Taupō District Council’s mayor and councillors have officially assumed their duties after being sworn in at a ceremony at the inaugural council meeting today.

Mayor David Trewavas and the 12 councillors, seven of whom are returning and five of whom are newly-elected, were first greeted by about 150 council staff with speeches and waiata at a mihi whakatau welcome at the Great Lake Centre.

Many of the councillors brought along family members to support them, both at the mihi whakatau and at the first council meeting of the term. One of them, Cr John Williamson, had four generations of his family present, from his mother, former Taupō District mayor Joan Williamson, to his daughter and grandchildren.

At the meeting, Mayor David Trewavas was sworn in, followed by the councillors, with some choosing to make their declaration in a mixture of te reo Māori and English. All thanked their community for the support and spoke of being elected to the council as an honour; and most touched on their reasons for standing and what they hoped to achieve.

Following that, Cr Kevin Taylor was formally appointed to the role of Deputy Mayor. Cr Taylor said he appreciated the council’s confidence in him and would do his best for the people of the Taupō District.

Mr Trewavas said the new council was looking forward to the next three years, which would be a busy time.

“We look forward to completing the airport terminal redevelopment, Waiora House, the Taupō town centre transformation and looking after Tūrangi, Mangakino and all the wonderful settlements around our district.”

The next meeting of the Taupō District Council will be held in the usual venue of the Council Chambers at 107 te Heuheu Street, Taupō on Tuesday 15 November at 2pm. It will be open to the public and available to view as a livestream on the council’s YouTube channel.

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