### Stuff.co.nz Last updated 17:20, July 31 2015 Windows 10 uses customers’ computers to distribute updates
By Tom Pullar-Strecker
A couple of surprises have been found under the bonnet of Microsoft’s latest operating system.
█ Microsoft has confirmed that people who switch to its latest Windows 10 operating system may find their internet connection is then used to upload Microsoft updates to other Windows 10 users.
█ Another feature of Windows 10 that has raised red flags with some computer users is the inclusion of advertisements in one of its “native” apps, popular game Solitaire.
The use of “peer-to-peer” technology to help distribute software is controversial, in part because it can push computer users through their broadband data caps. Microsoft does not appear to advertise the fact that Windows 10 will harness people’s internet connections to distribute updates, at no advantage to those users whose bandwidth is being consumed.
Microsoft New Zealand marketing director Frazer Scott said he expected the amount of bandwidth used would be small, but conceded he could not quantify how large the files that might be uploaded from people’s computers would be.
United States online music service Spotify also used peer-to-peer technology in the past to distribute music tracks between customers, without making it clear it was doing so, though it stopped the practice last year.
NZOG completes 3D in Clipper-permit [1derrick.com]
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NZOG gives itself a 10 to 20 per cent chance of success at the Barque prospect.
### Stuff.co.nz Last updated 19:04, July 30 2015 NZOG eyes potentially huge Barque oil and gas prospect
By James Weir
New Zealand Oil and Gas may be on to a huge oil and gas prospect in the Canterbury Basin off the South Island’s east coast, but it is still early days and the chances of success are uncertain. The Barque prospect is within the Clipper permit, about 60km off the coast from Oamaru, and it could hold the equivalent of hundreds of millions of barrels of oil. But it is in a higher risk and little explored “frontier” area.
NZOG says in the largest of the three prospective horizons in the Barque prospect, “the best estimate of unrisked prospective resource is 530 million barrels (of oil) equivalent”.
A test well could be drilled in 2017 at a cost of up to US$120 million, if NZOG can bring in a new partner or two to help pay for what the company says is a “pretty attractive prospect” which was likely to be gas condensate, a light oil.
“We are pretty excited about that (Barque) opportunity,” NZOG chief executive Andrew Knight said on Thursday, but the company now needed to get “farm in” partners to take a share of the permit and help pay for the costs of exploration. It is all looking very positive….or as positive as it can be till you stick a hole in it and test it,” he said. Read more
Where is the Gigatown?
What has been accomplished since February?
What happened to the $50K for “key projects”?
Who is employed by the Digital Office, on the ground, currently?
Where is the new office, the physical presence, supposedly in George St?
What has happened to the $200K approved by Council from July 2015 onwards?
What has happened to the Project Coordinator Position in Enterprise Dunedin? And the associated $100K also approved by Council?
Where is the social media campaign, supposedly delegated to Digital Office in June?
Where is the PR campaign, supposedly awarded to Glow PR in June?
Where is the Gigabit WiFi, supposedly delegated to Digital Office in June?
Where are the companies who moved to Dunedin on the back of the win?
Does the DCT still meet weekly on Mondays? Where are the reports of these meetings?
In short, where is the “game-changing economic boost” promised by the same Mayor who is off to China to explore the next “huge potential”?
Virtual Eye Published on Jun 12, 2014 Gigatown Dunedin
#GigatownDunedin is Dunedin’s answer to Chorus’s Gigatown competition. As part of the competition, businesses had to answer five questions put forward by Chorus. This is how ARL answered those questions, on behalf of our hometown.
(In October 2013, Chorus announced that one town in New Zealand would receive the fastest internet in the Southern Hemisphere at extraordinarily cheap prices.)
Otago Daily Times Published on Nov 17, 2014 Gigatown Dunedin Stage2
This #gigatownDUN video is part of Dunedin’s entry into the #gigatown New Zealand competition, the video accompanies the written submission in the final round, the Plan for Gig Success.
QUESTION
Where did the Deloitte report on Citifleet disappear to after it was leaked to ODT? Somewhere deep in a mud tank, at South Dunedin?
Deloitte produced three Citifleet reports; at least two of these show people are liable (present tense) for prosecution.
Where has ODT been to not take the cover off said blocked mud tank.
What makes Dunedin Police so reluctant to prosecute.
Cull and Bidrose “say” just one man, Bachop, is guilty of the +$1.5million Citifleet fraud, which included +152 fleet vehicles lost as well as trade in tyres and parts, and vehicle service contracts (tenders, black market, yawn)….
No wonder Deloitte investigator Kyle Cameron is pissed off at DCC.
No prosecutions ~!!
But back to Monday’s thrashing on tender fraud.
Cr Vandervis has already provided enough evidence to DCC officials, in non public, to add to or start investigations. They don’t want to know.
This is local government at Dunedin, refusing transparency and accountability.
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Cr Vandervis hit back, telling the meeting he had provided other evidence to Mr Cull in confidence in the past, and could produce it publicly at the meeting, if needed.
### ODT Online Tue, 28 Jul 2015 Vandervis told to produce ‘evidence’
By Chris Morris
Mayor Dave Cull and Cr Lee Vandervis locked horns yesterday after the latter claimed to have “plenty of evidence” of tender fraud involving the council. The comment, as councillors at yesterday’s full council meeting signed off on a new sensitive expenditure policy, prompted a point of order from Cr Jinty MacTavish, who labelled his comment “disrespectful” and challenged him to produce evidence. Read more
The new policy covered everything from travel and accommodation to entertainment and hospitality, but not contracts and tendering, which Cr Vandervis wanted included as well. (ODT)
“I really do wonder what the value is of all these trips overseas, especially when we have so many issues that need dealing with here at home.”
–Cr Lee Vandervis
### ODT Online Tue, 28 Jul 2015 Mayor’s China trip spurs clash
By Chris Morris
Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull is heading back to China later this year, but the trip has already sparked a fresh clash with one of his outspoken councillors. Mr Cull has been invited to attend the inaugural New Zealand China Mayoral Forum 2015 in Xiamen city, China, in September, at a cost to the council of about $8000. Read more
$8000? Don’t forget the mayor’s entourage, MikeStk…. [buzzz! Cling-on ALERT]
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Meanwhile, Mayor Cull reflect…. with light shed on conduct across the Tassie.
Weddings, parties, opera, airfares, helicopters and limousines on the taxpayers later….
Link received from Australian Tie
Tue, 28 Jul 2015 at 10:44 a.m.
### canberratimes.com.au July 24, 2015 Bronwyn Bishop claimed Sophie Mirabella wedding trip as official business By James Robertson
It was the scandal that quickly swept through a new government.
Soon after the Coalition was elected in 2013, Senator George Brandis became the first Abbott government minister forced to repay the public almost $1700 in expenses claimed to attend the wedding of shock jock Michael Smith. High-profile ministers Scott Morrison and Barnaby Joyce soon had to follow suit, repaying taxpayer money they claimed for travel to weddings. Prime Minister Tony Abbott himself repaid $1600 worth of airfares, car transport and allowances claimed for attending the weddings of two Liberal colleagues, Peter Slipper and Sophie Mirabella. “To avoid doubt, I paid the relevant money back,” he said in a warning to his colleagues. “That’s what people should do.”
One MP ignored the Prime Minister’s instruction, weeks of media coverage and public outrage at MPs’ habit of billing the taxpayer for trips to friends’ weddings. Embattled Speaker Bronwyn Bishop claimed $600 for return flights from Sydney to Albury for Mrs Mirabella’s wedding in 2006 – and she has never repaid the money, Fairfax Media has confirmed. Previously unreported documents released under freedom of information laws show Mrs Bishop told bureaucrats that the trip constituted government business.
█ [It gets worse. The Video is a must see.] Read more + Video spoof
Exclaimed down the phone. A retired member of the public sent this information to whatifdunedin, highly unamused by the “uncalled for” topic and the “brainwashed presenters”.
LOOK WHO IS SPEAKING, WHAT A LOVELY BUNCH O’ . . . .
Dolifun37 Published on Jan 17, 2015 Uptown funk (Minions Voice)
Music: “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson feat. Bruno Mars (Google Play • iTunes)
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Minions are small, yellow, pill-shaped creatures who have existed since the beginning of time, evolving from single-celled organisms into beings who exist only to serve history’s most villainous masters. They find great masters—including a T. Rex, a caveman, an Egyptian pharaoh, Dracula, and Napoleon —but after accidentally killing nearly all of them with their incompetence, they decide to isolate themselves from the world and start a new life in Antarctica. By 1968, the lack of a master drives them into depression, so one minion—Kevin—plans to find a new master.
Minions is a 2015 American 3D computer-animated family comedy film, and a prequel/spin-off to the Despicable Me franchise. Produced by Illumination Entertainment for Universal Pictures, it was directed by Pierre Coffin and Kyle Balda, written by Brian Lynch, and produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy. The film stars Coffin (as the Minions), Sandra Bullock, Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, Allison Janney, Steve Coogan, and narrated by Geoffrey Rush. It was first foreshadowed in the end credits of Despicable Me 2, where Stuart, Kevin, and Bob, three of the Minions, are seen auditioning for the film.
Minions premiered on June 11, 2015, in London, and was released in the United States on July 10, 2015. Despite mixed reviews, the film has grossed over $655 million worldwide.
[recognise anyone ?]
[repetition of DCC brainstorms and central city project “VIBES”]
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#DUD Singalong
Mark Ronson Lyrics: “Uptown Funk” (feat. Bruno Mars)
This hit
That ice cold
Michelle Pfeiffer
That white gold
This one, for them hood girls
Them good girls
Straight masterpieces
Stylin’, while in
Livin’ it up in the city
Got Chucks on with Saint Laurent
Gotta kiss myself I’m so pretty
I’m too hot (hot damn)
Called a police and a fireman
I’m too hot (hot damn)
Make a dragon wanna retire, man
I’m too hot (hot damn)
Say my name you know who I am
I’m too hot (hot damn)
Am I bad ’bout that money
Break it down
Girls hit your hallelujah (whoo)
Girls hit your hallelujah (whoo)
Girls hit your hallelujah (whoo)
‘Cause Uptown Funk gon’ give it to you
‘Cause Uptown Funk gon’ give it to you
‘Cause Uptown Funk gon’ give it to you
Saturday night and we’re in the spot
Don’t believe me, just watch (Come on)
Doh
Doh doh doh, doh doh doh, doh doh (Hah!)
Don’t believe me, just watch
Doh
Doh doh doh, doh doh doh, doh doh (Hah!)
Don’t believe me, just watch
Don’t believe me, just watch
Don’t believe me, just watch
Don’t believe me, just watch
Hey, hey, hey, oh!
Stop
Wait a minute
Fill my cup put some liquor in it
Take a sip, sign a check
Julio! Get the stretch!
Ride to Harlem, Hollywood, Jackson, Mississippi
If we show up, we gonna show out
Smoother than a fresh jar o’ Skippy
I’m too hot (hot damn)
Called a police and a fireman
I’m too hot (hot damn)
Make a dragon wanna retire, man
I’m too hot (hot damn) {hot damn}
Bitch, say my name you know who I am
I’m too hot (hot damn)
Am I bad ’bout that money
Break it down
Girls hit your hallelujah (whoo)
Girls hit your hallelujah (whoo)
Girls hit your hallelujah (whoo)
‘Cause Uptown Funk gon’ give it to you
‘Cause Uptown Funk gon’ give it to you
‘Cause Uptown Funk gon’ give it to you
Saturday night and we’re in the spot
Don’t believe me, just watch (come on)
Doh
Doh doh doh, doh doh doh, doh doh (Hah!)
Don’t believe me, just watch
Doh
Doh doh doh, doh doh doh, doh doh (Hah!)
Don’t believe me, just watch
Don’t believe me, just watch
Don’t believe me, just watch
Don’t believe me, just watch
Hey, hey, hey, oh!
Before we leave
Let me tell y’all a lil’ something
Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up
Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up, uh
I said Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up
Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up
Come on, dance
Jump on it
If you sexy then flaunt it
If you freaky then own it
Don’t brag about it, come show me
Come on, dance
Jump on it
If you sexy then flaunt it
Well it’s Saturday night and we’re in the spot
Don’t believe me, just watch (come on)
Doh
Doh doh doh, doh doh doh, doh doh (Hah!)
Don’t believe me, just watch
Doh
Doh doh doh, doh doh doh, doh doh (Hah!)
Don’t believe me, just watch
Don’t believe me, just watch
Don’t believe me, just watch
Don’t believe me, just watch
Hey, hey, hey, oh!
Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up (say whaa?!)
Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up
Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up (say whaa?!)
Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up
Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up (say whaa?!)
Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up
Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up (say whaa?!)
Uptown Funk you up
Aaaaaaow!
TheSlowCheese Published on May 2, 2014 Spongebob “Turn down for what”
Music: “Turn Down for What” by DJ Snake, Lil Jon (Google Play • iTunes)
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Douglas Field Published on Jul 27, 2015 Castle Street spoof 25 7 15
A spoof commenting on some local body political obsession with reducing the use of motor vehicles to ‘save the planet’.
“Because of its dairy and gas industries stainless is, in architectural terms, Taranaki’s local stone. The finished building is a showcase for this expertise.” –Andrew Patterson, Len Lye Centre architect
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The Len Lye Centre, which opens in New Plymouth today, is a world-class building dedicated to our most innovative, versatile artist.
### NZ Herald Online 11:00 AM Saturday Jul 25, 2015 Len Lye: The father of invention
By Adam Gifford
If Len Lye didn’t exist, you couldn’t have invented him. Born at the dawn of the 20th century, he was the inquisitive kid from the wrong side of the tracks who got thrown out of Samoa for being too friendly, then shovelled coal on a steamer to get to London where he hung out with poets and painters and looked for ways to make art that moved.
In England it was film. In the United States, after he was head-hunted in 1944 to work for the March of Time newsreel service, he made sculpture. He became one of the pioneers of what was dubbed kinetic sculpture, making some works and planning many others beyond the technology of the day.
A visit back to his homeland, New Zealand, brought him into contact with engineers immersed in working steel for the dairy and oil industries, who embraced his vision and set about realising his designs. In the workshops of Taranaki he found not underlings but fellow explorers who strove to understand the properties of the metal.
It was to Taranaki that he left his life’s work on his death in 1980 and it is there, in New Zealand’s first gallery dedicated to the work of a single artist, that the work will continue to cement his position as an artist of influence. Read more
Because….
He was reluctant to sell beneath his value, a lot of the material stayed with him and ended up with us. So his time as a kinetic sculptor is coming again because the material is well-maintained here. Because….
Lye expected many of his works could not be made with the technology available to him, he endowed the Len Lye Foundation with a licence to create unrealised work or reconstruct existing work.
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25.7.15 @ New Plymouth
The public has had its chance to take a first glimpse inside the new $12 million Len Lye Centre. The building has already earned notoriety for its stunning 32-tonne, 14m-high mirror-grade stainless steel facade.
### radionz.co.nz 25 July 2015
RNZ National – Saturday Morning with Kim Hill Paul Brobbel, Len Lye
9:40 AM. Paul Brobbel is Len Lye Curator at the Govett Brewster Art Gallery, supporting the development and delivery of Len Lye exhibitions and looking after the Len Lye Collection. (slideshow) Audio | Download: OggMP3 ( 20′ 03″ )
LEN LYE CALLED THE GOVETT-BREWSTER THE SWINGINGEST GALLERY IN THE ANTIPODES
█ The Govett-Brewster Art Gallery is relaunching with an exhibition entitled Our Hearts of Darkness, which is an examination of violence in New Zealand through the lens of contemporary art from the gallery’s collection
█ The Len Lye Centre’s first ever exhibition is a “best of” called Len Lye’s Jam Session, both shows run until December.
Govett- Brewster Published on Aug 27, 2012 Len Lye Centre
An experimental film-maker, poet, painter, kinetic sculptor, eccentric and ebullient personality, Len Lye is on of New Zealand’s most widely-known modernist artists. The Govett-Brewster Art Gallery is home to the archives and studio collection of the Len Lye Foundation.
Born in Christchurch in 1901 and largely self-educated, Lye was driven by a life-long passion for motion, energy and the possibility of composing them as a form of art. Lye’s interests took him far from New Zealand; after sojourns in the South Pacific, Lye moved to London and then New York, where he became known as an intensely creative film-maker and kinetic sculptor.
In 1977, Len Lye returned to his homeland to oversee the first New Zealand exhibition of his work at the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery. Shortly before his death in 1980, Lye and his supporters established the Len Lye Foundation, to which he gave his work. The Gallery is the repository for much of this collection, employing a full-time curator to ensure its preservation and appropriate exhibition.
Lye’s sculptures are also held in the collections of several major art museums, including the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and Whitney Museum in New York, and the Art Institute of Chicago. Major repositories of Lye’s film work include the New Zealand Film Archive, the British Film Institute and the Museum of Modern Art.
Govett- Brewster Published on Sep 16, 2013 Len Lye Centre – New Plymouth, Aotearoa New Zealand
Opening 2015. Since 1970, the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery has continued to be a beacon for contemporary art. A new phase in the Govett-Brewster’s history begins with the construction of the Len Lye Centre as well as earthquake strengthening, Gallery upgrades and building compliance on the original building. The new combined facility, reopening in 2015, will extend the Govett-Brewster’s ability to offer extraordinary experiences with contemporary art while offering a new permanent home for the art and ideas of Len Lye.
Govett- Brewster Published on Dec 14, 2014 Govett-Brewster Art Gallery
It’s been ten years down and just six months to go on the fundraising and building of Aotearoa New Zealand’s newest cultural icon – the Len Lye Centre, combined with the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery here in New Plymouth. The Len Lye Centre is the first piece of destination architecture linked to contemporary art in New Zealand, unique for its architecture, vision and the fact that building of this sort hasn’t been done before in our island nation. –Simon Rees, Govett-Brewster Art Gallery/Len Lye Centre Director
Govett- Brewster Published on May 17, 2015 The inspiration behind the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery/Len Lye Centre brand identity
New Zealand’s museum of contemporary art, the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery unveils its new brand as it prepares to open its doors with the Len Lye Centre, 25 July 2015.
DiabolikDanger Published on Jul 11, 2014 Len Lye – Exact from Free Radicals
Filmed in Tate Liverpool
An example of direct film – making.
Free Radicals is a black-and-white animated film short by avant-garde filmmaker Len Lye. Begun in 1958 and completed in 1979, Lye made the film by directly scratching the film stock. The resulting “figures of motion” are set to music by the Bagirmi tribe of Africa.
In 2008, the film was added to the United States National Film Registry.
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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr
*Images: (from the top) Govett-Brewster Art Gallery – Len Lye Centre; whatifdunedin [BW screenshots] – Len Lye Centre architectural renders; Glenn Jeffrey – Len Lye Centre [via Stuff]; Brittany Mackenzie – Len Lye Centre [via Stuff]; Stuff – Len Lye Centre illuminated; Stuff – Len Lye, artist (archival)
Link received from UpNorth
Fri, 24 Jul 2015 at 8:51 p.m.
█ Message: I see Auckland Town Planners are smart and honest enough to realise that Auckland (population 1.5 million) can’t support 3 outdoor stadiums. Dunedin (population 127k) can’t support one.
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Plans to revamp Auckland’s stadiums are heading nowhere – with a multimillion-dollar price tag – as the Warriors rule out moving to the far end of the North Shore. Steve Deane examines how it came to this.
### NZ Herald Online 7:09 PM Friday Jul 24, 2015 The Big Read: Field of broken dreams
By Steve Deane
Aucklanders are set to spend $27 million upgrading a stadium in Albany so it can host 30,000 spectators. The stadium will host as few as seven matches a year, with attendance for the vast majority expected to be well below 10,000. That’s a good thing, as when crowds get above 20,000, accessing the stadium becomes a nightmare.
At the same time, city officials will shell out another $12 million of ratepayer money building a world class cricket venue which the local association has no plans to call home, meaning it too will host a handful of matches a year. And we’ll evict our NRL franchise, turning its home ground of the last 20 years into a speedway track – a move the Warriors say will force it to take matches out of the city.
This is Auckland’s plan for its sporting stadia for the next 40 years. In just 10 months it will become a reality. Time for some hard questions.
What is the Stadium Strategy?
Auckland’s town planners believe the city cannot financially support three major outdoor sports stadia (Eden Park, Mt Smart and Albany’s QBE Stadium).
Tasked with finding a cheaper solution, the planners have decided to transform Albany into the city’s premier venue for matches that will attract crowds of up to 30,600. Mt Smart Stadium in Penrose is to be converted into a speedway circuit and Western Springs into an international standard cricket venue. Read more
Dunedin City Council – Media Release
Positive Result for Waipori Fund
This item was published on 22 Jul 2015
The Waipori Fund performed strongly in the past financial year while meeting key targets. The fund’s capital base for 2014/15 is above its inflation adjusted target for the first time since 2008.
The fund is managed by Dunedin City Treasury Limited, a company owned by Dunedin City Holdings Limited (DCHL). DCHL is in turn is owned by the Dunedin City Council.
DCHL Chair Graham Crombie says this is an important measure because it shows the fund’s capital base is not being eroded. “As well as a good overall return for the year, it’s very pleasing to see the fund achieve this threshold.”
The fact the fund reached the target in the past financial year was mainly due to strong equity in the bond markets and a weakening New Zealand dollar.
The market value of the investment portfolio was $81.6 million at 30 June 2015. This was a 13.1% return for the year. This return also met the income objective of exceeding the official cash rate plus the consumer price index.
The graph below shows the progress of the fund since its establishment. The fund was created from the sale of the Waipori electricity generation scheme. It provides a source of revenue for the Council which can be offset against rates.
Waipori Fund
Contact Group Chief Financial Officer on 477 4000. DCC Link
****
The distribution to council was budgeted to increase slightly over the period of the council’s 10-year plan.
### ODT Online Fri, 24 Jul 2015 DCC has no plans to spend surplus in Waipori Fund
By Chris Morris
The Dunedin City Council is celebrating a better-than-expected 13.1% jump in the value of its Waipori Fund, but has no plans to spend the bonus. […] Council group chief financial officer Grant McKenzie said the “solid” result reflected strong equity in bond markets and a weakening New Zealand dollar. […] “It’s just a funding stream for council.” Read more
The Creators Project is a global network dedicated to the celebration of creativity, arts and technology: http://thecreatorsproject.com/
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The Creators Project Published on Mar 23, 2015 Inside the Volume: Making the 2015 YouTube Music Awards Launch Film
A behind-the-scenes look at how Autofuss made the laser-filled launch film for the 2015 YouTube Music Awards.
Watch the YouTube Music Awards 2015: http://goo.gl/GRsv0H
The YTMA show features 13 brand new, innovative music videos from Action Bronson ft. Chance the Rapper, Cahoots, Charli XCX, Ed Sheeran & Rudimental, FKA twigs, Kygo ft. Parson James, Lindsey Stirling, Martin Garrix ft. Usher, MAX ft. Hoodie Allen, Migos, Megan Nicole, Nicky Jam & Enrique Iglesias, and Shamir.
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In ReForm, a new franchise from The Creators Project, we meet the artists creating and re-appropriating the latest technologies in various areas of creative expression.
The Creators Project Published on May 19, 2015 ReForm | Hollywood’s Creating Digital Clones
In the premiere of our ReForm series, we explore the frontier of the 3D face- and body scanning technology used to create digital doubles for films, video games, and holograms. We meet some of the scanned humans, their avatars, and get to understand the challenges the Institute For Creative Technologies has had to overcome in their quest to create a photo-realistic virtual person, including the conquering of the Uncanny Valley.
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The Creators Project Published on Jun 25, 2015 ReForm | Data Becomes Art in Immersive Visualizations
In the second episode of ReForm, we look at how big data and art have converged into a new visual culture. Six major data artists (Mark Hansen, R Luke DuBois, Kate Crawford, Jer Thorp, Fernanda Viegas, and Martin Wattenberg) discuss what it means to make art in the 21st century and how quantification and digitisation is completely changing the way we live and create.
23 April 2017
Note: Lauda Finem’s url with dot com has changed to dot org, as a result the post title and link references below have all been changed.
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Received from Dunedin businessman
Tue, 21 Jul 2015 at 4:42 p.m.
Re: laudafinem.org
Hi Elizabeth, do you know the above website? They are an Australia-based blog site that seem willing to print ANYTHING! It might be a valuable tool to use in conjunction with your own wonderful site …. Maybe you could offer a link to publicise? It would be a safe place to post anything that could otherwise get you sued. It already has quite a bit of NZ stuff. Maybe useful also to some of your bloggers etc.
Regards….
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LAUDA FINEM
There is frequent speculation and accusations about who ‘Lauda Finem’ is/are. It’s conspiracy theorist heaven. –Pete George
█ Twitter: Laudafinem (@Laudafinem)
Australian anti-corruption and injustice watch-dogs
The best option is to upgrade and maintain the existing Mosgiel Pool, rather than give Taieri (sprawl) housing speculator-developers and main street businessmen a pool to help their privateering (and professional rugby/training connections). Larger numbers of rate-paying Dunedin residents will benefit from a long-term (funded) aquatic centre sited at Green Island. However, the Stadium is still costing ratepayers +$20 million per annum…..
It looks like Greater Dunedin, through the Mayor and MacTavish, are keen to foster the Mosgiel proposal as a vote catcher in next year’s local body elections.
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Dunedin City Council – Media Release
Feedback Sought on Mosgiel Pool Options
This item was published on 23 Jul 2015
Consultation opens today on four shortlisted sites for a new aquatic centre in Mosgiel….
Over the next fortnight, the Dunedin City Council, in partnership with the Taieri Community Facilities Trust, is seeking community feedback on the four sites. One of the options is to use the existing pool site on Gordon Road and the other three options are different locations within Memorial Park and the Mosgiel Memorial Gardens.
Since the Council decided to allocate a placeholder of $6 million for the project in the Long Term Plan 2015/16 to 2024/25, work has begun to progress investigations around the proposed facility. The first step of these investigations involves identifying a preferred site.
The work is being led by a steering group, comprised of three Councillors, three Trust members and a member of the Mosgiel community. The group has been given the mandate to work to develop the proposal to the point where there is a preferred site, plans and costings for a new aquatic centre in Mosgiel. These stages are to be reported back to the Council by 30 October.
Mosgiel Aquatic Facility Steering Group Chair Cr Jinty MacTavish says the four sites out for consultation have been shortlisted by the steering group from identified options, including those in the original feasibility study.
“Site selection is an important part of the design process. We’re looking forward to hearing the community’s thoughts on the site they think would be best.”
The DCC is working with the Trust to ensure the reports needed for Council decisions are completed on time. Trust Chair Irene Mosley says, “The community gave a very clear indication during the Long Term Plan process that they wanted a new pool facility in Mosgiel. Now that the DCC has allocated some funding for this project we need to go back to the community and make sure they have the opportunity to comment on the shortlisted sites.”
Contact Cr Jinty MacTavish, Chair, Mosgiel Aquatic Facility Steering Group on 027 277 5631. DCC Link
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█ Someone else to YELL at besides Jinty Mactavish:
Irene Mosley
Chair, Taieri Community Facilities Trust [aka Pooling Together]
Phone 021 231 9197
Taieri Aquatic Centre —proposal [Images: Baker Garden Architects]
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Correspondence received.
Thu, 23 Jul 2015 at 12:20 p.m.
From: Bev Butler To: Lee Vandervis, Dave Cull, David Benson-Pope, Hilary Calvert, John Bezett, Doug Hall, Aaron Hawkins, Mike Lord, Jinty MacTavish, Andrew Noone, Neville Peat, Chris Staynes, Richard Thomson, Andrew Whiley, Kate Wilson Sent: Thursday, 23 July 2015 11:05 AM Subject: LTAP and Mosgiel Pool
Dear Mayor Cull and Councillors
I recently received a copy of the LTAP and noticed on page 166 of the new LTAP, Aquatic Services new Capital Expenditure: Mosgiel Pool $410,000 in 2016/17 and $14.478 million in 2018/19.
So at what point did the $6 million reported in May change to $14.478 million? I couldn’t find any reference to the change in ODT. Maybe I missed it.
I have also looked up the Council meeting minutes but can find no reference there either.
Would someone please tell me the date when this $14.478 million was approved by Council and preferably send me a copy of the minutes or point me in the direction to find them.
Many thanks
Bev Butler
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Date: Wed, 22 Jul 2015 23:17:09 +0000 From: Richard Thomson To: Bev Butler; Lee Vandervis; Dave Cull; David Benson-Pope; Hilary Calvert; John Bezett; Doug Hall; Aaron Hawkins; Mike Lord; Jinty MacTavish; Andrew Noone; Neville Peat; Chris Staynes; Richard Thomson; Andrew Whiley; Kate Wilson Subject: Re: LTAP and Mosgiel Pool
Bev,
you will see that the figure is asterixed and that this references back to notes that these are projects which have “full or partial external funding”. In this case the pool is subject to the community fundraising their share but that is included in the capital spend. you will see a similar situation with the cricket lights at Logan park where $2.2m is being spent but Council has approved up to $1m of its money only..
### dezeen.com 2 July 2015 at 1:45 pm Josep Ferrando slots a skinny house between two existing properties in Spain
By Jessica Mairs | Photography by Adrià Goula
Concealed behind a historic facade, this narrow residence by Barcelona architect Josep Ferrando is wedged between the party walls of a pair of houses in the Spanish city of Sant Cugat. The 225-square-metre residence fills a gap measuring less than six metres wide between two existing buildings in Sant Cugat – a town north of Barcelona that is also home to a picturesque Medieval monastery, an architecture school and a chocolate factory. The proximity to Barcelona and the surrounding Catalonian countryside makes Sant Cugat a popular location, resulting in a dearth of land in the town centre. This led Ferrando to squeeze the family home behind the facade of an old row house, right up against the walls of its two neighbours.
Entitled 176 House E+M after the names of the clients, the residence sits opposite the town’s Medieval monastery. The historic facade of the original property was preserved, and the new concrete block was built behind. Due to a drop in ground level across the site, the living room is sunk below ground at the front but sits slightly above a garden at the back. An atrium area with the living room provides an additional source of daylight for the kitchen and dining area above. Three house-shaped volumes made from chipboard are suspended within the upper floors of the narrow building. These timber pods enclose a child’s bedroom, the family bathroom and a study that links with a roof terrace overlooking the garden. A pivoting flap opens or closes the child’s bedroom to the atrium, offering views over the kitchen. Read more
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### dezeen.com 6 July 2015 at 1:46 pm Beyoncé-inspired skyscraper to be built in Melbourne
By Amy Frearson
Australian firm Elenberg Fraser has won planning approval for a 226-metre-high Melbourne skyscraper that will feature a curvaceous form taken from a music video by Beyoncé (+ slideshow). The new Premiere Tower at 134 Spencer Street will boast a series of curves and bulges designed to make it as structurally efficient as possible, but that also reference one of Beyoncé’s music videos.
The shape is an homage to the undulating fabric-wrapped bodies of dancers in the singer’s music video for Ghost – a song from her self-titled 2013 album, which was originally published as one half of track called Haunted but released as a stand-alone music video. “For those more on the art than science side, we will reveal that the form does pay homage to something more aesthetic – we’re going to trust you’ve seen the music video for Beyoncé’s Ghost,” said the Melbourne-based studio.
beyonceVEVO Published on Nov 24, 2014 Beyoncé – Ghost
BEYONCÉ Platinum Edition.
Music video by Beyoncé performing Ghost. (C) 2013 Columbia Records, a Division of Sony Music Entertainment
The 68-storey structure, which was approved by planning officials in May, will be located at the west end of the city’s central business district. It will contain 660 apartments, as well as a 160-room hotel. Parametric modelling – a type of computer-aided design that allows complex shapes to be created in response to data constraints – was used to develop the unique form, which will swell in and out at various points around the facade. Read more
Name: Long Term Plan 2015/16 – 2024/25
Document type: Plan
Date approved: 29 June 2015
Review date: Every 3 years
Department responsible: Dunedin City Council
Position responsible: Mayor of Dunedin
The Long Term Plan 2015/16 – 2024/25 (LTP) was adopted by the Council on 29 June 2015.
PDF’s of the LTP as adopted by the Council, along with the independent auditors opinion are available below.
A final published copy of the LTP will be posted shortly and print copies of this will be available on request from the Customer Service Agency later in July 2015. A summary of decision-making on submissions will also be made available shortly.
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What is an LTP?
A long term plan is a public accountability document and provides a basis for the community to assess their Council’s performance.
The 2015/16 – 2024/25 Long Term Plan sets out the Council’s financial strategy for the next 10 years and contains information on the changes the Council plans to make to achieve this strategy, how the council will measure its performance, the projects that the Council plans to carry out over the next 10 years and financial information including draft budgets, funding sources and changes to rates. The 2015/16 – 2024/25 Long Term Plan also contains the Annual Plan for the 2015/16 year with information on fees and charges for the 2015/16 year.
• Introduction (PDF, 615.9 KB)
Introduction to the LTP (What is an LTP, Mayoral Introductions, Members of Council and Community Boards, Map of Dunedin City, Council Committee Structure and Dunedin City Council Organisation Chart, Audit Opinion)
• Section 1- Major issues and Strategies (PDF, 5.8 MB)
Major Issues and Strategies (Major issues for the ten year plan, results of consultation, the Council’s strategic framework, approach to sustainability, city profile, financial strategy, 30 year infrastructure strategy, Maori capacity to contribute to decision making)
• Section 2 – Group Activities (PDF, 2.7 MB)
Group Activities (describes the services provided by the Council, their contribution to community outcomes, framework for performance measurement and group financial information)
• Section 3 – Forecast Financial Statements (PDF, 877.9 KB)
Forecast Financial Statements (financial statements, gross debt chart, accounting policies, 10 year capital expenditure programme, prospective information, significant forecasting assumptions, inflation adjusters, reserve funds, long term plan disclosure statement)
• Section 4 – Funding Impact Statement (PDF, 1.1 MB)
Funding Impact Statement and Revenue and Financing Policy (Summary of changes to the rating method, council funding impact statement, additional information, rating unit projections, funding principles, Revenue and Financing Policy 2015, Remission and Postponement policies)
• Section 5 – Other Policies (PDF, 4.2 MB)
Other Policies (Treasury Risk Management Policy, Development Contributions Policy, Significance and Engagement Policy)
• Section 6 – Council Controlled Organisations (PDF, 358.3 KB)
Council Controlled Organisations (Information about companies owned by the council that manage facilities or assets and/or deliver significant services for the Council)
• Section 7 – General (PDF, 602.3 KB)
General (Schedule of fees and charges, information about council grants and events funding)
Dunedin City Council – Media Release
Dunedin to Host 2016 LGNZ Conference
This item was published on 21 Jul 2015
Dunedin is all set to host the Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) Conference for 2016 as this year’s conference wraps up in Rotorua today. LGNZ announced Dunedin as the host city for next year’s conference this week. The conference will bring up to 600 delegates to the city from 24-26 July 2016. Delegates will include mayors, chairs, chief executives, councillors and senior management from New Zealand’s councils as well as senior government ministers and stakeholders from the private sector, businesses, central government and non-government agencies.
[PROFLIGATE SPENDER ALERT] Mayor of Dunedin, Dave Cull says, “This is great opportunity for us to showcase Dunedin as a conference destination to the rest of the local government family. We don’t often get the chance to welcome people to Dunedin from every part of New Zealand at once. Delegates will get to experience New Zealand’s only UNESCO City of Literature, Gigatown winner and the country’s wildlife capital firsthand. It will also be an opportunity for all kind of councils to look at the challenges they have in common and discuss solutions.”
[DEBT-SPENDING PROPONENT ALERT] LGNZ President, Lawrence Yule says he is delighted the conference is returning to the deep south. “We have had a number of conferences in Dunedin over the past 20 years and the southern hospitality is always great,” he says. “The city has completed a significant upgrade of the hosting facilities at the Dunedin Centre and Town Hall and you put forward a very strong bid.”
The conference bid was made by Dunedin Venues and Enterprise Dunedin at the start of the year. They presented the Dunedin Centre and Town Hall facilities for the event and used Dunedin’s reputation for innovation, creativity and wildlife as a drawcard.
Contact Dave Cull, Mayor of Dunedin on 477 4000. DCC Link
Received from Lee Vandervis
Mon, 20 Jul 2015 at 10:06 p.m.
█ Message: I am chasing answers to many questions regarding the Noble subdivision. Two LGOIMA ‘answers’ appear below.
Cheers, Lee
—— Forwarded Message From: Sandy Graham [DCC] Date: Mon, 6 Jul 2015 01:58:34 +0000 To: Lee Vandervis Cc: Sue Bidrose [DCC], Graham Crombie [DCHL], Grant McKenzie [DCC] Subject: Nobel Subdivision
Dear Lee
I refer to your request for information related to the Nobel Subdivision and respond as follows:
Q1. Can you please supply details and quantify the likely cost of the Delta/DCC exposure to the mortgagee sale of the Nobel Subdivision. There is a very limited risk to Delta/DCC by way of mortgagee sale. There is however some financial exposure related to the subdivision and this was reflected in Delta’s Annual report for the 2014 financial year.
Q2. Can you please confirm the contractual details [preferably provide copies of the original and any subsequent contracts] that have led to our enormous exposure with the Nobel development.
All contractual details are withheld pursuant to section 7 (2)(h) of LGOIMA to protect the commercial position of Delta and further withheld pursuant section 7(2)(i) of LGOIMA to enable Delta without prejudice, to carry on negotiations.
When considering the request, the public interest was considered. This matter is currently before the Court in an effort to minimise any financial loss to the shareholder. We consider that protecting the legal position best meets the public interest at this time.
Given we have withheld information, you are entitled to a review of this decision by the Office of the Ombudsman.
I have cc’ed the original recipients of your request and the Acting CEO.
Regards
Sandy
Sandy Graham
Group Manager Corporate Services
Dunedin City Council
—— End of Forwarded Message
Note: Noble has been incorrectly entered as ‘Nobel’ by Ms Graham and Cr Vandervis in this exchange. -Eds
Otago Daily Times Published on Jul 17, 2015 South Dunedin by bike
Behind the handlebars: South Dunedin by bike
What’s it like exploring the South Dunedin Cycle Network for the first time? Reporter Carla Green – a newcomer to the city – grabbed a map and hopped on her bike last week to find out. http://www.odt.co.nz/video/news/dunedin/349443/carlas-cycleway-story
TODAY local businessman Jon Leng, owner of Chapel Apartments at 81 Moray Place, found himself being manhandled / roughed up by police officers as he was shown out of Dunedin Central police station.
Did Our Lovely Police keep any video footage of the incident – WIPED?!?
Oh, three foyer cameras ‘not online’, they said?
Apparently, the moment selected to ‘move on’ Mr Leng coincided with the absence of witnesses in the foyer…. conveniently, the woman receptionist was seen to lower her head (and eyes) for the expulsion.
Hopefully, Otago Daily Times, which Mr Leng visited shortly after the bruising, will run some decent coverage of the ruffled protagonist with his broken ($800) glasses.
Perturbed about the advertised 130-person party (Ball!) at Backpackers, next door at 2 View Street, Mr Leng had visited Dunedin Central to speak to Inspector Melanie Aitken who heads the investigation (into harassment and intimidation of View Street residents) that followed screening of ‘Party Central’ on Sunday TVNZ (10 May 2015).
Because ‘Mel’ Aitken made herself unavailable, Mr Leng decided not to leave Dunedin Central until she met with him. Fair enough.
At some point, however, he was forcibly removed from the station.
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Chapel Apartments, 81 Moray Place [Google Street View]
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### ODT Online Tue, 14 Jul 2015 View St event worries neighbour
By Carla Green
Residents of a notorious Dunedin student party flat have sent a letter to neighbours, saying they are “having a Ball” on Friday but are “really keen to minimise any inconvenience to you”. However, the owner of a neighbouring building, [Jon] Leng, is sceptical the event in the View St flat will be any different from previous parties. […] Mr Leng rents his View St property to short-term tenants, and said every time the student flat held a party in the past, he had to provide refunds. Read more
█ For more, enter the terms *university*, *harlene*, *alcohol*, *publicity*, *hyde*, *party*, *octagon mud*, *student*, or *blaikie* in the search box at right.
### ODT Online Tue, 14 Jul 2015 DCC launches energy plan and environment strategy
By Chris Morris
Two new strategic plans unveiled by the Dunedin City Council should work together. […] The environment strategy aimed to safeguard the environment by reducing the human impact on it, while preparing for the effects of climate change. The draft energy plan’s focus was on energy efficiency and economic development, seeking to boost the city’s energy security and ability to adapt to change, including climate change. Read more
The following media release has been strongly edited for the avoidance of biliousness and nausea. How many NEW MILITARISTIC strategies does The Public need to hit the climate change / Agenda 21 councillor goofballs on the head once and for all ???!!! In order to return Dunedin City Council to prudent care of core business including, for the most part, infrastructure services and maintenance of ratepayer assets (excluding THE STADIUM, sell for scrap to Mr Hall) —NOT growing the tear-baby imaginations of the culturally, environmentally lost and bewildered. [MacTavish Cull Hawkins Peat et al]
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Dunedin City Council – Media Release
DCC launches draft environment strategy
This item was published on 14 Jul 2015
Te Ao Tūroa – The Natural World, a draft environment strategy for Dunedin, was launched at Otakou Marae today […] over 11 thousand submissions were reviewed and analysed before the document was drafted.
[The council is] now seeking feedback on the draft strategy – whether [the council has] correctly identified the right themes, objectives and priorities – and [the council is] calling for ideas about the key goals and actions that should be adopted to drive its implementation. […] General Manager Services and Development Simon Pickford says the strategy is designed to focus not just locally, but also to fit into a wider context that takes account of a range of regional and national legislation, strategies and policies. “This is about sharpening our commitment to protecting our beautiful natural environment. Dunedin is one of the world’s great small cities and our natural environment is one of its greatest assets.”
Contact Simon Pickford, General Manager Services and Development on 03 474 3707. DCC Link
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A rough sample of recent DCC STRATEGIES, POLICIES and PLANS:
[imagine the staff hours in this lot]
Art in Public Places Policy (Approved: 27 October 2010)
Asset Disposal and Write-off (Approved: 16 March 2015)
Biodiversity Strategy for Dunedin City (Approved: 20 August 2007)
Climate Change Predictions Policy (Approved: 06 September 2011)
Code of Subdivision and Development (Approved: 05 July 2010)
Dangerous, Insanitary and Earthquake-Prone Buildings Policy (Approved: 01 November 2011)
Development Contributions Policy (Approved: 24 June 2014)
Dunedin City Integrated Transport Strategy 2013 (Approved: ……)
Dunedin Digital Strategy 2010-2013 (Approved: 27 September 2010)
Dunedin Festivals and Events Strategy 2009-19 (Approved: 17 August 2009)
Dunedin Provisional Local Alcohol Policy [June 2015]
Dunedin Visitor Strategy (Approved: 18 August 2008)
Economic Development Strategy (Approved: 17 September 2012)
Financial Strategy (Approved: 25 June 2012)
Fraud Prevention Policy (Approved: 01 December 2014)
Gambling and TAB Venue Policy (Approved: 19 August 2013)
Grants Policy (Approved: December 2014)
Heritage Strategy (Approved: 01 October 2007)
Industry Project Fund Policy (Approved: 18 August 2008)
Internal Audit Policy (Approved: 16 March 2015)
LGOIMA Charging Policy (Approved: 30 November 2009)
Local Governance Statement (Approved: 01 March 2011)
Long Term Plan 2015/16 – 2024/25 (Approved: 29 June 2015)
New Reticulated Utility Services (Water, Wastewater or Stormwater) Policy (Approved: 22 February 2010)
Parking Strategy 2008-2018 (Approved: 14 July 2008)
Peak Oil and the Economy – Background Report (published 01 July 2010)
Peak Oil Vulnerability – Assessment for Dunedin (published 01 August 2010)
Potential Areas of Change Report (Approved: 01 August 2011)
This report summarises the research undertaken for selecting potential areas to encourage more housing and housing choice to be developed through enabling residential intensification and/or redevelopment using design criteria that will provide for good amenity outcomes for residents and neighbours. The report identifies the 14 areas recommended for consultation and potential rezoning.
Protected Disclosure/Whistleblower Policy (Approved: 26 May 2015)
Residential Capacity Study 2009 (published 01 January 2010)
Residential Research Report (published 01 October 2011)
Responsible Camping Policy (Approved: 23 September 2013)
Significance and Engagement Policy (Approved: 01 December 2014)
The Significance and Engagement Policy provides a framework for determining the significance of decisions; and when and how the community can expect to be involved in the Council’s decision-making.
Social Housing Strategy (Approved: 22 February 2010)
Social Wellbeing Strategy 2013-2023 (Approved: ……)
Spatial Plan for Dunedin
The Spatial Plan provides the Council with the building blocks it needs to ensure that, over the next 30-40 years, the city develops in the direction in which you have told us you want it to develop, about where things will be located, their design and their overall effect, and to future-proof the city against the inevitable challenges it will face, such as climate change and peak oil.
Spatial Planning and Centres: Retail in centres and improved social, cultural, and economic performance (published 01 July 2011)
Spatial Strategy for Retailing in Dunedin (Approved: 01 December 2010)
Special Character Areas Report (published 01 October 2011)
Strategic Framework (Approved: ?? 2015)
The DCC’s work is guided by a vision of Dunedin becoming ‘one of the world’s great small cities.’ To deliver on this vision, there are eight key strategies that, with some other things, make up its ‘strategic framework’. Including:
3 Waters Strategic Direction Statement 2010-2060 (Approved: ……)
Spatial Plan (Approved: 17 September 2012)
Economic Development Strategy (Approved: 17 September 2012)
Social Wellbeing Strategy 2013-2023 (Approved: ……)
30-year Integrated Transport Strategy 2013 (Approved: ……).
Treasury Risk Management Policy (Approved: 15 December 2014)
Dunedin has no need to feel it is not progressive. Why, just yesterday the council announced two new ‘strategic plans’. This comes hard on the heels of a continuous screed of ‘strategies’. In recent times there has been the ‘Spatial Plan’ (whatever that is), the ‘Ten, Ten, Ten Plan’, which is aimed at increasing the population by ten percent, increase the job market by ten thousand and the average income by $10,000 pa. Then of course there are the Annual Long Term Plans.
Now we are to have this new draft environment strategy plan to secure the city’s environmental future. Plus the interrelated draft energy plan. These twin initiatives were interrelated because Cr Hawkins says so. Exactly how is yet to be seen in the detail. Cr MacTavish said the “most exciting” part of the plan was a new energy leader’s accord, under which the council would work with major energy users to share energy ideas and other initiatives. “That’s where the magic is going to happen,” she said. Cr Neville Peat said addressing energy issues was “the future of the world”, but “minimal progress” had been made until now. “This will lead us toward a low carbon footprint,” he said. Mayor Dave Cull told the committee meeting the energy plan aimed to tackle issues that were “fundamental” to the city’s economic and social future. “We need to be under no apprehensions — this is hugely important.” Now there’s some ‘learnings’ for Cr Benson-Pope to grapple with. It’s become the norm nowadays to expect this type of ‘silliness’ emanating from council. At what cost one can only wonder. More ‘green ideologies’ running rampant within our Town Hall.
Why, just on the same page of the ODT above these strategic announcements we see “NZ slated for inaction on emissions”, an article in which it cites the comment that “if NZ doesn’t pull up its socks on the global warming issue it would likely exceed 3degC or 4degC — making a world in which oceans would acidify, coral reefs dissolve, sea levels rise rapidly, and more than 40% of species become extinct.”
It is this “silliness” that will be the undoing of Dunedin as it increasingly becomes more and more irrelevant in this world. Energy is the ‘staff of life’ as far as modern society goes, whilst this city’s penchant for divorcing itself from the reality of this fact can only force that irrelevancy. Why history is totally ignored by this current ‘fad’ of ‘carbon’ hatred which is so prevalent is difficult to understand. ‘Horror to Betsy’, the atmosphere is reaching the point where CO2 content is 380-400 ppm. It’s been there before and much much higher and we have still survived. That means that 999,600 ppm is other stuff, mainly water vapour. It is water vapour plus solar cycles that have the greatest influence on Earth’s climate and consequent temperatures, CO2 is in the margin of error. Still, we are beset by this mania and I guess it will have to run its course until the IPCC and these ‘green’ acolytes finally accept the fact that they can no longer ignore history, the empirical facts, accept that they are wrong and there is no warming, sea level rise, and admit that the whole issue is a manmade concoction of ‘computer models’ not meeting the outcomes predicted. Until then Dunedin, like much of the rest of the gullible will tax itself to death and continue to bring forth the type of policies it does. Pity they couldn’t tax the ‘hot air’ within instead of CO2, then the problem would disappear from the political landscape overnight.
Further to the contents of an email from Jeff Dickie last month, who was writing from a hotel on Orchard Road at the time:
Supplied. ODT 13.7.15 (page 6)
****
INVOICE FRAUD AND MORE
TWO corrupt council officials and two businessmen who supplied them with cash and hospitality have been jailed with a warning they face “significant” sentences.
### HeraldScotland.com Wednesday 17 June 2015 Corrupt Edinburgh council officials face lengthy jail term
[…] Former local authority employees Charles Owenson and James Costello were treated to dances and drinks in lap dancing bars as valuable Edinburgh City Council contracts were secured through bribery. Ex-directors of Action Building Contracts Ltd (ABC Ltd) Kevin Balmer and Brendan Cantwell provided the rewards over the allocation of work for public buildings including schools, care homes and cemeteries.
Following their earlier guilty pleas a sheriff told them that he would continue their case until tomorrow for sentencing at Edinburgh Sheriff Court to consider the information he had been given. But Sheriff Michael O’Grady QC told the four men: “Having regard to the gravity of the offences, it is clear to me the sentences will require to be custodial and require to be significant.” He remanded all of them in jail ahead of sentencing.
Owenson and Costello were provided with hospitality, including corporate seats at Hibs and Hearts football grounds and meals out as well as cash, by Edinburgh-based construction firm ABC Ltd (Action Building Contracts). The contractors even submitted inflated invoices to the local authority for work carried out to cover the costs of the bribes they were paying council officials. Fiscal Keith O’Mahony earlier told the court: “In essence, the council was being charged for the cost of bribing its own officials.”
[…] Police began carrying out enquiries in 2010 as a result of complaints about the statutory notices system and were later informed that senior management had received “a whistleblower letter” alleging that Owenson was showing favouritism when allocating work to contractors. The Crown has raised proceedings to recover crime profits in the case. Read more
Shades of the ‘Screaming Orgasm cocktails’ saga following Dunedin City Council’s decision to build the stadium. That evening, the board members of Carisbrook Stadium Charitable Trust went out to celebrate, booking their drinks at Alibi Bar & Restaurant to the Ratepayers.
Of course, there have been masses of local big-ticket ‘corruptions’: the stadium land purchases (including for realignment of SH88); the Carisbrook ‘deal’ with Otago Rugby Football Union, and further ‘Otago Rugby’ deals with Dunedin Venues (DVML); the Delta subdivisions and service contracts (Jacks Point and Luggate, and more recently Noble Village); the unravelling Citifleet fraud and insurance scam (substantially greater than 152 fleet vehicles lost off the inventory, allied to ‘traffic’ in car parts, tyres, service contracts, and fluid cash); the Dunedin Town Hall Redevelopment Project (via City Property) yet to be fully detailed; and field lights for Otago Cricket Association…….. et al.
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What if? Dunedin... 