North events
centre stoush reignites
10th December
2009
The controversial $18.5 million
Northland Regional Events Centre will be fully owned by Whangarei District
Council, despite ratepayers from the entire region paying for the project.
Hours after regional councillors gave the
WDC a broadside yesterday, accusing it of meddling and putting
Government funding for the project at risk, the councils had sorted out
their differences.
At its monthly meeting yesterday, the
Northland Regional Council said the stadium was over budget
and district council interference was holding up $2.5 million of
Government funding.
The centre is being funded by $13
million from the regional council through a special recreation rate in
Whangarei, Kaipara and the Far North, $3 million from the district council and
the Government is giving $2.5 million to bring it up to standard to
host Rugby World Cup games.
But, yesterday, regional councillors
said the WDC had a secret deal to transfer part or all of the events
centre to the Northland Rugby Union after completion and wanted to
be the sole settler for the centre, contrary to what had been
agreed. The NRC was also concerned that the district council,
without discussions, had asked that the Government's $2.5 million
go to an independent trust to run the centre, with the WDC as sole settler,
rather than the NRC.
The basis for collecting the recreation
rate was that it would be a multi-purpose facility, managed and operated by an
independent trust and it would not result in an additional financial burden on
ratepayers.
Regional council chief executive Ken
Paterson said: "The recent developments outlined above clearly threaten all
of these assurances made to the public of Northland on what is one of the
... potentially most positive projects in the region for some time."
Regional council deputy chairman Ian
Walker said it appeared Whangarei Mayor Stan Semenoff wanted to open the
centre. "If that's the petty-mindedness we have to put up with, letting
him cut the bloody ribbon ... it shouldn't be mired in self-interest and petty
politics."
Mr Paterson said the NRC might
wish to halt construction until its concerns were resolved.
That was at 1.45pm. Then, just
after 5pm and after NRC chairman Mark Farnsworth and senior managers had
met Mr Semenoff and his team, it was all resolved.
Mr Farnsworth said the NRC would
hand the completed centre to the WDC. "Our shares will be transferred
to the WDC and we won't be a settler now that we've got the assurances (over
the matters of concern)."
Mr Farnsworth said the WDC had
satisfied all concerns. There was no secret deal. An
independent trust chosen by the WDC, with NRC consultation, would run the
centre. The councils would run a joint opening ceremony.