People First

He Tangata He Tangata He Tangata

arts/culture is about people’s stories

business exists to serve & employ people

transport exists to move people & their things

governments exist to represent the will of people

infrastructure exists to house & support people to live healthy lives

the environment has to be protected to provide sustenance for all living things

so we must therefore develop the city with a future focus on people

Our Mission

Is to provide a voice for and advocate for Auckland city centre residents, to Auckland Council, the Waitematā Local Board and other relevant agencies & organisations.

The purpose of such representation is to make known the concerns of residents, placing their interests and concerns at the centre of all decision making that affects residents in the city centre, and by doing so work towards achieving the best possible living environment.

We work to support community building in the city centre.

CCRG welcomes the diversity of representation from all sectors of the community and seeks to create an environment where everyone feels welcomed, affirmed and supported in line with the spirit of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

We look to cooperate and engage with other Auckland City Centre organisations having similar objectives. Of these, the elected Waitematā and Gulf Ward Councillor and the Waitematā Local Board are key partners for city centre residents.

Our aim is to continually work to improve the liveability and quality of the city centre.

We also struggle and agitate against views and efforts (conscious or otherwise) to de-prioritise the importance and views of city centre residents - to not meaningfully consult with us, and to ‘vanish’ us from the life of the city centre.

A polemic:

The Way We Work

The CCRG will engage with city centre residents, by all means available, including all our social media channels below to ensure that their voice is heard on city centre matters.

We hold monthly public meetings, and residents’ events, like our monthly ‘Red Hat’ Dinners. We organise public events such as the Meet the Candidates for Local and general Government elections. We hold events such as our annual Jumbly Bumbly sale to raise funds for city centre charities.

We participate in fun, tactical, city centre interventions, like Neighbours’ Day, Myers Park Medley, and World Park(ing) Day to raise city centre residents’ profile, awareness, and demonstrate that our cities can work better for people, especially residents, and to have some fun!

Policy Positions

TRANSPORT & Access

CCRG will advocate for safe and reliable access for everyone with pedestrians, cyclists, micro-mobility, public transport, and service delivery having priority for all transport related decisions in the city centre.

Our primary focus is to support the integrity and implementation of the City Centre Masterplan as the primary delivery model for all city centre projects, including various forms of transport that favour environmentally friendly options. Access for Everyone is a critical addition to the CCMP that will enable many of the improvements we seek for the city centre. CCRG expects that all private use of public street space should come at a cost to the user with that revenue spent dedicated to improving the public realm.

Belonging and Participating

The city centre is our home, it is where we belong, participate, eat, play and recreate - we are therefore the most vested in building a world class space for all, based on timely implementation of the City Centre Master Plan.

PARKS, COMMUNITY & LIFESTYLE

Great public spaces are the identifier of cities – these are the places we all enjoy, remember, photograph, meet others, relax and play in, irrespective of which city we find them

Public Spaces, in all their forms, are precious assets that improve everyone’s lifestyle and must be maintained, enhanced, and increased. The city centre does not have enough open space, so if any existing public space needs to be modified, for whatever reason, the outcome must be a better public space option for residents.

In any decisions made about the use of current, or future public spaces, the simple recreational needs (“third spaces”) of the residential community, are to be considered of equal or greater importance to that of events and commercial needs.  

Māori Identity and Wellbeing

CCRG will actively support the integration of Māori values and history into council planning, decision-making and delivery so that we can celebrate the history and unique story of Tāmaki Makaurau with the world.

Environment and Cultural Heritage

Residents are entitled to a healthy City Centre environment. To ensure a healthy environment for all generations Do No Harm is CCRG’s first development principle. Auckland’s ability to understand, appreciate and celebrate our own, and other cultures and heritage, is the key to our economic future.

The CCRG will advocate for and cooperate with others:

• that noise, air and light pollution in all forms are significant issues and must be managed to limit the impact on residents, while maintaining a vibrant city centre

• for a physically clean city & to find opportunities to reduce waste, increase recycling & limit the impacts of rubbish

• that antisocial behaviour be appropriately managed to ensure the perception and the reality, of a safe city centre

• to ensure that the air, waterways and beaches connected to the city centre, are clean and safe for human use.

  
   

 Opportunity and Prosperity.

CCRG supports the many learning institutions within the city centre in their lead role as developers of innovation, technology and entrepreneurship that will drive opportunities for all.

In addition to the Auckland Plan outcomes, CCRG have also developed a more general governance outcome that they expect from all parts of the Auckland Council family.

Along with any with any growth in the city centre, improved public transport, quality public spaces and a healthy environment must always be prioritised

The CCRG focus is to ensure that the funds raised through the city centre residential targeted rates are spent on projects that have a measurable benefit for residents, and are not used as a subsidy for other interests. 

Homes and Places

Quality homes and great public spaces are the identifiers of cities – these are the places we all enjoy, remember, photograph, meet others, relax and play in, irrespective of which city we find them.

 ECONOMIC CULTURAL

Auckland’s ability to understand, appreciate and celebrate our own, and other cultures, is the key to our economic future

Along with great public spaces the CCRG, strongly supports the concept that Auckland as a great place to live will have a major influence on future economic success and cultural enrichment.

GOVERNANCE and SUPPORT

Open and transparent governance practises provide the essential structure that underpins the legitimacy of public sector leadership

CCRG will work with the Auckland Council family and the Auckland City Centre Advisory Panel to ensure that the voice of all groups of city centre residents is at the centre of any decision making within the city centre, in particular as regards expenditure of the city centre targeted rate.

What We've Achieved

Since 2005 we have had a regular track-record of participatory submissions in public consultations and before committees, including Auckland Council, and Government, , as well as  presenting at Environment Court hearings,  Auckland Council committees, Waitematā Local Board: on strategies, planning,  and policies  affecting City Centre Residents. The following list is a summary of a few:

Media Channels

Follow us on Facebook , Twitter, Instagram and Neighbourly for up to the moment city centre news, info and general city centre enthusiasm.

Members also receive the monthly meeting agendas and minutes.

And CCRG have a FLYER -  feel free to download it, print it, pin it to your apartment's notice board, or otherwise  disseminate it!