My Vaccine Passes required for most Council facilities

My Vaccine Passes will be required to enter Waikato District Council libraries, offices, swimming pools, dog pounds and campgrounds for those in the community aged over 12 years and three months from 20 December.

This decision for the Orange setting under the COVID-19 Protection Framework was made at a council meeting on Monday 13 December.

They will also be needed for the Council-managed town halls in Ngaruawahia, Huntly Civic Centre Complex and Tuakau.

The rest of the community halls in the district are managed by volunteer committees.

Council decided to leave it up to those committees on how they manage their halls, but it has recommended that committees implement My Vaccine Passes.

Those committees will still need to follow the COVID-19 Protection Framework rules for events and gatherings in those halls.

Staff are now working with committees to find out the way they want to manage their halls and once Council has this information it will be put up on its website.

My Vaccine Passes will also be a condition of entry for the Coalfields Museum in Huntly and the Raglan Museum.

But a My Vaccine Pass will not be required for the information centre part of the Raglan Museum building.

In an effort to continue to provide library services to those in the community who have made the choice not to be vaccinated, a click and collect service will be running from Waikato District libraries from 20 December.

Waikato District Council Mayor Allan Sanson says this was not an easy decision for the councillors to make.

“This was always going to be a difficult decision and I just hope this is short-term so we can move out of this situation sooner rather than later,” says Mr Sanson.

“But we’ve been put in these roles to make governance decisions for our community at large.

“I don’t like all this, but I just keep thinking we need to be doing the right thing for our staff and our community, because they have expectations of us keeping them safe when they go into our facilities.”

Council will be reviewing its current decision on My Vaccine Passes in February 2022, and at least every six months after that.  

The decision would also be reviewed if it was considered necessary at any time. For example, if there were changes to the district’s COVID-19 Protection Framework (changes in traffic light “colours”).

My Vaccine Passes will not be needed for parks and reserves (including Woodlands Estate), cemeteries and playgrounds.

But there will be requirements for community event organisers to follow the rules of the Government’s COVID-19 Protection Framework when these events take place on council land.

For more information about My Vaccine Passes and Waikato District Council facilities please click here.