Stories by Lois Williams

Jamie Cleine says government 'rhetoric' regarding council spending is stirring up feeling against councils.

West Coast mayors are welcoming an apparent rethink on the way they deliver water services, but affordability is still the big issue.

Liz Whiteside doesn't believe she should pay for things she has no use for - such as a floodwall.

A mayor is calling for a rethink of who pays to keep the country's popular cycle trails open.

The council that pioneered Māori representation in local government says it sees no need to establish a Māori ward.

The Westland mayor says there won't be a cent to spare from funding for flood protection work on the Waiho River.

Hearings on the most controversial part of the West Coast's new district plan have been put back till November, as councils hope for confirmation that they no longer need to plan for significant…

Councils and iwi working on a new district plan for the West Coast have signed off on the first draft, which is to go public on 26 January.

Franz Josef township has about 20 years before the massive stopbanks protecting the community will no longer be up to the job of holding back the wild Waiho (Waiau) River, experts warn.

West Coast councils have engaged a specialist lawyer in the hope of gaining the government's ear as it launches the long-awaited review of stewardship land.

A West Coast farming family is happy to 'lock up' some land for posterity and the birds, but they sympathise with other farmers who are upset at the prospect of having parts of their land labelled…

West Coast-Tasman MP Damien O'Connor says landowners on the south side of the Waiho (Waiau) River at Franz Josef Glacier should have a clearer picture of the options for their future in the new year.

The irrational attitude of anti-vaxxers is damaging Reefton's hospitality, health services, and reputation, says Inangahua Community Board's chairperson.

Planners writing new regulations to protect native bush on private land are suggesting one set of rules for Grey district and another for Buller and Westland.

Barrytown JV Ltd wants to mine 63ha of farmland on the Barrytown Flats for ilmenite and other minerals. Councils have recommended granting consent under certain conditions.

The number of West Coast people waiting for surgery or a specialist's assessment has soared in recent weeks because of Covid constraints, the vaccine mandate and staff shortages.

Community workshops are under way to help West Coast residents prepare for Covid-19.

In its first prosecution involving damage to a protected wetland, the West Coast Regional Council took John Cowan to court earlier this year for excavating a 270m-long drain adjoining Department of…

Governance costs for the West Coast Regional Council have nearly doubled in the past three months, prompting a "please explain" from the council's finance monitors.

Reefton's economic development officer Rachel Fifield says she and her husband would close the gym they operate rather than exclude people not vaccinated against Covid-19.

A new mental health unit for the West Coast is back on track after getting the nod from the government's capital investment committee.

Soaring rates bills on the West Coast are forcing some homeowners on low incomes to consider selling up.

Most farmers have no intention of destroying native bush just to get in ahead of new rules protecting significant natural areas, according to Grey Valley farmer Anton Becker.

Only West Coast Regional Council chair Allan Birchfield has declined to reveal if he was vaccinated saying that was no one's business but his own.

Barrytown JV Ltd wants resource consents from the Regional and Grey District Councils to mine privately-owned farmland for ilmenite and other minerals, over an eight-year period.