Job creation lags behind city's 'aspirational target'

An ambitious plan to create 10,000 extra jobs in Dunedin over a decade is behind schedule, despite the vibrant hum growing in the city.

Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull, in releasing the council's draft 10-year budget for public consultation this week, described Dunedin as ''just buzzing'' from new arrivals, new jobs and new businesses taking root in the city.

Figures from Infometrics, released last month, also showed 883 jobs were added to the city's economy in the year ending March 2017, while GDP in the city grew 2.2% last year.

However, an update on the city's wider economic development strategy, presented to the Dunedin City Council's economic development committee on Tuesday, showed jobs growth was not yet matching targets set in 2013.

The city's decade-long economic development strategy, launched then, included a target of 10,000 extra jobs, and an average of $10,000 extra income per person, across Dunedin by 2023.

Enterprise Dunedin economic development programme manager Fraser Liggett told Tuesday's meeting the latest Infometrics figures showed 2700 extra jobs had been created so far.

The figures covered the period from March 2013 to March 2017, meaning the more than 350 jobs being lost with the closure of the Cadbury chocolate factory would not yet be captured.

Mr Liggett told the committee the ''devil was in the detail'', as the pace of jobs growth was accelerating.

In 2013, the first year of the strategy, the city had registered a decline in job creation, but the figures had progressively improved, he said.

The rebuild of Dunedin Hospital was expected to provide a further boost to job numbers in the later years of the strategy, he said.

Mr Cull said yesterday the trend was still heading in the right direction for Dunedin, despite the figures.

''You talk to business people around the city and they'll tell you that it's the best business environment that they've had in years.''

''Clearly, we haven't hit the aspirational target, but I think we're doing pretty well.''

Mr Liggett said Enterprise Dunedin was also planning a mid-term review of the strategy over the next few months, which could shift its focus for the remaining five years.

That could include, for example, shifting the focus more towards attracting and growing start-ups and existing tech businesses, niche manufacturing and other existing city strengths, such as tourism and education, he said.

More information on the review, together with income growth and the impact of both the Cadbury factory closure and hospital rebuild, would be provided to councillors later this year, he said.

chris.morris@odt.co.nz