a common agenda.

Community Development is about the active involvement of people in the issues which affect their lives. it is a process based on the sharing of power, skills, knowledge and experience.

I was excited by the idea (indirectly).  As I have mentioned before the rezoning was evolving into community development ideals.  I’m left feeling a little (a lot) flat now that the South Alive project has shown it is of the urban renewal ilk.  I’m not naive enough to think they can be doing a ‘community’ plan debrief less than 24 hours after getting the community’s ideas.  I think the consultation was only to make the community feel like they were involved in the plan and the plan was ready before hand.

To me Glengarry is community development in the proper sense and Bluff would have done something similar before now if we didn’t have such an inept community board that hinder progress rather than help.  The leadership of the board has been about the chairperson obtaining power (just look at the amendment to the BCCT)and select board members being involved (manipulated) and the addition of Charlie to the Board has clearly shown the their opinions of ‘people’ by the other members cloud the ‘issues’.

I am yet to find an instance where the board has supported the majority view in the community rather than their own.  Communication is limited to a once a year newsletter (which I know was printed on at least one occasion before members even saw a draft from the chairperson).   The chairperson as editor writes board information  (with spin) in the Bluff Beacon and it is after the fact on nearly everything.  I see that as ‘informing’ but does nothing toward getting people involved.  The communication and consultation from and by the board is basically non-existent.  It all seems to be from the chair.  A by-product of the code of conduct (an effort to control Charlie speaking his mind) is that it reiterates that the chair has no powers to speak for the board without the views of the other members and a collective decision.  It has taken many years for that to come about yet still she holds power over other members with appointments to other organisations and by not sharing information and by not declaring conflicts and bias.  It doesn’t help that she is also unwilling to support ideas that are not her own.

I mentioned that Charlie thought I had ‘declared war’, I think I’m ready to now.  Since community development is based on the sharing of power, skills, knowledge and experience and the chair has repeatedly shown she is not, then that coup may well be necessary.  Grab your pitchforks!

What’s Goin’ On ‘Ere Then?

I haven’t been very ‘on to it’ lately, it seems the Bluff Community Charitable Trust has amended it’s trust deed and to show it’s  disregard for the general public of Bluff – the community board now have control over the appointment of FOUR out of six trustees.

You don’t see them reporting this to the community board meetings.

They are appointed because they are elected members from the board therefore they have a responsibility to report what they are doing to the board (as a collective).

Remember they are the ‘legal’ owners of the Town Hall that was ‘gifted to the Bluff Community’ .  The trust uses the Bluff Community name but doesn’t serve the community.  The chair of the board appoints herself and two lackies and now they have replaced the Southland Conversation Board appointment with ‘a representative for the Bluff business community’.

I do not see how the business community are relevant to a trust who’s objectives are sporting, educational and/or recreational initiatives and facilities and community development.  Bluff Promotions Inc has businesses as the majority of it’s members and already appoint someone to the trust.  Why does business need to be represented twice?

To make matters worse, the representative from the business community is appointed by the three community board members on the trust…not all five trustees make the decision on who will be the sixth just the community board members.  They certainly have a high opinion of themselves considering they are managing the facility badly (you should NOT be paying $1200 a year rates!) and the community has never got anything out of the ‘gift to the community’ except for a $8k per annum rate out of the pockets of Bluffies.

I CHALLENGE BRENT PROCTER, PANIA COOTE AND JAN MITCHELL TO JUSTIFY THEIR ACTIONS AS BOARD MEMBERS ON THE BLUFF COMMUNITY CHARITABLE TRUST.

• Why should businesses be represented twice?
• Why are you paying $1200 rates when other town halls in Southland don’t?
• Why are the community not able to use the facility freely?
• Why not appoint community members rather than board members?
• Why is it cost prohibitive for community groups to use it when the trust has over $100,000 for more than 2 years?
• Why isn’t the trust promoting itself as a ‘vehicle to obtain funding’ for the whole community?
• How are you serving us, the residents, on the trust?

We Don’t Know How Lucky We Are

How fortunate we are to have a community trust to benefit the general public of Bluff

CLICK TO ENLARGE

With a community development committee to be formed we should be pleased to know funding is available:-)

Balance Chq A/C			23,695.19
Balance Fixed Deposits			117,221.80

To ALL Trustees Of The Bluff Community Charitable Trust

I’ve been reading back through a few of my blog posts and what is evident to me is that we have an opportunity here (and it may be our last).  ICC are proposing some urban renewal and have budgeted $200,000 for five communities, us included.  We may whine and complain that 22 kilometres up the road they ignore us on some things but the reforms that are looming will quite possibly have a council that is more distant and inundated with communities of interest to oversee and restrictive funding regimes (if only they’d been rational rather than frivolous over the years).  I doubt we will have much opportunity to get our slice of the pie from a large conglomerate council.

We’ve been stagnant, we need to move on.  I’m sick of hearing, soon, one day, you might offend so and so or so and so won’t agree to that…

For years I’ve expressed the need to use the town hall as a shared services venue to create a hub for the community and base for progress.  It needs to be NOW.  I won’t go into how the town hall could be utilised but how the ‘owners’ can progress it.

The current trust deed has the trustees appointed

And add to that

I don’t know why they think the community board members are any better than anyone else.  Shouldn’t a chair be decided on merits and abilities, not perceived status or position in the community?

That doesn’t need to be the case, nothing personal (to some of them) but the current trustees are not being effective and are wasting what could be a valuable resource (the town hall complex) in our community.  The constitution allows for changes

There you have it.  The current trustees can in accordance with clause 21.1 alter clauses 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4 and 10.1.  Most true community groups allow for office bearers or trustees to be elected at an AGM.

That town hall could then have people actually interested in and committed to furthering the town hall as a community centre and base.  Not doing it or providing opportunities for the community to be involved shows that it’s not BLUFF COMMUNITY Charitable Trust but OUR PET PROJECT trust.

Food For Thought

Here’s a snippet from Transition Town’s blog which I feel is worth considering in light of our upcoming Urban Renewal or Community Development.

Investment as the enabler and motivator In the world of dollar economics, it is well understood that development requires investment. Consider how a new dollar-based enterprise is typically launched. First a business plan is developed, showing how the enterprise can operate profitably, and identifying what funding will be needed to get the business off the ground. Then a funding source is sought – either an investor or a bank – who then funds the startup in return either for equity in the new enterprise, or else a commitment by the enterprise to repay the funding with interest out of its operations.

It makes sense to view community development as a start-up venture. Instead of a business plan for a company, we need a development plan for the community. And instead of profit-maximizing investors, we need local sponsors who see themselves as partners with the community, and who are willing to forego profit and wait until the community is thriving before their funding is repaid.

With a sound development plan, a flexible local exchange system, and sufficient sponsorship, it becomes possible to pursue community development in a systematic way. And when there’s money on the table, we can expect people to wake up and get interested. If real projects are being proposed, that will effect everyone, and if people are invited to help decide how the money

What, I believe, should also be considered when reading that piece is that we have a trust in our name, listing the Bluff community as the beneficiary, that lists it’s primary focus as ‘community development’ and a building that would serve as a base for a united community to further it’s many and varied projects.  Now more than ever the appointed regime needs to end.

Your Annual Chance To Have Your Say

I’ve checked and even though the Bluff Town Rate was imposed in a questionable manner, the Annual Plan is the only time we can express our views to the council regarding it.  It’s unfortunate the trust that requested it don’t give us opportunity to raise the issue with them in an open and transparent manner, especially because they are BLUFF COMMUNITY Charitable Trust.  So the Auditor-General has told me that I can raise it with ICC during the annual plan consultation process.  Council accepted no letter or formal request from the trust to impose it upon us.  It was raised by our elected members at a board meeting without conflicts being declared (being as they are also on the trust requesting the board recommend it to council...it was a dog’s breakfast).

So everyone that owns property within the grey area within the green circle pays $6.34 with their rates every year to fund the Town Hall we receive no benefit from.  More on this when my blood pressure is lower and my frustrations at ‘what could be’ have abated.

 

From the Bluff Pool Feasibility Study

From Janette Malcolm’s feasibility study

Bluff residents have shown an ability to successfully raise funds for a number of community
projects. A summary of the main projects is provided below, with the total amount raised over
the period.

Bluff Hill Lookout 1996 – 2001 $257,911.04
Skateboard Park 1999 – 2003 $75,705.36
Pensioner Flats Bathrooms 2003 – 2004 $43,111.12
Town Hall Chairs 2003 – 2004 $3,395.00
150th Celebrations 2005 – 2006 $59,856.37
Defibrillator 2008 – 2009 $4,400.00
Stirling Point Upgrade 2008 – 2009 $212,661.19
All figures are GST exclusive

In 2005, the Bluff Town Hall was passed to community ownership, and is managed by the
Bluff Community Charitable Trust. This Trust has also been coordinating the fund raising for
the retention of the swimming pool.

Who did she consult with over this?  It wasn’t the community as a whole.  Can you guess which Trust handled all of these projects?  Yes, Bluff Community Charitable Trust.  Any community involvement?  No.

Which projects were done for Bluff residents?  Were the benefits actually for someone else?

Bluff Hill Lookout – Specified as a project in the Trust Deed.  Community Trust of Southland ‘went cold on it’.  Done solely by BCCT with no community involvement.  For tourists.

Skateboard Park – Yes FOR Bluff residents (a small portion, youth).  Placement decision created a petition in opposition with pressure from some in positions of power.  I think it’s badly placed and have heard a rumour that Bluff Community Board funded a portion of it from the rate we pay to operate the costs of the Board.  Any information on this appreciated.

Pensioner Flat Bathrooms – Tenants do benefit but who are the legal owners responsible for the upgrade and maintenance?  Council

Town Hall Chairs – Users of the Hall benefit but who were the legal owners responsible for the building and chattels in 2003-2004?  Council

150th celebrations – Don’t know much about it except Council seemed to be the driving force.  Was it another idea of council’s to be funded by Bluff as a promotional tool for Southland?  I remember the traffic that day…non stop.  Did Bluff economically benefit?

Defibrillator – Benefit to anyone in Bluff.  Interesting who came up with the idea though…it was another ‘council suggested’ project and housed in council’s Service Centre.

Stirling Point Upgrade – Another tourist project with endless discussions over plaques and who should be recognised on them.

If the Town Hall chairs at $3,395 are deemed a ‘main project’, why isn’t the $5k Kindy shade sail?  All depends on who you talk to I suppose.  Effective consultation or limited?

More Important Things To Attend To In Bluff

Can’t say I agree with this but I knew it would happen.  The Bluff Community Charitable Trust and Bluff Community Board relationship is so close that I knew it would happen.  The chairperson is always trying to keep councils happy that I even made the prediction when I saw it on the agenda last year.  From the BCB Chairperson’s report:

I believe that if John Key wants to build a cycleway, HE should find the funding.  This great idea of his has put pressure on towns all over the country.  I think it’s a nice idea but Bluff has a pool that is still in need of funding and an upcoming Urban Renewal along with the losses being made on the Town Hall (as it sits idle) even though the ratepayers of Bluff  contribute about $8k per annum.

The Bluff Community Charitable Trust was set up ‘as a vehicle to obtain funding’  but it is only helping with certain pet projects.  I find it offensive to use the Bluff Community name without including or providing any benefit to the community.

We have a hill that has been vandalised by the council and even DOC say it will be 20+ years before it looks good (or even halfway decent) but ‘our’ Trust with three of ‘our’ Board members appointed to it are going to take take funding from other worthy, more immediate causes to help tourism.  How about helping the Bluffies?

We have a minimum of three groups putting time, effort and funding into ensuring Bluff Hill has a better future than what council planned (or didn’t plan).  St Teresa’s, Bluff School and Bluff Hill/Motupohue Environment Trust are all working away at what looks to be a daunting task and BCCT are off building tracks for ES.

Better ways to help our town without starting another project to entice people to a rundown town.  Of course that’s just my view.  It seems I’m still talking to myself and Bluffies, it seems, are just voyeurs (100+ a day watching but not getting involved).

Feel free to make comment:-)

Puhleeease…..

Could the double standards be more obvious!  Good on Bluff Promotions for a successful Book Sale and I commend you for your efforts but the notice from the Chairman shows that if you’re hand in hand with the right people you get benefit.  From the current Bluff Beacon we have this

“Thanks to the Bluff Community Charitable Trust for allowing us use of the council chambers and former library for the sale.”

For the non resident readers, the ‘council chambers and former library’ are part of the Town Hall complex that ICC fobbed off to us for $1 as part of the Bluff Service Centre/Kiwibank/Lotto Shop/Post Shop/trinket shop move.  The Trust (three community board members and three others) that has legal ownership ‘asked’ the Board who ‘recommended’  to Council for a Targeted Rate to cover costs of the Town Hall.

Allowing use?  It was ‘gifted to the Bluff community’ NOT Bluff Community Charitable Trust!  The statement also implies it was use, without cost.  I have been told of many groups that don’t use it because it is cost prohibitive but this thanks seems to imply different for Bluff Promotions, doesn’t it?

Let’s not forget that the Chairman of Bluff Promotions penning the notice is a trustee of the Bluff Community Charitable Trust.

Perception is that rules apply differently for some.