The contest for the vacant Queenstown Lakes mayoralty is gathering a crowd as another hopeful throws their hat in the ring.
Frankton Community Association chairperson Glyn Lewers. Photo: RNZ / Lydia Anderson
One-term councillor and structural engineer, Glyn Lewers, has joined legal whistleblower Olivia Wensley and 2020 parliamentary hopeful Jon Mitchell in declaring a run for mayor.
The race was now wide open after incumbent Jim Boult announced he would retire after six years at October's local elections.
Lewers only made it on to the Queenstown Lakes District Council in 2019 via a court ordered coin toss, after he and AJ Mason both received 2183 votes in the race for the council's final seat.
But he was philosophical about that.
"It's an example that in democracy every vote counts. So yes I look back on that three years ago and luck did play a part," he said, with a laugh.
However, he was confident he had more than luck on his side this time.
"The council is such a complex organisation, there is no way someone who has not had local government governance experience can sit in the mayoral seat and actually drive this council where it needs to go," Lewers said.
"It's the experience I bring to this mayoral race. We are looking at a big change in the councillors turning up. We'll have 11 councillors being elected and probably less than half of those being elected will be incumbent, so there'll be a new council at the table."
He was only seeking the mayoralty and was not seeking a second term as a councillor.
He was driven to run for mayor after being approached in the past year by many residents in Queenstown and Wānaka suggesting he should have a go.
"This community has given me so many opportunities and now it's time for me to give back," Lewers said.
"My vision is for the Queenstown Lakes District to become a place where all locals can live, work and play in a thriving community. I want our district to be a place where future planning is underpinned by a goal to enhance and protect all that we love about this place we call home."
He believed the district would rebound from the pandemic faster than many anticipated and that presented a huge challenge for the district with the labour shortage hitting the area particularly hard.
Formal nominations open on 15 July and close on 12 August.
The local elections will be held on 8 October.
