With the region now in the Orange Level of the Government’s Covid-19 traffic light system, its councils have brought in some new protocols to comply with the national requirements. 

Hastings District Council chief executive Nigel Bickle said Council was closely following the Government guidance and what that means for council facilities and services.

“The safety and wellbeing of our customers, staff and communities is our top priority. 

“We are at the Orange setting, initially for two weeks. This situation is constantly evolving and we are closely monitoring the guidance and vaccine requirements so we can adapt as necessary. Across all our facilities and services we are trying to provide alternatives for those people for whom access may be restricted.”

Three council facilities will always require visitors aged 12 and over to have a Ministry of Health-issued vaccine pass at all times – Toitoi – Hawke’s Bay Arts and Events Centre, FlaXrock Gym and the Hastings
Sports Centre.

For Toitoi in the orange setting, the use of vaccine passes allows it to operate at full capacity, with no physical distancing, so as well as events its hospitality offerings can also resume.

Given safety is the top priority, people will still be encouraged to wear masks while in the venue, particularly if the event they’re attending includes those under the age of 12, who are not eligible for
vaccination.

At the three council libraries, Hastings, Havelock North and Flaxmere, vaccine passes will not be required. Any events or activities that would require a vaccine pass will be held outside of regular opening hours.

At Hastings City Art Gallery, when an event is on, such as an exhibition opening where there will be larger gatherings and people in close proximity, vaccine passes will be required. At all other times, it will operate as a public facility and not require passes.

At Flaxmere and Camberley Community Centres, some activities such as fitness classes will require vaccine passes, but otherwise, they will operate as public facilities and not require passes.

The pools at Flaxmere, Clive, Frimley and Havelock North will be vaccine pass locations when events are on, such as swim meets, but otherwise passes won’t be needed.

Hastings mayor Sandra Hazlehurst said it was an unsettling and difficult time for the community, both for those that choose to be vaccinated, and those that don’t. 

“As a council, we have to do all we can to keep our community safe when they are using our facilities and services, and for legal reasons, we also have to follow government guidance on how to go about this.

“We’ve achieved great results for our vaccination rates and with these new settings, vaccine passes will allow us more freedoms – please be kind to each other and to our staff as we get through this.”
For more details on Council services and facilities in the Orange traffic light setting please go to www.hastingsdc.govt.nz/our-council/covid-19/faqs/

Several Napier City Council facilities will operate using My Vaccine Passes, while others will remain open to all, based on capacity requirements set out under the Orange traffic light setting.

Napier City Council Chief Executive Dr Steph Rotarangi says while there are multiple issues to consider, the primary considerations were community and staff safety, as well as whether the facility could legally operate without requiring My Vaccine Passes.

“Many of our facilities, such as the Municipal Theatre or War Memorial Centre, wouldn’t be able to operate under Orange without requiring customers to be vaccinated.”

“Our decisions strike a balance between practicality and ensuring we can provide public good services to the entire Napier community,” says Dr Rotarangi.

Some facilities offer services that cannot operate without requiring the My Vaccine Pass, such as cafes. Other facilities are essential for ratepayers and provide a high degree of public good, so these will not require vaccine passes.

“We don’t want to exclude members of the community from accessing these services. That said, we may need to move swiftly and change our decisions if required,” says Dr Rotarangi.

Council facilities that will require customers to present a My Vaccine Pass at all times are the Napier War Memorial Conference Centre, Napier Municipal theatre, Century Theatre, National Aquarium of New Zealand and the Gym at the Napier Aquatic Centre (not the Aquatic Centre itself).

Some facilities will operate without the My Vaccine Pass, instead, using capacity limits and other rules set out for Orange. However, they will require customers to present a My Vaccine Pass for events only from 3 December. These facilities are Bay Skate, McLean Park and all halls. 

Napier City Council Customer Service Centre, MTG Hawke’s Bay, Napier Library, Taradale Library, The Faraday Centre, Napier iSite, Par2 Mini Golf and the Napier Aquatic Centre (excluding the gym) will not require customers to present a My Vaccine Pass at this time.

Additionally, Napier City Council is currently consulting with its employees on its Draft Vaccination Policy. The draft policy proposes that to work on Napier City Council premises or to work on behalf of the Council in public, employees must be fully vaccinated by 17th January 2022. A policy for visitors and contractors will be considered after the policy for employees is decided upon. 

At this stage, the Central Hawke's Bay Municipal Theatre (an event facility that provides hospitality) is the only Central Hawke’s Bay District Council-owned facility that has become a vaccine pass site. 

All other facilities (at this stage) will remain open to all of the community, with correct safety protocols put in place where necessary. This includes the Council office in Waipawa and other service centres including the Waipawa Library and Knowledge and Learning Hub - Te Huinga Wai, and Waipawa and Districts Centennial Memorial Pool.

“Council has been working for some time to dissect the new Covid-19 Protection Framework and what this means for Central Hawke’s Bay’s Council owned facilities and services,” says Monique Davidson, Chief Executive of the Council.

“Now that we know that we will be moving to the orange traffic light on December 3, we are working to formalise this however are prepared to stay agile in our decision making.

“At this stage, we are working with the information that we have in order to make the best plan possible, however are conscious that information may come to light which triggers the need for further change.

“The protection and safety of our community is paramount.”

Under orange traffic light guidelines, visitors to Council facilities are required to wear a face-covering and sign in using the COVID-19 Tracer App.

The current vaccination policy is being reviewed in relation to the vaccination of staff, contractors and other visitors to Council premises.

“This week we move into a new phase of our Covid-19 response, and are starting our transition into learning how to live with COVID-19”, says Alex Walker, Mayor of Central Hawke’s Bay.

“I know that this means some of you may be feeling worried and uncertain about the future. Please be assured that for as long as it takes I will continue to advocate for us in Central Hawke’s Bay to ensure that we have a robust plan in place to tackle the impacts of Covid-19, when it does arrive in our community.”

Detailed local advice will be added to the Council’s dedicated Covid-19 webpage in the coming week – www.chbdc.govt.nz/covid-19

For advice on the COVID-19 Protection Framework, including advice for businesses, head to covid19.govt.nz

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