William Watt resigns from Council after 32 years

The Invercargill City Council’s Director of Environmental and Planning Services William (Bill) Watt is resigning from Council after 32 years to undertake special projects and private consultancy work.


Mr Watt moved to Invercargill from Auckland in 1978 to take up the position of Regional Planner for the newly-formed Southland United Council, although his legal employer was the Invercargill City Council. He remained with the Southland United Council until 1990 when its functions were taken over by the Southland Regional Council, as part of local government restructuring.


In 1990 Mr Watt was appointed the City Council’s Director of Community Services, with responsibilities for parks, pools libraries, halls and theatres, elderly persons housing and civil defence.


In 1996, as part of internal restructuring to separate regulatory services from service delivery, Mr Watt was appointed to his present role as Director of Environmental and Planning Services, with responsibilities for building consents, resource management, environmental health, liquor licensing, parking, animal control, and civil defence.


A professional planner and manager, Mr Watt has qualifications in Town Planning, Environmental Law, Economics and Geography. He is also an accredited Hearings Commissioner (Chairman) and an accredited Mediator.


In leaving Council he has established a company that will offer consultancy services in planning, resource management and mediation.


His first contract is to develop the review of the City's District Plan and related projects for the Invercargill City Council.


“If Invercargill takes up Mark Blumsky's suggestion of developing itself as a child and family-friendly city, then that has some quite exciting implications for how the city should develop.”


Mr Watt shares Mr Blumsky's concerns for the future of the CBD but believes that the current trends can be reversed if the business people and the Council actively work together to promote a strong and vibrant CBD.


“I will also continue my association with Emergency Management Southland for a few years, as an alternate controller for the new shared service based at Environment Southland,” he said.


Mr Watt said the highlight of his time with the Council was his involvement in the planning and construction of Splash Palace. “It is a wonderful facility which the community really enjoys and it feels good to visit the pool knowing that I was part of the team that made it happen,” he said.


Looking ahead, Mr Watt sees a very positive future for Invercargill – if the community is prepared to work for it.


“Invercargill has the qualities that people are going to be looking for in cities of the future - a great choice of facilities and amenities, generous open spaces, and yet a compact and logical urban form. The challenge will be welcoming new development but on terms which augment and reinforce those qualities,” he said.


Mr Watt’s last day at Council will be Friday 13 August 2010.


Council Chief Executive Richard King said he had accepted Mr Watt’s resignation with regret.


“Bill has been a dedicated and loyal servant of the ratepayers and the wider Invercargill community for 32 years. We thank him for his many years of service and wish him every success for the future.”