Case study 5.4

Asset management for public entities: Learning from local government examples.

Palmerston North City Council – Making organisational structures work for the assets makes planning easier

The way the Palmerston North City Council is structured allows the strategic direction and asset management policy to be led by the City Networks unit but in conjunction with the City Future and City Corporate units. They work together on agreeing review time frames, approaches to community consultation, audit, and review.

Within the framework that the policy provides, City Networks is continually improving its asset management skills, processes, and systems, and developing more sophisticated tools and advanced asset management techniques as resources allow.

An overall infrastructure asset management plan review has been part of an eight-month project led by the Asset Management Co-ordinator. Senior City Networks officers are actively involved in various groups to link asset management planning with the urban growth strategy and district planning. There is a specific co-ordinating group for the 10-year plan.