Harry Pearson standing for Nelson City Council

Nelson business owner Harry Pearson is contending for a seat on the Nelson City Council.

Harry, who owns and operates Storage Nelson, has qualifications and experience in business, science, forestry, engineering, tourism, and horticulture.

“I love this city and that’s one of the reasons I want to be on council,” he says.

Harry says he has plenty of ideas and wants to see councillors focus on the basics and work together as a team.

“If you have 12 people in council coming up with innovative ideas, plus listening to the community and their ideas, there is no reason why we couldn’t be doing really well,” he says.

“Running a storage business, I meet a lot of people, so you get a bit of a feel for what their concerns are. As a councillor, you are working for the people, and they need to know you’ll stand for them in the council chambers.”

The passionate gardener wants to see more community orchards around Nelson and more initiatives to get people enthusiastic about horticulture at an early age.

He also pledges to help to find more solutions to the housing crisis and provide more support for social services so that anyone struggling financially, physically, or mentally has the support they need.

The experienced engineer also says the council needs to better look at the maintenance of its assets and think of more ways to promote the region.

“We need to promote our city and region as a great place to work, live and visit to overcome our skills shortage and increase tourism,” he says.

“To me, Nelson is the best city in the country, and I want it to stay that way.”