HAMILTON’S 2018 QUALITY OF LIFE · HAMILTON CITY COUNCIL Quality of Life 2018 5 Financial...

1Quality of Life 2018HAMILTON CITY COUNCIL

HAMILTON’S 2018 QUALITY OF LIFE

SUMMARY

CONTENTS

HAMILTON – A GREAT RIVER CITY TO LIVE, WORK, PLAY AND VISIT 08

BUILT AND NATURAL ENVIRONMENT 09ARTS AND CULTURE 09SAFETY

COUNCIL DECISION MAKING PROCESSES

10

11

PUBLIC TRANSPORT

SETTING THE SCENE

11

12

INTRODUCTION 03

04IMPROVING THE WELLBEING OF HAMILTONIANS

05FINANCIAL SITUATION

06HEALTH AND WELLBEING

07COMMUNITY CULTURE AND SOCIAL NETWORKS

2 Quality of Life 2018 HAMILTON CITY COUNCIL


Recently Hamilton City was part of the 2018 Quality of Life survey which takes place every two years. This survey measures the perception of our community at a point in time to provide insight into our community’s overall wellbeing and drivers of wellbeing.

We participate in the survey along with Auckland, Tauranga, Wellington, Hutt, Porirua, Christchurch and Dunedin cities. The participating cities provide comparison data and we learn how other cities have faced the challenges of a city.

This documents summarises the high-level results from the survey and also includes some preliminary observations around potential influences on the results.

Further investigation into the results will take place over the next six months and will be used to help inform Council’s future strategies and plans.

INTRODUCTION


IN SUMMARY• 84 per cent of our community think they have a good quality of life. This has increased from 82 per cent in

2016.• A third of our community believe their quality of life has increased over the last 12 months. This is the

highest of the eight cities surveyed.• For those in our community who felt that they had a good quality of life, the most common reasons were

positive financial situation, relationships, health and well-being, lifestyle and work related.• For those in our community who felt that they had a poor quality of life, the most common reason was their

financial situation.

OUR RESPONSEThis is good news, as it shows that as a city, we are delivering on improving the wellbeing of Hamiltonians by building a more vibrant, attractive and prosperous city.

Over the next six months we will be analysing these results alongside our community profiles that we collected during April 2018 to build a greater understanding of the drivers of quality of life for our community.

THE NUMBERS

Quality of Life 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City 2018 Hamilton City 2016

% of our community that thinks their quality of life is good 84% 84% 82%

Quality of Life 2018 Improved Stayed the same Decreased

Change over last 12 months 33% 55% 12%

Reasons for a positive rating 2018 Increase over 2016 2016

Positive financial position 47% 14% 33%

Relationships 42% 6% 35%

Health and well-being 41% 5% 36%

Lifestyle 31% 6% 25%

Work related 27% 10% 17%

IMPROVING THE WELLBEING OF HAMILTONIANS


Financial stability and access to housing are key influences on people’s quality of life.

The survey shows we have a stable employment environment. Alongside this, more of our community believe they have the right balance between work and other aspects of their life.

However, our community is feeling the financial pressure. Less believe that they now have enough money to cover their everyday needs for things like accommodation, food, clothing and other necessities.

There has been a large shift in the perception of housing affordability over the last two years. Now, just half of our community thinks housing costs are affordable, whereas two years ago 61 per cent of our community thought this.

OUR RESPONSEAffordable housing is a major issue for our city and in

the 2018-28 10 Year Plan we have included strategic infrastructure for city growth to facilitate the opening of a new housing area in Peacocke, to the south of the city.

Hamilton City Council and the Government signed a Housing Accord on 22 December 2016 as a way to increase housing supply and improve housing affordability in Hamilton. Council has, and will continue to approve Special Housing Areas (SHAs) to allow areas of land – including sites not currently zoned for residential – to be put forward for housing development by landowners or developers for consideration by the Council.

THE NUMBERS

Quality of life factors 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City 2018 Hamilton City 2016

% who are employed in full time or part time employment 71% 69% 69%

% who are satisfied with their work life balance 60% 62% 65%

% who think they have enough money to cover everyday needs 45% 38% 43%

% who think housing costs are affordable 47% 50% 61%

FINANCIAL SITUATION


HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Health and wellbeing are key influences on people’s quality of life.

Three quarters rate their overall health positively, a slightly lower number than two years ago. This may be a reflection that less of our community was active for more than 5 days a week and more people are not doing any activity.

Our community is feeling both more and less stressed than in 2016. There is an increase in the number who often experience stress and an equal increase in those who rarely or never experience stress.

The emotional wellbeing of our community, as measured by the WHO 5 (World Health Organisation Wellbeing Index), indicates that 3 out of 10 people in our community have poor emotional wellbeing.

However, our community feels they have more support than in 2016 in terms of having someone to rely on for help if faced with physical injury or illness or if in need of support during an emotionally difficult time.

OUR RESPONSEWithin the 2018-28 10 Year Plan, over the next 10 years we are investing $108 million to ensure all Hamiltonians have access to well maintained parks, open spaces and recreational facilities. We are also investing $64 million to ensure the breadth of the parks and recreation networks keep up with growth.

Over the next six months we will be analysing these results alongside our community profiles that we collected during April 2018 to build a greater understanding of the drivers for health and wellbeing. We will be sharing this information with the Waikato DHB and our other key community stakeholders so we can work together on outcomes that improve the health and wellbeing of Hamiltonians.

THE NUMBERS

Health 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City 2018 Hamilton City 2016

% who rate overall health positively 79% 79% 82%

% of population were active for more than 5 days in the last week 39% 37% 45%

% of people who have not done any activity in the previous seven days 11% 13% 9%

Stress, support and emotional wellbeing 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City 2018 Hamilton City 2016

% who often experience stress 19% 21% 17%

% who rarely or never experience stress 29% 30% 26%

% who feel there is availability of support 94% 96% 92%

% who scored a low rating on the WHO5 30% 28% Not asked


COMMUNITY CULTURE AND SOCIAL NETWORKSConnectedness with others influences people’s quality of life.

As our city grows, less of our community believes it is important to feel a sense of community with people in their neighbourhood. The ways our community connect are similar to those used by other communities in the eight other cities. The main participation is via:• the online community• clubs and societies• profession/work networks• faith based group church communities.

Just under half of our community believe they have a sense of community with people in their neighbourhood. Nevertheless, 7 out of 10 people commented they have had positive contact with people in their neighbourhood over the previous 12 months.

On a personal level the people are feeling less isolated and our city has the lowest rate of feeling isolated in comparison to the communities in the other cities.

But our community is less trusting of others and our city has the lowest trust of other people in comparison to the communities in other cities.

Less of our community believe that increased cultural and lifestyle diversity, as people from other countries make New Zealand their home, makes our city a better place to live.

OUR RESPONSEOur community development team will continue to provide support and services to help individuals and groups across the city. Over the next six months we will be analysing these results alongside our community profiles that we collected during April 2018 to build a greater understanding of community connections. We will be sharing this information with our key community stakeholders so we can work together on outcomes that improve the cultural and social networks of Hamiltonians.

THE NUMBERS

Culture and social networks 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City 2018 Hamilton City 2016

% who consider its important to feel a sense of community with people in neighbourhood 71% 68% 76%

% who feel a sense of community with others in their neighbourhood 52% 49% 56%

% of participation in social networksOnline community Clubs and societiesProfessional / work networksFaith based group church communityParent networksVolunteer charity groupsNeighbourhood groupsCultural groupMarae

54%35%29%21%13%13%10%5%2%

56%37%27%23%13%13%11%7%6%

No comparison available due to changes in

categories structure

% who never or rarely felt isolated in the last year 65% 62% 70%

% who say you can trust people 64% 59% Not asked

% who think New Zealand is becoming a home for an increasing number of people with different lifestyles and cul-tures from different countries makes our city a better place to live

57% 49% 55%


HAMILTON – A GREAT RIVER CITY TO LIVE, WORK, PLAY AND VISITIN SUMMARY• 75 per cent of our community think Hamilton is a great place to live. This is down from 81 per cent in 2016.• Our overall results show that more of our community have a neutral ‘sitting on the fence’ view of whether

Hamilton is a great place to live.• While less of our community think Hamilton is a great place to live than in 2016, there has been no increase

in those that think it is a worst place to live• Despite this, 29 per cent of people think Hamilton has become a better place to live over the last 12 months

compared to 26 per cent who think it has become worse.

We see this trend to a more neutral view in the pride people have about Hamilton.

Those who thought Hamilton had become a better place to live noticed:• increased development with improved amenities• more new buildings and renovations• roads being maintained and upgraded• investment in infrastructure.

Those who thought Hamilton had become a worst place to live were concerned about:• increases in the crime rate• more traffic and congestion• the high cost of living.

Great place to live 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City 2018 Hamilton City 2016

% who think their city is a great place to live 79% 75% 81%

% who think neither agree nor disagree their city is a great place to live 15% 21% 15%

% who disagree their city is a great place to live 6% 4% 4%

% who think in the last 12 months their city is a better place to live 29% 29% Not asked

% who think in the last 12 months their city is a worse place to live 25% 26% Not asked

% who are proud of how their city looks and feels 60% 52% 60%


BUILT AND NATURAL ENVIRONMENT

ARTS AND CULTURE

The spaces around us influence what we think about our city.

Our community has noticed that we are, as a city, dealing better with the problems that are inherent in a city. The community still think graffiti and tagging and water pollution are a problem but it is less a problem than previously. A new question highlighted that our community is concerned with litter or rubbish on our streets.

OUR RESPONSEIn our 2018-28 10 Year Plan we have continued to commit resources and services to work with our community to encourage the reduction in pollution and graffiti.

THE NUMBERS

City Problems 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City 2018 Hamilton City 2016

% who think graffiti or tagging is a problem 51% 66% 72%

% who think water pollution is a problem 54% 61% 65%

% who think air pollution is a problem 26% 23% 26%

% who think noise pollution is a problem 45% 40% 43%

% who think rubbish or litter on the streets is a problem 64% 73% Not asked

The creative spaces and options around us influence what we think about our city.

Our community thinks our city has a significantly less rich and diverse arts scene than we did two years ago. OUR RESPONSEThe closure of the Founders Theatre and the proposed Regional Theatre has been a topic of debate for the last two years.

In the 2018-28 10 Year Plan we have committed to investing with other partners through the Momentum Waikato Community Foundation on the delivery of a new international standard performing arts theatre for the Waikato Region to be built in Hamilton.

THE NUMBERS

Arts Scene 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City 2018 Hamilton City 2016

% who consider local area to have rich and diverse arts scene 40% 36% 54%


SAFETY

Our feeling of safety influences what we think about our city.

Our community has indicated they think crime issues have reduced but they believe there are problems around alcohol, drugs and the presence of people they feel unsafe around. Our community is also more concerned about begging in the street.

Our communities feel slightly less safe than in 2016 in their own home after dark and walking alone in the dark within their neighbourhood.

In our city centre, where we have invested with our city safe teams, our community feels more safe than previously during the day and after dark.

OUR RESPONSEIn our 2018-28 10 Year Plan we plan to invest more in resources and services to ensure we meet the demands of our growing city. We will be major contributors to the delivery of the Central City Safety Strategy. The City Safe Patrols will continue in the central city and our CCTV network will continue to be improved to support safety services across the city.

Over the next six months we will be analysing these results along with our own Perceptions of Safety survey and the Business Perceptions of Safety survey. We will share our insights from these surveys with the NZ Police and other key stakeholders so we can work together on outcomes that improve the safety of Hamiltonians.

THE NUMBERS

Crime 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City Hamilton City 2016

% who perceive dangerous driving is a problem 66% 74% 77%

% who perceive car theft, damage to cars or theft from cars is a problem 55% 63% 71%

% who perceive alcohol or drug problems are a problem 52% 74% 75%

% who perceive vandalism is a problem 41% 52% 61%

% who perceive the presence of people you feel unsafe around in their area due to behaviour, attitude or appear-ance is a problem

46% 67% 67%

% who perceive people begging in the street is a problem 54% 84% 78%

% who perceive people sleeping rough in street or in vehi-cles is a problem 48% 72% Not asked

Safety 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City Hamilton City 2016

% who feel safe in their home after dark 92% 88% 89%

% who feel safe walking alone in neighbourhood after dark 65% 55% 58%

% who feel safe in the city centre during the day 91% 90% 81%

% who feel safe in city centre after dark 48% 36% 28%


PUBLIC TRANSPORT

COUNCIL DECISION MAKING PROCESSES

How accessible it is to get around our city influences what we think about our city.

In terms of getting around our city, we have fewer people using our public transport on a weekly basis. Our community thinks the bus service is less reliable, less frequent, less easy to access and less affordable.

OUR RESPONSEIn the 2018-28 10 Year Plan council has funded a major

transport programme to improve safety, congestion and transport choice (walking, cycling and public transport).

We will continue our work with the Waikato Regional Council, who provides the bus service, to improve public transport options to Hamiltonians.

THE NUMBERS

Public Transport 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City 2018 Hamilton City 2016

% who use public transport weekly 25% 10% 14%

% who think public transport is affordable 45% 51% 54%

% who think public transport is safe to use 73% 68% 74%

% who think public transport has ease of access 68% 73% 80%

% who think public transport is reliable 48% 48% 61%

% who think public transport is frequent 55% 59% 66%

Our confidence in the city governance influences what we think about our city.

The community’s confidence in council decision making and in their ability to influence has dropped since 2016. Our community, compared to communities in other cities, have a lower level of confidence in the council making decisions in their best interests and the ability of the community to influence those decisions.

OUR RESPONSEThe Council has made some hard decisions over the last two years, generating a level of public discussion which is likely to have significantly affected people’s view of Council.

THE NUMBERS

Council Processes 8 cities 2018 Hamilton City 2018 Hamilton City 2016

% who have confidence that their council makes decisions in the best interests of the city 32% 26% 47%

% who perceive the public have large or some influence over the decisions the council makes 34% 30% 45%


SETTING THE SCENE

It is often important to understand the things that have been happening in the city to provide context for the community’s perception. Here’s a list of what has been happening in our city:

Date Council wide Infrastructure Community14 March to 22 June 2016 2016 Quality of Life survey

March 2016 Founders Theatre closed due to safety concerns

May – June 2016 Consultation on the future of Founders Theatre

June 2016 Annual Plan 2016-17 with rate increase of 3.8%

July 2016Confirmation that Founders Theatre is an earthquake prone building

July 2016

Momentum Waikato propose to lead the development of the Waikato Regional Theatre to replace Founders Theatre

August 2016 Waikato Museum Strategic Plan adopted

September 2016 Adoption of the Hamilton East Neighbourhood Plan

September 2016 Embassy Park Stage 2 openedOctober 2016 Election of Council 2016-2019

October 2016 City Safe Officers brought inhouse

November 2016 Bins or Bags waste review consultation

November 2016 Central Library closed due to earthquake safety concerns

December 2016 Dominion Park destination playground opened

December 2016 Pop up Library openedDecember 2016 Housing Accord signed

December 2016 Hamilton Gardens destination playground opened

February 2017 Eastern Bulk Main repairsApril 2017 Western Rail trail opens

June 2017 Adoption of the Hamilton Zoo Master Plan

June 2017Momentum Waikato announce the location of the proposed Waikato Regional Theatre

July 2017 Annual Plan 2017-18 with a rate increase of 3.8%

August 2017 Peak Indoor Recreation Centre opened

September 2017Special Housing Accord expressions of interest received

September 2017 Hamilton City District Plan Declared Operative


Date Council wide Infrastructure Community

September 2017 Construction of Rototuna Water Reservoir completed

September 2017 Cobham Drive Pedestrian and biking underpass completed

October 2017 CBD two hours free parking introduced

November 2017Hamilton hosted two matches of the Rugby League World Cup 2017

November 2017 Social Wellbeing Indicators Report released

December 2017 Housing Infrastructure Fund Business Case finalised

December 2017 Water CCO – decision made not to form a CCO

December 2017

Draft 10 Year Plan proposed with rate increase of 9.5% for two years, immediate move to CV and a $500 UAGC

January 2018Concept Garden and Braithwaite Court opened at Hamilton Gardens

February 2018 Waterworld closed (due to reopen in November 2018)

February 2018 Housing Infrastructure Fund approved by the Minister

February 2018Hamilton hosted HSBC NZ Sevens at FMG Stadium Waikato

February 2018 East Ward By-Election

March 2018New Zealand’s first Changes Places facility at Hamilton Gardens opens

March 2018 Hamilton Age Friendly Plan adopted

April 2018

Consultation on 10 Year Plan with proposed rate increase of 9.5% for two years, immediate move to CV and a $500 UAGC

April 2018 City Safe Strategy adopted

April 2018 Waste Management and Minimisation Plan adopted

April 2018 First Special Housing Area approved by Government

10 April – 3 June 2018 Quality of Life Survey

May 2018 Verbal Submissions on 10 Year Plan

May 2018Hamilton becomes New Zealand’s first Age Friendly City

June 2018 Te Huia playground openedJune 2018 Hare Puke playground opened

June 2018Adoption of 10 Year Plan with rate increase of 9.7% for one year

[email protected]

hamilton.govt.nz

07 838 6699 (24-7)

/hamiltoncitycouncil

FURTHER INFORMATION Strategy and Communication Unit Hamilton City CouncilGarden Place, Private Bag 3010, Hamilton

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