It's been a long, Long Term Plan process, first reading and listening to submissions, then going through the decision-making process itself.

As a councillor, it has been good to understand many viewpoints on a wide range of issues and hear directly from the residents of our district.

After all the talk, however, decisions have to be made and councillors are elected to make these decisions.

At the Council table we make decisions at a point in time armed with the best information available, and that information comes from a wide range of sources including residents, experts, and staff. In hindsight they can be seen to be wrong or right - we will only know in the future.

I believe that if you are charged with making the decision, you should make it to the best of your ability. I had a good understanding of some areas of our Long Term Plan, but in others I was a beginner and had much information to absorb.

We are lucky at the Ashburton District Council that we are not a council dictated to by party politics, and each of our councillors makes their own decisions individually. I think that this results in the best inclusive decisions being made.

If you disagree with our decisions, the best way to change our direction is to talk to your local councillor or vote to have the person who you believe will represent you best at the next local body election. Everyone has an equal vote.

The reality is everything costs money and rate increases have had to happen. Your council understands things are difficult but also knows we must keep our infrastructure up to standard. We all deserve good roads, water services and community facilities.

I hope everyone enjoyed their long King’s Birthday weekend and if you stayed at home, then I hope you went along to Glow in the Park. It was great to see so many families, from far and wide, enjoying this dazzling event in the Ashburton Domain.