24-518: Rotorua Lakes District or Rotorua District is a territorial authority district in the North Island of New Zealand. It has one urban area of significant size, the city of Rotorua . The district is governed by Rotorua Lakes Council, which is headquartered in Rotorua and is headed by a mayor. The district falls within two regional council areas, with the majority of the area and Rotorua city in
48-537: A mayor–council government . Mayors in New Zealand are directly elected— at-large , by all eligible voters within a territorial authority—in the local elections to a three-year term. The Local Government Act 2002 defines the role of a mayor as having to provide leadership to the other elected members of the territorial authority, be a leader in the community and perform civic duties. New Zealand Sign Language Too Many Requests If you report this error to
72-874: A borough with more than 20,000 people could be proclaimed a city . The boundaries of councils tended to follow the edge of the built-up area, so little distinction was made between the urban area and the local government area. New Zealand's local government structural arrangements were significantly reformed by the Local Government Commission in 1989 when approximately 700 councils and special purpose bodies were amalgamated to create 87 new local authorities. Regional councils were reduced in number from 20 to 13, territorial authorities (city/district councils) from 200 to 75, and special purpose bodies from over 400 to 7. The new district and city councils were generally much larger and most covered substantial areas of both urban and rural land. Many places that once had
96-407: A city council were now being administered by a district council. As a result, the term "city" began to take on two meanings. City also came to be used in a less formal sense to describe major urban areas independent of local body boundaries. This informal usage is jealously guarded. Gisborne, for example, adamantly described itself as the first city in the world to see the new millennium. Gisborne
120-529: A number of islands where the Minister of Local Government is the territorial authority, two of which have a 'permanent population and/or permanent buildings and structures.' The main islands are listed below (population according to 2001 census in parentheses): In addition, seven of the nine groups of the New Zealand outlying islands are outside of any territorial authority: Territorial authorities have
144-963: A population density of 32 people per km. Rotorua District had a population of 74,058 in the 2023 New Zealand census , an increase of 2,181 people (3.0%) since the 2018 census , and an increase of 8,778 people (13.4%) since the 2013 census . There were 36,336 males, 37,491 females and 234 people of other genders in 25,905 dwellings. 2.6% of people identified as LGBTIQ+ . The median age was 36.6 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 16,053 people (21.7%) aged under 15 years, 14,076 (19.0%) aged 15 to 29, 32,358 (43.7%) aged 30 to 64, and 11,571 (15.6%) aged 65 or older. People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 61.6% European ( Pākehā ); 43.5% Māori ; 6.4% Pasifika ; 10.1% Asian ; 0.7% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.0% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English
168-625: A region and a territorial authority. It incorporated the recommendations of the Royal Commission and was established via legislation. Auckland Council is uniquely divided into "local boards" representing the lowest tier of local government. Under the terms of the Local Government Act 2002 , district councils have to represent the interests of their future communities and consider the views of people affected by their decisions. To fulfill that requirement and give young people
192-588: A say in the decision-making process, many councils have a youth council. In late December 2023, the Ashburton District Council scrapped their youth council, stating they could engage better with younger people online and describing the current youth council as "a youth club where they ate pizza." In early January 2024, the Gore District Council opted to restructure its youth council and ruled out dismantling it. In April 2024,
216-462: A week. Its plan, which went to a Select Committee, accepted the proposal for supercity and many community boards, but rejected proposals for local councils and, initially, no separate seats for Māori . Public reaction to the Royal Commission report was mixed, especially in regards to the Government's amended proposal. Auckland Mayor John Banks supported the amended merger plans. Criticism of
240-421: Is administered by a district council, but its status as a city is not generally disputed. Under current law, an urban area has to be at least 50,000 residents before it can be officially proclaimed as a city. Since the 1989 reorganisations, there have been few major reorganisations or status changes in local government. Incomplete list: Reports on completed reorganisation proposals since 1999 are available on
264-412: Is similar to a unitary authority. Territorial authority districts are not subdivisions of regions, and some of them fall within more than one region. Regional council areas are based on water catchment areas, whereas territorial authorities are based on community of interest and road access. Regional councils are responsible for the administration of many environmental and public transport matters, while
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#1732779835880288-756: The Bay of Plenty Region and the rest in the Waikato region. Tania Tapsell has been the mayor of Rotorua since the 2022 local elections . Rotorua has an unusual history, as the town was built by the Government as a tourist destination in the 1880s. Through the Rotorua Borough Act 1922, which achieved royal assent on 28 September 1922, the Rotorua Borough was formed. The inaugural elections for mayor were held in February 1923 and Cecil Clinkard
312-487: The Chatham Islands Council . District councils serve a combination of rural and urban communities, while city councils administer the larger urban areas . Five territorial authorities ( Auckland , Nelson , Gisborne , Tasman and Marlborough ) also perform the functions of a regional council and thus are unitary authorities . The Chatham Islands Council is a sui generis territorial authority that
336-476: The Māori ward , and one for the rural ward. Rotorua has four sister cities : [REDACTED] Media related to Rotorua District at Wikimedia Commons Territorial authorities of New Zealand Territorial authorities ( Māori: mana ā-rohe ) are the second tier of local government in New Zealand , below regional councils . There are 67 territorial authorities: 13 city councils , 53 district councils and
360-784: The Whanganui District Council proposed scrapping its youth council by June 2024 as part of budget saving measures. There are currently 67 territorial authorities. Before the Auckland Council "super merge" in November 2010, there were 73 territorial authorities. Before the Banks Peninsula District Council merged with the Christchurch City Council in 2006, there were 74 territorial authorities. There are
384-842: The Local Government Commission's site (link below). On 26 March 2009, the Royal Commission on Auckland Governance recommended the Rodney, North Shore, Waitakere, Auckland City, Manukau, Papakura and Franklin territorial councils and the Auckland Regional Council be abolished and the entire Auckland region to be amalgamated into one "supercity". The area would consist of one city council (with statutory provision for three Māori councillors), four urban local councils, and two rural local councils: The National-led Government responded within about
408-511: The amended proposal came largely from residents in Manukau, Waitakere and North Shore Cities. In addition, Māori Affairs Minister Pita Sharples spoke against the exclusion of the Māori seats, as recommended by the Royal Commission. Opposition Leader Phil Goff called for a referendum on the issue. Auckland Council was created on 1 November 2010—a unitary authority that is classed as both
432-422: The census question. Of those at least 15 years old, 8,565 (14.8%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 32,001 (55.2%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 14,844 (25.6%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $ 39,000, compared with $ 41,500 nationally. 4,803 people (8.3%) earned over $ 100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15
456-521: The council's web domain changed from www.rdc.govt.nz to rotorualakescouncil.nz . Rotorua Lakes covers 2,409 square kilometres (930 sq mi). The district's area is 61.52% in the Bay of Plenty region and 38.48% in the Waikato region. Adjacent districts (in a clockwise direction starting in the north) are Western Bay of Plenty , Whakatāne , Taupō , and South Waikato . The Bay of Plenty portion of
480-481: The district includes the settlements of Rotorua , Ngongotahā Valley , Mamaku , Hamurana , Mourea , Rotoiti Forest , Lake Rotoma , Lake Okareka , Lake Tarawera , Rerewhakaaitu , and Kaingaroa Forest . The Waikato portion includes the settlements of Waiotapu , Reporoa , Broadlands , Mihi , Waikite Valley , Ngakuru , and Ātiamuri . Rotorua District covers 2,409.31 km (930.24 sq mi) and had an estimated population of 77,800 as of June 2024, with
504-409: The territorial authorities administer local roading and reserves, water supply and sanitation , building consents , the land use and subdivision aspects of resource management, and other local matters. Some activities are delegated to council-controlled organisations . The scope of powers is specified by the Local Government Act 2002 . For many decades until the local government reforms of 1989 ,
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#1732779835880528-557: Was spoken by 96.0%, Māori language by 13.6%, Samoan by 0.4% and other languages by 9.8%. No language could be spoken by 2.2% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.6%. The percentage of people born overseas was 17.9, compared with 28.8% nationally. Religious affiliations were 30.9% Christian , 1.7% Hindu , 0.3% Islam , 3.6% Māori religious beliefs , 0.7% Buddhist , 0.4% New Age , 0.1% Jewish , and 1.8% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 53.3%, and 7.5% of people did not answer
552-447: Was successful. In 1962, Rotorua was proclaimed a city. In 1979, the status was changed to a district when Rotorua City and Rotorua County amalgamated. The district council held its first meeting on 2 April 1979. At the 27 November 2014 council meeting, it was decided to change the operating name of the council to Rotorua Lakes Council, while the official name would remain unchanged. Since then, the district has been known as Rotorua Lakes and
576-437: Was that 29,181 (50.3%) people were employed full-time, 7,746 (13.4%) were part-time, and 2,526 (4.4%) were unemployed. Every three years, a mayor and the district councillors are elected in local elections . In the most recent elections in 2022 , Tania Tapsell was elected as mayor and ten councillors were returned. Rotorua Lakes uses the first-past-the-post (FPP) voting system and elects six councillors at-large , three for
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