Two weeks into her new job as placemaking lead at the Waitaki District Council, Cyndi Christensen is looking forward to sinking her teeth into the role.

Cyndi has moved from Porirua, where she worked for Hutt City Council for the past 10 years, working with businesses on city centre revitalisation.

She is originally from Vermont, a small US state on the Canadian border, perhaps best known as the home of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream.

Before moving to New Zealand 15 years ago, Cyndi and her husband, Steffan, lived in a small town called Waterbury, which is surrounded by ski resorts, but was not itself home to a ski resort. It was here she had her first experience of town revitalisation. 

“I think there were 160 homes in the village, and everybody knew everybody, you know. You banded together. You worked together. 

“Our main street was very tired . . . there was a programme that Vermont was offering, the application process would take a year, and I was part of a group of people who worked for a year to apply. It was successful, and so the state would fund the town infrastructure funding, and from that we could do beautification.

‘It was all to bring more people into the town.” 

Cyndi’s role in the Waitaki is for a fixed term of two years, and has been created by the council as part of the new Economic Development Strategy. It is paid for by the Government’s Better Off funding.

Her focus is going to be on Ōamaru’s central business district and north end, Otematata and Ōmarama.

“All of those places already have the spatial plan done, so there are guidelines and structure, and things that have already been communicated, with the community engaged on, that need to be addressed.

“So, certainly that will be the starting point, to see what is in those - potentially going back to the community, and seeing, are there still things in here that need to be addressed? What are the priorities? What are the most important to start with? And then, you know, what are those low-hanging fruits - if we can kind of get some easy wins, ” she said.

Cyndi’s first two weeks have been spent getting to know the people she is working with, what their jobs are and how it will relate to the work she is doing. 

Next steps are getting out and talking to the business and wider community.

“There’s community groups and community boards, that I need to, you know, sit down and chat with to, just again, understand the community,” she said.

“I am new to Oamaru, but certainly have grown up in a small town, so understand how connected people are to where they live, and their fellow neighbour.”

She anticipated she would be faced with a variety of different attitudes and people, which happened no matter the size of the town.

“You know, you’ll have those people that are really excited and want to get involved, and you will have people who are like, ‘we’ve tried this once already, it didn’t work’.” 

Although Lower Hutt and Ōamaru were quite different places, Cyndi said “absolutely” there will be similarities between this and her previous job.

“Coming out of Covid, I think, all places are looking at a different way of supporting their business community, of activating and revitalising their town centres and their city streets, and yeah, so I think that the ED Strategy’s a response to that.

“What was successful there, can be successful for Ōamaru.” 

Although new to the Waitaki, placemaking has been happening all over the world for many, many, many years, Cyndi said.

“But you do have to make it local and it’s only successful if it really comes from the community.”

Placemaking is quite different in New Zealand, in that it has a tendency to be instigated from "top down versus from the grassroots up", she said.

“Take for example Build a Better Block was started in Dallas, Texas, and that was started because a group of people who lived on a street were unhappy, and couldn't get the council to, kind of, do things around that street to make it safer. So they just took it into their own hands, and they closed the street off, and they did a festival, and they just did all these other changes, and the council came through and said, ‘wow this is a really good idea’ and then supported them.

“So, I think New Zealand has a great opportunity, because you’ve got it coming from the top down, the important part will be that partnership between the community and then those funding agents, you know.”

Although it was the job that drew Cyndi to Ōamaru, she is looking forward to having a community connection again, after working in one town and living in another for the past 15 years.

“Because we were so connected in Waterbury, I just took it for granted," she said.

“And I love the fact that I don’t have to drive to work. I actually get about an hour and a half back in my day from not driving.” 

Steffan will be moving south once their house is ready for sale. His job is with the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, and he will work remotely. 

The couple have two dogs - an ex-racing greyhound and a saluki, and will probably do a lot of dog walking in their newly discovered spare time, Cyndi said. 

“We like to garden, and certainly getting out and taking the opportunity with the move, to probably try some new stuff. Gaining almost two hours back in your day can give you more time for other activities.” 

She is excited about a lot of things in her new job.

“Certainly, it’s being in a small community, it’s really feeling connected to the people in the community. 

“Everyone I’ve met so far has been really lovely, and open. And it’s a new job, so it’s definitely sinking my teeth into it, and really getting that opportunity to kind of take the learnings I had in my last job, but doing it in a way here that’s really more with the community instead of for.

“I think it will be a really busy two years.”