![Logan Park Drive - Ontario poplars [odt.co.nz] see red](https://dunedinstadium.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/logan-park-drive-ontario-poplars-odt-co-nz-see-red.jpg)
Twelve Ontario poplars in Logan Park Dr between the entrance to the University Oval and the Logan Park tennis courts are to be removed. No consent was required to fell the trees because they were considered to be a shelter belt.
### ODT Online Sat, 13 Sep 2014
Logan Park tree removal sparks anger
By Debbie Porteous
As the chop looms, plans to remove 12 established poplars in Logan Park Dr have fired up Dunedin residents, some of whom say the decision appears to be out of the blue and even “horrifying”. But the Dunedin City Council says the removal of the trees, which will come down next week, is part of a 2007 plan to redevelop Logan Park. This included the eventual removal, and partial replacement, of the entire avenue of poplars. […] Concerns aired range from a loss of ambience, to whether the options had been fully canvassed, to giving in to sporting codes’ demands and confusion about process.
Read more
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![Logan Park Drive - Ontario poplars [odt.co.nz] 2](https://dunedinstadium.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/logan-park-drive-ontario-poplars-odt-co-nz-2.jpg)
### ODT Online Tue, 9 Sep 2014
University Oval poplars to be removed
By Debbie Porteous
Twelve trees that threatened the future of international cricket fixtures in Dunedin will be removed next week. The Otago Cricket Association has pushed for the trees on Logan Park Dr to be removed for several years, but the Dunedin City Council, which has been deferring the trees’ removal because of the cost, says its decision to bring the work forward is not purely the result of cricket’s demands. The Ontario poplars were originally scheduled for removal as part of the redevelopment of Logan Park.
Read more
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Updated post 14.9.14 at 3:07 p.m.
█ Comment from UglyBob (@UglyBobNZ)
Submitted on 2014/09/14 at 2:14 pm
What about Otago Cricket’s annual plan request around closing the road, making a grass embankment where the trees are now and installing lights. This is strangely absent from all talk about the removal of the poplars.
Related Posts and Comments:
16.6.11 Logan Park redevelopment
4.12.10 Old Logan Park Art Gallery
19.11.09 Logan Park Redevelopment: Compromise for Old Art Gallery
9.10.09 Former Logan Park Art Gallery talks
30.7.09 Logan Park hits the brakes
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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr
*Image: DCC Webmap – Logan Park Drive (avenue); [thumbnail] odt.co.nz – Ontario poplars at Logan Park
What if? Dunedin... 
If the Dunedin City Council destroys a commemorative avenue of well-established trees, does this still count (or is Daaave a freaking pimple):
### ODT Online Fri, 12 Sep 2014
Dunedin fairest in the land
By Chris Morris
Dunedin’s best-kept secret is out, with the city named the most beautiful in New Zealand. The honour was bestowed by Keep New Zealand Beautiful, which yesterday announced Dunedin had won the Beautiful Towns and Cities Award at an awards event in Wellington last weekend.
Read more
Is this another case of tree haters? lf they are to go, let the cricket fraternity pay for it. A saving for the council. Simple.
Peter, many of us vigorously opposed removal of the trees years ago – I’m damned sure the DCC never said to the general public back then that the avenue was just a shelter belt in terms of ‘legal’ status! Bastards.
All part of a larger argument regarding Logan Park having enormous amenity values for PASSIVE RECREATION where the general public is concerned – that the park was NOT the sole province of organised and professional sport. Bastards.
Lisa Wheeler, Mick Reece, Graeme Hall before them, and Terry Dykes (OCA). Bastards.
What does completely derelict mean?
It’s all part of the plan for Logan Park and the surrounding area to be part of a sports destination (Malc’s dream) next move, just wait and see. The Physio pool will close and a new complex will appear in the planning within the Logan Park sports zone. Haven’t we been told enough that Moana pool has reached its capacity? The Physio pool having reached the end of its life at this time is no coincidence.
Another game of frigging chess, Simon. GOBs united.
Professional Rugger/Thugby ain’t done with the DUNEDIN RATEPAYERS yet. Far from it. I wonder if the forthcoming Stadium Review will be another softener towards your thesis, yeah probably.
What about Otago Cricket’s annual plan request around closing the road, making a grass embankment where the trees are now and installing lights. This is strangely absent from all talk about the removal of the poplars.
Very true, UglyBob. To come?
Or DCC too broke to make the roading changes for access/egress to Logan Park if the request is given credence.
Added your comment to post at top of thread.
A wee bit of competition for Otago Cricket – the multi-use pavilion at Christchurch opens tomorrow, an international venue…
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Hagley Oval dream becomes reality
The opening of the new pavilion at Christchurch’s Hagley Oval is a milestone for the World Cup and the city’s rebuild.
Christchurch has the opening game and the opening ceremony.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/10496781/Hagley-Oval-dream-becomes-reality
SORDID DCC SPIN
Dunedin City Council – Media Release
Tree Removal Will Enhance Popular Sportsground
This item was published on 12 Sep 2014
The removal of 12 trees on Logan Park Drive will greatly improve the facilities at Dunedin’s premier sports hub. Dunedin City Council Parks Manager Lisa Wheeler says the sportsfield directly in front of the 12 Ontario poplars is undersized in length by 10m because of a lack of space.
“This is the city’s highest use sporting facility and once these trees are removed the field can then be repositioned and resized.”
Removal of the trees will also address shading problems for afternoon fixtures at the highly regarded University Oval. This longstanding issue has been raised by Otago Cricket through Annual Plan submissions.
There was considerable discussion and consultation before the decision was made in September 2005 to remove the trees. The Logan Park development planning process from 2004/05, and the public consultation which was part of this process, identified a number of issues and concerns associated with the age and stability of the poplar trees at Logan Park.
“This was the main reason for the working party commissioning the 2007 Logan Park Tree Management Plan, which was fully consulted on with stakeholders and approved by the working party as an operational implementation plan,” Ms Wheeler says.
The 12 poplar trees on Logan Park Drive north of the University Oval gates being removed were identified in the Plan. The Plan recommended in the short term (one to three years) removing these trees and the gum tree in front of the tennis centre. The poplars were then scheduled to be removed in 2009/10, subject to funding. Ms Wheeler says removal of the trees has been scheduled for some years, but was dependent on funding being available.
The gum tree was removed last year and projects have been reprioritised to make funding available now for the poplars to come down. Removing the trees now will ensure shading issues are resolved before Cricket World Cup matches are played at the Oval in February.
Ms Wheeler says the alternative of pruning these mature trees to alleviate shading issues was considered, but it would not be a satisfactory solution. Too many branches would have to be pruned to allow more light through.
The poplars in question are not listed in the District Plan as significant trees. In this area, resource consent is not needed to remove a line of trees which can be described as a shelter belt. Removal of the trees will begin on Monday and is expected to take about a week.
Contact Parks Manager on 477 4000.
DCC Link
Poltroons! What about bowl windage? No shelter belt = a different pitch and not The Game you’ve been used to.
It seems a touch ironic that a council which has put forward to some positive Green initiative, irrespective if people support them or not, is mowing down such a beautiful avenue of trees at the behest of yet another sporting body. Leave them alone, please.
The chainsaws are supposed to be on site today….
Notice the first paragraph? “Dunedin’s premier sports hub”. Any bets on how long it will be until a new pool is located at the ” Premier” sports hub?
Sacrilege !!!!!!!!!!!! At the hands of your disgusting deceitful Council, in the name of council officer Lisa Wheeler and Otago Cricket’s Terry Dykes.
A number of Submitters said in historic written submissions on the Logan Park Redevelopment that they wanted the Avenue of Trees maintained !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Chris Doudney, Elizabeth Kerr, amongst others.
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### ODT Online Tue, 16 Sep 2014
Three bowled, nine to go
Contractors wasted no time felling the first three of a dozen Ontario poplars to come down on Logan Park Dr in Dunedin yesterday. The trees are being removed by the Dunedin City Council to address shading problems for afternoon cricket fixtures at the neighbouring University Oval and provide more space for sports fields at the park. The 12 trees lined up for the chop, those between the gates to the Oval and the tennis courts, are expected to be down by Friday.
ODT Link
Comment at ODT Online:
Passive recreation at Logan Park
Submitted by ej kerr on Tue, 16/09/2014 – 3:39pm.
I’m deeply disgusted by politics surrounding the chainsaw massacre of the Ontario poplars – thanks to DCC and the Good Old Boys, once again!
Many Dunedin folk enjoy the Park’s environment specifically because of the tall trees and the open green space between, in sight of seasonal change… for strolling, jogging, casual exercise, taking the air or walking the dogs. The poplar avenue is now harshly slashed and eroded to insignificance because of a dumb and blind city council that chooses to ignore submissions received on the redevelopment of Logan Park that called for retention and maintenance of the avenue of trees along the Drive – in effect, an extension of the commemorative tree-lined Anzac Avenue.
Apparently, organised and professional sport have champion rights to this city asset over and above passive recreational users… in line with stepping up of Council expenditure on progressing the ‘redevelopment dream’ of a sports hub. Yet another reason not to trust DCC during these allegedly fraudulent spendthrift times…, especially not the drivers in CARS department.
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[CARS = Community and Recreation Services. The last sentence was abridged by ODT.]
Yes, Elizabeth, how about the enjoyment of that avenue of trees by people who don’t play or watch cricket? A minority sector group getting their own way. Again. Weak leadership here.
I wonder if the decision to chop the trees would have been different if they were a row of Kauri and not Ontario Poplars ?
Daaave and the sustainable green city. Yeah right.
Weak Leadership? What leadership? Where was Jinty when we needed her?
### dunedintv.co.nz September 17, 2014 – 5:47pm
Logan Park poplars get the axe
The removal of trees along Logan Park Drive is in full swing, with several already felled.
Video
### ODT Online Wed, 17 Dec 2014
Oval name change
By Debbie Porteous
The Dunedin City Council is to rename the University Oval the University of Otago Oval. The university asked the council, which owns the ground, for the name change so the university could take advantage of the marketing opportunities from a greater association between it and the ground.
Read more
[See today’s related story regarding South Dunedin Cycleways….Link]
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### ODT Online Mon, 24 Aug 2015
DCC admits tree contract blunder
By Chris Morris
The Dunedin City Council says lessons have been learnt after it botched a contract to remove trees bordering Logan Park […] following complaints from a member of the public, council infrastructure and networks general manager Ruth Stokes on Friday conceded the council’s oversight of the project “fell well short of expectations”.
Read more
Lessons have been learnt is an oft quoted excuse or justification.
My question is why are we not paying apprentice wages to these overpaid administrators if they like apprentices are learning on the job?
One could forgive the odd mistake in judgement at $50,000 pa.
At $150-$450,000 pa we are entitled to error free accountability.
Errors of the magnitude we now hear of weekly or even daily must contain a financial penalty or total dismissal.
And a claw back, via in-house legal challenge, if the staff member has resigned before being made accountable where gross incompetence or worse has occurred (provable) at a (calculable/significant) loss to ratepayers ?
What’s cheaper for ratepayers… stiff challenge or setting free/dispensing with.
It is now time for Ruth Stokes to stop blaming her staff, clear her desk and resign the position she is incapable of holding. She is right to say “oversight of the project fell well short of expectations”. What she really means is that she is falling well short of expectations. There was no proper tendering process, so the ratepayer picks up the tab while the contractor runs off to the bank with the extras. Fraud!!
29.12.14 ODT: New DCC manager
May I say, Ruth Stokes came into the general managership only very recently, and part of the mission is of course to do clean-up.
So council contracts awarded prior to her arrival in February 2015 are seriously not her problem as a career-bureaucrat in local government.
Not helped by the Mayor/MacTavish/Wilson et al (greenie faction of Greater Dunedin) push for cycleways.
Now, back to Tony Avery, Mick Reece….
“There was no proper tendering process” – add that to the “preferred contractor” practice, where other firms don’t get a chance to earn some dollars for their rate-paying businesses and employees. Result, firms who not unreasonably see the DCC the way cowboy roof painters see little old ladies and cats see slow mice.
So what people have been saying for some years, that the tendering process is flawed, seem to be closer to the truth. Funny that.
It was Finance chair Cr Richard Thomson who championed $1M ratepayer funds to Professional Cricket for new floodlights at the Oval. That was bad enough, we’ve also lost trees and amenity at Logan Park to Professional Cricket. FOR HOSTING INTERNATIONAL TEST PLAY.
Now the grand revelation.
Freakishly Embarrassing ////////////////////
### ODT Online Thu, 4 Feb 2016
Cricket: Oval lights plan under a shadow
By Adrian Seconi
The University Oval will stay in the dark – for now. Spiralling costs and the inability to host international day-night tests has forced the Otago Cricket Association (OCA) to put its project to light up the University Oval on hold indefinitely. In April, the OCA launched a plan to install floodlights at the venue, gaining $1million financial support from the Dunedin City Council.
Read more
Cr MacTavish is not speaking for the Council – underlined.
The attempt to think out loud is straight electioneering.
OCA have led DCC down an very expensive path at the cricket Oval, this includes contemptibles: ruination of the former art gallery building, removal of trees on the avenue, and convincing Cr Thomson he would do well to snaffle ONE MILLION DOLLARS of ratepayer funds for floodlights.
ALL on the promise of international test cricket.
Finally, the worm has turned.
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### ODT Online Fri, 5 Feb 2016
Failed floodlight plan good for DCC
By Craig Borley
The scuppered University Oval floodlights bid has saved the Dunedin City Council $1 million. […] Council community and environment committee chairwoman Cr Jinty MacTavish said it was likely the surplus cash would be used to pay off debt.
Read more
I know things change, even really sound and sensible plans based all all the information available…
…but…
how realistic was the “international test cricket” carrot dangled in front of the donkey? A realistic solidly based expectation, based on written or otherwise recorded firm intentions by the admins of Big Cricket?
Or was it a wishful thinking build it and they will come scheme peddled by local empire builders of the bullshit-on-willow persuasion to a gullible “mark”?
Been a very long-winded gnarly STRONG LOBBY carrot (OCA).
Thankfully the national cricket body has made the appropriate call based on what it knows of its market and venues NZ wide.
The Oval is a great place to watch cricket. Forced by necessity to compete, OCA has lost. This will be hurting.
So the DCC will be returning this money back to the ratepayers right? Jinty seems to think the money is best spent on the stadium.
As I pointed out in comments on both of those articles the real issue is the way one-time purchases like this affect rates in subsequent years – this $1m raised rates by ~1% last year – this year’s rates rise is measured at how much it is over last year’s rates rise – that means the council gets to spend that 1 time 1% raise over and over again every year for ever.
It’s how our rates keep quietly increasing
Ideally not only should we get that $1m back as a 1% rates decrease this year, but we also should get another 1% decrease this year (as the base rate for last year goes down by 1%) and for all subsequent years
Thanks Mike. Yes read your other comments before this. Totally agree.
Another of the DCC’s speargun hits direct to ratepayers’ pockets, dressed up with teeth, tail and fins.
Mike, you’re dreaming! “Ideally not only should we get that $1m back as a 1% rates decrease this year, but we also should get another 1% decrease this year (as the base rate for last year goes down by 1%) and for all subsequent years.”
For one thing that’s an unreasonable challenge to people who skipped remedial math classes. For another, reducing the amount of FREE (aka Other People’s) Money for pet projects is too hurty-hurty waah waaah to be acceptable.
Mike, I love the way you get straight to the meat of the matter. But to be fair, Jinty would not by any stretch of the imagination understand that rational logic. She can only look through her green tinted glasses and see a glass full when in fact it’s part of a great stack of empties.
Which councillors, aside from Richard Thomson voted for a DCC contribution towards the cricket lights?
I gather Jinty opposed this proposal from the outset. If so,she is at least being consistent.
### dunedintv.co.nz Fri, 5 Feb 2016
University Oval floodlights shelved
Plans to install floodlights at the University Oval are being put on hold. The Otago Cricket Association is shelving the idea, due to rising costs. It was promised $1m by the Dunedin City Council for the project. But the association can’t afford its share of expenses, which are skyrocketing. Floodlights would allow international day-night tests to be played in Dunedin. For that to happen, the Oval embankment needs to be expanded to accommodate a larger crowd. Now the association’s focusing on that upgrade before considering the installation of lights.
Ch39 Video
Comments relocated from another thread. Relevance. -Eds
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Rob Hamlin
2016/09/27 at 8:43 am
This is how your money gets spent now that the University Oval and pro cricket is safely behind the DVML corporate veil – no pesky hearings, public competitive applications or permissions required by these boys now. One assumes that the “HARDLY USED” Foobar scoreboard will be replaced by a new one of even higher specifications – which will also be ‘hardly used’?.
Is it not strange that a core component of the supposedly fantastically successful and heavily used Foobar venue should be so described?
https://www.odt.co.nz/sport/cricket/new-scoreboard-university-oval
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Jacob
2016/09/27 at 11:34 am
Another of the DCC best kept secrets till after the elections. Rumour has it that the new Mosgiel Pool could come under the DVML umbrella after the elections.
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Calvin Oaten
2016/09/27 at 1:57 pm
Rugby Pool and Council Fools! Watch out for the Otago Cricket Association’s $100,000 to become like the Stadium Private Funding, there in intent, missing in fact. Terry Davies will see that the whole business will be ‘cloaked in confidentiality’.
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Hype O’Thermia In reply to Jacob.
2016/09/27 at 2:36 pm
Rumour? It would be wildly imaginative nay delusional to predict that Mosgiel’s Pools-winner Pool would be other than “under the DVML umbrella”.
Grabby grabby grabby hands, shake grubby hands, gotta picka pocket or two
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Hype O’Thermia
2016/09/27 at 2:40 pm
Calvin, you’re getting unduly charitable with age: “like the Stadium Private Funding, there in intent”.
I suppose it depends on what you meant by intent. Intent to provide it, or intent that gullible people believe one was going to do so.
“The cheque’s in the mail and the dog ate my homework.”