Alley takes mayoral chains, thanks Cadogan

A single nomination and a unanimous vote had the mayoral chains bestowed in minutes at the Central Otago District Council meeting yesterday.

Vincent councillor and community board chairwoman Tamah Alley was nominated by deputy mayor Neil Gillespie to fill the extraordinary vacancy left by the resignation on Saturday of Tim Cadogan, who had been elected three times.

With less than a year to go until the local body elections in October next year, a by-election was avoided and the councillors were able to appoint one of their own to the role.

The move left the council table one short but that was where they would be in a year, so it was decided to go with that. The six-yearly representation review, completed in May, led the councillors to decide then the Vincent ward would lose a councillor to achieve equal representation across all the wards.

Mrs Alley’s role as chairwoman of the Vincent Community Board was immediately vacated when she was made mayor and deputy chairman Jayden Cromb would fill that role until the board’s next meeting.

Linda Cadogan placed the mayoral chains on Mrs Alley who was immediately congratulated by fellow councillors with hugs.

Mrs Alley said the first thing she wanted to do was thank Mr Cadogan, who could not be there as he was "busy earning a crust in his new job".

"I want to acknowledge his guidance, patience, collaboration and lack of a giant ego that could get in the way of good work."

Mrs Alley, 39, first stood for council in 2019, and that year was the highest polling candidate for the council and the Vincent ward.

At the last election in 2022, she once again collected the most votes, although her friend and fellow councillor Tracy Paterson was close behind.

A former St Kevin’s College girl, the former police officer grew up inland from Oamaru. She spent 12 years as a police officer in Counties Manukau and Central Otago.

She is chairwoman of Local Government New Zealand zone 6, and was the only zone chairman or woman in the country who is neither mayor nor deputy mayor when she was appointed earlier this year, taking over from Clutha Mayor Bryan Cadogan.

Zone 6 covers all councils from Waitaki south: the Dunedin and Invercargill city councils, the Queenstown Lakes, Southland, Waitaki, Clutha, Gore and Central Otago district councils, the Otago Regional Council and Environment Southland.