Subj : Councillor declares recreation advocate 'a complete waste of money'
To   : All
From : News
Date : Thu Jun 13 2024 12:57 pm

By Matthew Rosenberg , Local Democracy Reporting
7:40am

A new Invercargill play strategy continues to receive pushback from pockets
of the council - unconvinced about its required spend.


In January, local play advocate Damian Puddle presented to elected members on
the importance of play and answered questions about what he hoped to achieve
in his new role.


Supported by funding from Sport New Zealand, the position hoped to unlock new
forms of recreation across the city beyond playgrounds and traditional
organised sports.


On Tuesday, council parks and recreation manager Caroline Rain presented a
follow-up paper which explained public engagement for the strategy would
begin this month.


At January's meeting, some councillors expressed surprise at the need for a
dedicated play advocate.


On Tuesday, councillor Grant Dermody looped for another round, alleging
$300,000 had been invested for the role over two years in what was "a
complete waste of taxpayer's money".


"If we invested that money in a cycling strategy, we'd get a whole lot more
benefit for our community," he said.


Councillor Ria Bond also voted against receiving Tuesday's report, saying she
shared similar concerns to Dermody.


Not everyone shared the pair's views, however.


A man playing hopscotch
Mana whenua representative Evelyn Cook said witnessing a man doing hopscotch
on the footpath reminded her of what play once looked like.


"I thought, that's what play strategy actually enables to happen, is that you
actually unexpectedly come across an opportunity and revisit something from
your childhood.


"You don't always have to have big structures and things like that to engage
in play."


Council manager Rain said the organisation had been working to develop
relationships with groups and organisations around Invercargill to uncover
aspirations for play in the area.


Public engagement - running from June to July - would help confirm the scope
for the strategy, she said.


Dermody and Bond were the only councillors to vote against receiving the
paper.


A PhD in parkour
Puddle completed his PhD in parkour at the University of Waikato in 2019.


Prior to taking the role in Invercargill last September, he held a similar
position at Hamilton City Council where he said he successfully embedded play
into strategic plans and policies.


Local Democracy Reporting is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On
Air

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