Cambridge urged to ‘be bold’
Cambridge urged to be bold'
2 October 2018
Cambridge residents are being urged to be bold' as Waipa District Council begins a major town planning exercise.
Cambridge's most recent Town Concept Plan was finalised in 2010 following community feedback. The Plan saw strong support for retaining Cambridge's village feel while building on the town's world-class sporting prowess.
Since then, the Cambridge section of the Waikato Expressway has been built, a new roundabout and town entrance constructed and community amenities like the new pool complex and cycleways are underway.
Waipa District Council's strategic projects team leader Conan Magill said it's time to take stock, re-connect with the community and make sure we're on the right planning path.
We're hoping for some blue-sky, aspirational thinking from the Cambridge community. We want people to be bold so we can harness their ideas and develop a big picture plan for public spaces that will take us well into the future.
Council will launch a website on Monday 8 October www.beboldwaipa.nz which will include an interactive digital mapping tool.
It will allow people to drop a pin' and share their idea for that space along with photographs or anything else they want to use, Magill said.
We're specifically looking for ideas around connections, pedestrian areas, natural heritage, social spaces and the Cambridge Town Hall. This is not around the details, although they are important. It's about creating a broader vision for what people want Cambridge to be.
Council will share the feedback, and garner more, at a series of drop-in sessions beginning on 11 October. The sessions will be supported by an online survey on the purpose-built website.
A new Town Concept Plan for Cambridge will be developed by March 2019 with firm proposals locked in by mid-way through next year. Council intends to refresh Town Concept Plans for all towns and villages in the district over the next three years.