There's something lacking in Alexandra's go-forward
For years, people who care about Alexandra's future have been worried about an apparent lack of leadership in and around the town.
The community board does what it has a mandate to do, always walking a fine line between what people want and what they can afford.
The town doesn't look too bad. Many people think it looks much better as a result of recent improvements in Tarbert Street, Ennis Street and the new State Highway roundadout
But the 'dragging the chain ...' question is not about infrastructure. It's about leadership.
Isn't the community board supposed to 'lead'? The Vincent board has a bigger canvas - from Fruitlands to Clyde, St Bathans to Ophir, the Manuherikia Valley and Omakau. Alexandra is in the VCB's area, but the VCB is not an 'Alexandra' organisation. And it doesn't have economic development or promotional capacity of its own.
What about the mayor?
I already get occasional criticism for being 'too Alexandra', and I'm well aware that I'm NOT the mayor of Alexandra.
Community leadership elsewhere in New Zealand often focuses on the mayor's office.
It's not all bad
Recent improvements include the Tarbert Street upgrade - paving, guttering, street furniture (finally replacing a sub-standard job done in that exceptionally cold winter how many years ago?)
The new roundabout at the east end of Centennial Avenue is a great improvement
And there's still action on the private and public front ... School projects, medical centre, some new retail operations, the trees at the bridge (!).
Is Alexandra really different?
What about Cromwell? The strong growth of the past decade has slowed (but not stalled) in the past couple of years.
And Roxburgh and Ranfurly haven't exactly been leaping ahead!
But, all that to one side, anyone who lives in Alexandra or nearby, especially if they have a business interest in the town, will tell you there's a 'down-in-the-mouth' feel about the place.
Is there an explanation?
It's possible that part of the problem is the community board structure. We've lost the Alxandra and Earnscleugh-Manuherikia boards, now collapsed into the new Vincent board. This was intended (according to the hand-full of people whose actions led to the review, and the subsequent creation of the VCB = which hardly anyone wanted) to spread the rating burdon, but has preversely - in my view - led to the current absence of a township focus.