We've achieved a lot over the last 3 years

Despite some fairly big challenges we’ve made a lot of positive progress for, and with, our community over the last 3 years, since we adopted our last long-term plan. Here are just some of the things we've delivered to help improve our community's social, cultural and environmental wellbeing.

Housing and community facilities

  • A new Bunnythorpe Community Centre
  • An additional 38 new social housing units at Papaioea Place (83 homes in total as well as a tenants lounge)
  • Tamakuku Terrace subdivision development stage 1 completed
  • Seismic strengthening at our water plants and crematorium
  • New animal shelter
  • Major housing rezoning projects underway
  • Central Energy Trust Arena entrance plaza, artificial turf and pit upgrades completed

Parks

  • Memorial Park playground and splashpad opened
  • New and improved river entrances at Victoria Esplanade, Albert St and Karaka Grove
  • Turitea Pā lookout opened
  • Urban Eels sanctuary created
  • Playgrounds upgraded at Cloverlea, Savage Crescent and Awapuni Parks
  • Trialled and continued free swimming for under-5s and their caregivers at the Lido, Freyberg and Splashhurst

Resource recovery

  • Food scrap collection trial completed
  • Rubbish bag trial completed
  • We introduced recycling for tyres and tetrapaks 

Transport

  • Park Rd/Cook St intersection upgraded
  • Ferguson/Pitt widening and intersection upgraded
  • Cuba Street upgraded between Taonui and Rangitikei Streets
  • Featherston Street cycleway under construction
  • NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi and Council formally partner on the Palmerston North Integrated Transport Initiative

Water

  • Duplicate main for Turitea Dam completed, providing added resilience for our drinking water supply
  • Railway Road Bore completed to support growth in the area
  • Nature Calls wastewater consent lodged
  • Introduced Summer Water Use to change the approach to water restrictions. This has resulted in 3 summers so far without restrictions

Community wins!

  • Highbury shops safety upgrades
  • Our volunteer rescue emergency support team deployed 26 times in the past 3 years
  • Hundreds of tamariki took part in our City Library Summer Reading programme
  • New advisory boards established
  • Māori wards now on council
  • First Puanga Matariki events have been held
  • Sister City established with Mihara City, Japan
  • Formal establishment of the Palmy Business Improvement District (BID)
  • Hosted more than 9,500 public events at Central Energy Trust Arena and Palmy Conference and Function Centre
  • Supported our neighbours during multiple civil defence responses
  • Almost 3,000 community events held at Central Energy Trust Arena
  • Five times more CCTV cameras available for city centre crime prevention. This follows upgrades, software reconfiguration and the installation of new cameras.
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