Economic Development

Last year Council started to develop a strategy to look at how it could aid in building the economic capacity of the District, looking at how we can do better at attracting people to live here, attracting visitors to our District and what we could do to attract employers to base themselves here.

Enhancing the economic development of the District would add value to those residents who currently live here by ensuring our population and local economy can grow.

Two workshops were held and we were fortunate to have good stakeholder involvement including tourism and retail business owners, key employers and representatives from farming and the Department of Conservation.

The workshops resulted in preliminary plans and projects were identified that will form part of our Long Term Plan.

These propsed projects are primarily to be funded from reserves:
• Upgrading public toilets on Broadway
• Further beautification of town centre
• Working with building owners to make Broadway more attractive
• Support the need for a bus service from New Plymouth
• Agree a brand for Stratford that provides an inspiration for residents and visitors and allows us to market ourselves better
• Upgrade the Council website
• Fund a further event aligned to the brand
• Upgrade the signage at the entrance to the town
• Work with primary industries to pursue employment opportunities for our youth
• Identify retail opportunities within the town and their situation to ensure employment opportunities emerge

The Long Term Plan will be out for submission in late March and we would welcome your comments and any other ideas you may have.