Breakaway petition started

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 8, Issue 376, 5 March 1991, Page 1

Breakaway petition started

Following the council's decision to stick with its plan to scrap the Waimarino rural differential rate a petition has been launched to spearhead a breakaway of the Waimarino from the Ruapehu District Council. At a meeting of the Waimarino Ratepayers Association last week they voted to start the petition which woqld call for the former Waimarino District Council to be reconstituted as a separate local body. Representatives of the association are to meet with local government minister Warren Cooper to discuss the matter. At present the law would not allow the breakaway because an area that

wishes to separate must have at least 20,000 people. The whole of the Ruapehu District has only 19,000. John McCarthy, association chairman, said they are confident of getting more than 50 per cent support for the move. He said the present council doesn't have the interests of Waimarino people at heart. In the mean time the association wants the plans to spend $120,000 on replacement computer hardware put on hold. Mr McCarthy said a better option would be to lease the equipment needed, which would have the added advantage of guarding against it becoming outdated.