Andrew Ashton

Hamilton City Council has been warning that fast-track housing projects in neighbouring districts could force its ratepayers to shoulder the cost of the roads, pipes and other infrastructure needed to support them.

On Friday, the Minister responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, released a 78-page report revealing that the council's own rules are “negatively affecting economic growth, development capacity or employment''.

The Government's local government reforms will see regional councils scrapped from 2028, meaning city and district councils must merge to provide those services as part of a unitary authority.

The decision comes after a community survey found widespread concern about alcohol-related harm, with 44% of respondents describing alcohol problems in their communities as serious or very serious.

Hamilton City leaders have decided the next local body election will be run on the Single Transferable Vote system just 10 days after voting to ditch that system.

Hamilton City Council is paying consultants as much as $228 an hour, with a new review raising questions about whether some of the work could be done more cheaply in-house.

Hamilton's power to shape where and how the city grows is about to come under scrutiny from a new Government-appointed watchdog with enough bite to assess whether council planning rules are driving up land prices.

City centre busking could get louder and more prevalent if recommendations to allow electric guitars on city streets are green-lighted.

Last Wednesday, a man set up a tent, lit a fire and allegedly got arrested, leaving residents on a leafy Hamilton street wondering why the tent is still there.

Home-grown Waikato businesses could get a bigger slice of Hamilton City contracts if new recommendations are approved.