Christchurch City



The Christchurch City Council is the local government authority for Christchurch in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Christchurch. Since 2007, the Mayor of Christchurch is Bob Parker, who stood as an independent candidate. The council consists of 13 members elected from seven wards, and is presided over by the Mayor, who is elected at large.

History


As a result of the 1989 local government reforms, on 1 November 1989, Christchurch City Council took over the functions of the former Christchurch City Council, Heathcote County Council, Riccarton Borough Council, Waimairi District Council, Paparua County Council (part of the area), and the Christchurch Drainage Board.

On 6 March 2006, Banks Peninsula District Council merged with Christchurch City Council, adding a relatively huge rural area to the city.

Elections
The Council is elected every three years using the first past the post voting system. The vote is conducted by postal ballot. The most recent elections, which closed on 13 October 2007, had a turnout of 41.7%.

For electoral purposes, Christchurch is divided into seven wards. The six metropolitan wards each elect two Councillors, with the remaining Councillor elected for the sparsely populated Banks Peninsula ward.

Party politics are much less influential in elections to the Council than is the case for the House of Representatives. In 2007, the Mayor and a majority of Councillors were elected as independent candidates. Political groupings represented on the Council are the centre-right Independent Citizens and the centre-left Christchurch 2021.

Council members
, the composition of the Council is as follows:

Mayor, council and committees
Under most circumstances, the Council is presided over by the Mayor. At its first meeting after a local election, the Council elects from among its members a Deputy Mayor, who acts as Mayor in the absence and with the consent, or in the incapacity, of the Mayor. The Deputy Mayor also presides at meetings if the Mayor is not present. The Deputy Mayor is recommended by the Mayor and is either confirmed or replaced in a vote of the first council meeting.

Councillors also serve on a number of committees. , there is one Standing Committee, eight Standing Subcommittees, seven Joint Standing Committees and Working Parties (so called because they involve members of other local authorities), and 14 ad hoc subcommittees and working parties. The Council can delegate certain powers to these committees, or alternatively they can consider matters in more detail and make recommendations to the full Council.

Community Boards
The Council has established eight Community Boards. These Community Boards deal with matters delegated to them by the Council, act as representatives and advocates for their communities, and interact with community organisations and interest groups. General tasks typically delegated to local community boards are the locations of Council rubbish bins, traffic light, stop sign and pedestrian crossings; Also rubbish collection, local disturbance review and relaying information to the main council from their Ward area through the Councillor who has a right to sit on the Board within their ward.

Each of the metropolitan wards has one Community Board, composed of the two Councillors for that ward, who serve ex officio, and five other members elected by the residents of the ward. The Banks Peninsula ward is divided geographically between the Lyttelton–Mt Herbert and Akaroa–Wairewa community boards, each of which consists of five elected board members and the Councillor for Banks Peninsula.

Some Community Boards, like the Council, have created committees for specific purposes.

Contact details List of Service Centres The Council is online: Website Twitter Facebook You Tube

Organisational support
The day-to-day administration of the City of Christchurch is carried out by a large team of Council staff. Indeed, in everyday usage, the term the council is extended to include not just the Mayor and Councillors, but the entire local civil service. The professional head of the civil service is the Chief Executive, who is appointed by the Council under contract for up to five years. The Chief Executive is assisted by eight General Managers, each with his or her own portfolio.

Mayor and Executive Team

Responsibilities and services
The Council is vested with a power of "general competence" for the social, economic and cultural well-being of Christchurch. In particular, the Council has responsibility for a range of local services, including roads (except State Highways), water, sewerage, waste collection, parks and reserves, and libraries. Urban development is managed through the maintenance of a city plan and associated zoning regulations, together with building and resource consents. The Council has been given extra powers to regulate certain types of business operations, notably suppliers of alcohol and brothels.

Kerbside waste collection
Christchurch has a wheelie bin kerbside collection system, which replaced their previous system. The previous system required the resident to put a black rubbish bag out every week to the kerbside, along with a green recycling crate. With the current system, residents are given three wheelie bins: One 240 litre bin (recycling), One 140 litre bin (rubbish), and one 80 litre bin (organics). Each week, residents can put two of the three bins out. The 80 litre organics bin goes out every week and the 240 litre recycling and the 140 litre rubbish alternate.

Offices
The Christchurch Municipal Council, as it was originally called, was using the Christchurch Land Office, the first public building erected in Christchurch in 1851.
 * 1862–1887

On the same site, the council had the so far only purpose-built council chambers constructed, designed by Samuel Hurst Seager in a Queen Anne style. The building is these days known as Our City and is registered as a Category I heritage building with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust (NZHPT).
 * 1887–1924

Council purchased the burned out shell of the former Canterbury Hall and built new civic offices in Manchester Street. These days known as the Civic, the building is registered as a Category II heritage building with the NZHPT.
 * 1924–1980

Council bought the former Miller's Department Store and moved to 163 Tuam Street in 1980. This gave rise to the occasional metonymic use of Tuam Street to refer to the municipal government. The building is registered as a Category II heritage building with the NZHPT.
 * 1980–2010

In August 2010, the Council's new offices were officially opened in a refurbishment of the former Christchurch Mail Sorting Centre, designed by the Ministry of Works in 1974. The redevelopment was supervised by Wellington based architect Ian Athfield.
 * 2010 to present

The council also maintains service centres in the suburbs of Fendalton, Linwood, Papanui, Riccarton, Shirley, Sockburn and Sydenham, and in the towns of Lyttelton, Little River and Akaroa.