Matt Cowley Tauranga City Councillor

I'm not going to tell you what you already know about natural disasters. We know we need to be prepared to look after ourselves as help is unlikely to reach everyone in the city straight away.

But before we start the rebuild, it's good to know whether Council's assets are covered by insurance.

Tauranga City Council has saved heaps on insurance premiums recently because we have worked with the region's councils through our joint entity ‘BOPLASS'. Council currently pays $1.5 million per year on premiums.

We're constantly reassessing our premiums against how much of our assets are covered. Our insurance covers Council's above ground assets (excluding roads and pipes). It also covers up to 40 per cent of our underground assets; with the balance covered by the Crown. Our excess is $1.5m. We can access large amounts of emergency funding, but that's when things get complicated as we've seen in Christchurch.

The Crown gets involved in local democracy and the ratepayers face the risk of servicing large amounts of debt.

Sorry to end on a cliche - it's not a question of if a disaster strikes, but when. Best of luck to the rescuers and decision-makers when disaster strikes, because they're also likely to be victims as well.

In other news, I spent most of last week outside of Tauranga. I met the other under 40-year-old elected members from around NZ at the local government conference held in Nelson.

All areas across NZ want to improve how they engage local youth; but it seems wasteful for 77 councils to try to reinvent the wheel.

I also went to Wanganui for a session on their award winning digital strategy. Rural communities have the most to gain and lose from the rise of technology. For instance, industries can stay if the area offers value, but technology can also make manual jobs redundant.

Technology is already embedded in our lives. I can't wait to debate how Tauranga is going to make the most of the opportunities, while avoiding the double-edged sword.

I also stopped by New Plymouth on a reconnaissance mission to keep track of what they're doing in terms of public art, events, and their waterfront. It's useful to step outside your own hamster wheel to see what you can learn from others.

Feel free to email me your thoughts (matt.cowley@tauranga.govt.nz), call/text me on 027 6989 548, and follow me at www.facebook.com/a.younger.voice