Prostadia gimps are delusional

photonz provides bold reply to the increasingly melodramatic funkie01 who claims that with Rugby World Cup 2011, “We are holding 4th largest sporting event where the world’s eyes are upon us.”

### ODT Online 10/03/2010 – 1:18am
4th largest sporting event? Yeah, right
Comment by photonz
Compared to the RWC, there are formula one races and Moto GP bike races that regularly get 100,000 – 200,000 spectators on a single day, and 300,000 – 500,000 over the whole weekend – just for a single event, with the same again the next weekend, and the weekend after that, through the whole season.
US Major League Baseball gets a competition attendance of 78 million, baseball in Japan gets 22 million, US basketball gets 21 million, ice hockey gets 21 million, US football gets 17 million, UK football gets 13 million, German football gets 13 million, in Spain it gets 11 million, in Italy it gets 10 million and in France it gets 8 million. The Aussie Rules club competition gets 7 million . . . So whether you measure total attendance, average attendance per game, or maximum attendance per game, the RWC isn’t among the frontrunners unless you artificially rule out dozens of other bigger events including motor racing, motorcycle racing, ice hockey, american football, canadian football, aussie rules, basketball, baseball, college football, athletics, along with many amateur codes, oh, and of course numerous soccer events.
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Post by Elizabeth Kerr

Farry Chin photo opp…

### ODT Online Wed, 10 Mar 2010
Stadium down to nuts and bolts
By John Lewis
Most of the [concrete] has been poured. Now the construction of Forsyth Barr Stadium is largely down to nuts and bolts. Dunedin Mayor Peter Chin and stadium trust chairman Malcolm Farry marked the start of the stadium’s roof construction by tightening the last bolts on the first of the two columns which will support the roof structure.

Construction of the roof is expected to be completed in January next year.

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Post by Elizabeth Kerr

Plan Change 7: Harbourside – remove stage two

### ODT Online Wed, 10 Mar 2010
Businesses could close if harbourside plan proceeds
By Mark Price
Three of the main heavy industries in the harbour area of Dunedin say they could be put out of business by a Dunedin City Council proposal to rezone harbourside industrial land so it can be used for residential and commercial use.
The council’s harbourside plan change 7 incorporates one stage around the harbour basin and a second stage involving industrial land north from the harbour basin. Asked if a compromise with the council was possible, foundry operator Bradken manufacturing manager Roger Denston said: “They could remove stage two from the plan.”
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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

D Scene maintains stadium construction cost is $198 million

### D Scene 10-3-10
Perilous seas (front cover)
Dunedin surfers are concerned debris dumped at St Clair beach will seriously injure someone riding the waves at the popular location. See page 3.
#bookmark

Editorial: Have your say on how your money is spent (page 2)
[excerpt] Dunedin City Council has just put out its draft annual plan for how to spend your ratepayer’s money for consultation.
{continues} #bookmark

Esplanade ‘falling to pieces’ (page 3)
By Wilma McCorkindale
A St Clair Beach surfie claims the popular recreation area is a neglected danger zone. A regular surfer at the beach for the past 30 years Mark Stevenson said he had twice succumbed to “dangerous” sharp bits of steel protruding out of the sand and among rocks at the St Clair Esplanade. He believed the steel scraps had been discarded by tradesmen working on the site, and the council should be ordering them to pick up the scrap.
{continues} #bookmark

Register to read D Scene online at http://fairfaxmedia.newspaperdirect.com/

Topping if off (page 6)
Dunedin Mayor Peter Chin tightens bolts on work at the city’s multi-million dollar stadium. The Mayor’s picture opportunity at the stadium site marked work starting on the first of two steel columns that will support the stadium roof.
The stadium construction cost is currently $198 million.
{continues} #bookmark

Zone change will ‘cost jobs’ (page 8)
By Wilma McCorkindale
Otago Chamber of Commerce had made a scathing attack on Dunedin City Council’s proposed harbourside [plan] change 7. “Plain and simple, it’s going to cost the city jobs,” chamber chief John Christie said. “The city council’s own advice, in its own reports, indicated this will cost the city jobs.”
{continues} #bookmark

****

Talk: Dunedin on Dunedin (page 10)
Your say
GST on Stadium costs by ID Fincham, Mornington
Dunedin City Council finance and corporate support general manager Athol Stephens replies. #bookmark

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Strong business case for potential Port merger (page 25)
By Alan Wood
A confidential report says “there is a strong business case” for a potential merger between Port Otago and Lyttelton Port of Christchurch, with one of the port owners saying a joining could happen by December. The Otago Regional Council, the owner of Port Otago, is in principle in favour of a port merger with Lyttelton Port of Christchurch though it says further discussions are needed before any merger proceeds.
{continues} #bookmark

Post by Elizabeth Kerr

The bull**** from National continues unabated

“The impression I get is the city has moved past the controversial issue and decided it is an important piece of infrastructure for the city.”
-Murray McCully

### ODT Online Wed, 10 Mar 2010
Praise for city’s ‘important piece of infrastructure’
By Steve Hepburn
Murray McCully says he is impressed by progress made at the Forsyth Barr Stadium and feels the Rugby World Cup is on track. McCully, Minister for Sport and Recreation and for the Rugby World Cup, visited Dunedin yesterday, firstly having a look at the stadium then visiting the Academy of Sport (South Island) facilities at Logan Park. From what he could see, the stadium was looking “terrific”.

Another lie, another deception:

If anything, decisions made by Auckland mayors showed how most people could not wait to see the overhaul of the Auckland governance system, he said.

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Post by Elizabeth Kerr