### ODT Online Sat, 10 Jun 2017
Property boss quits
By Chris Morris
The man in charge of the Dunedin City Council’s multimillion-dollar property portfolio has quit following a review by independent auditor Deloitte. [A] Council spokesman ….yesterday confirmed city property manager Kevin Taylor resigned last week. [DCC] responding to Otago Daily Times questions by email, declined to say what Deloitte’s review had found, insisting the final report was “still being considered”. The development came three months after the ODT reported the department responsible for property worth hundreds of millions of dollars was being reviewed ….The role was expected to change in future, with a “specific focus” on community and civic properties ….Mr Taylor’s departure was the latest upheaval for the city property department, following the departure of former city property manager Robert Clark in 2014, and his assistant manager, Rhonda Abercrombie, the following year.
Read more
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### ODT Online Fri, 10 Mar 2017
Council’s property department under review
By Chris Morris
The performance of the Dunedin City Council’s city property department is under the scrutiny of an independent auditor. It was confirmed yesterday Deloitte had been called in to examine the department responsible for property worth hundreds of millions of dollars. It is understood the review’s focus was on the department’s performance, and any suggestion of impropriety has been ruled out. Deloitte has been brought in to provide extra resources for the review, but city property manager Kevin Taylor has been replaced in the day-to-day running of the department.
Read more
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### ODT Online Tue, 15 Sep 2015
Property manager quits DCC
By Chris Morris
Dunedin City Council manager Rhonda Abercrombie has resigned abruptly, but nobody is prepared to say why. Mrs Abercrombie, the council’s assistant city property manager, handed in her notice last week but was no longer working at the council’s Civic Centre building.
Read more
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### ODT Online Tue, 29 Apr 2014
Quick exit for another DCC senior manager
By Debbie Porteous
Another senior manager is to have a quick exit from the Dunedin City Council after the announcement yesterday of his departure. Economic development and property group manager Robert Clark will clear his desk on Friday. He is returning to the commercial sector after six years with the council. Mr Clark’s withdrawal from the organisation comes after a proposal was circulated to staff last month in which his position was effectively disestablished, his responsibilities split between new positions to be created under a new council operating structure. The structure was developed by chief executive Dr Sue Bidrose in a review of the council’s property and economic development operations.
Read more
Dunedin City Council – Media Release
Manager Economic Development and Property moving on
This item was published on 28 Apr 2014
The Dunedin City Council’s Group Manager Economic Development and Property Robert Clark is leaving the organisation after six years to return to the commercial sector. General Manager Infrastructure and Networks Tony Avery says Mr Clark’s last day at the DCC will be on Friday, although he will continue to do transitional consulting work in the coming months on some significant projects.
Read more
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For some weeks, independently of today’s news, the Dunedin grapevine has been rattling (autumn leaves) with tales of the missing City Property reserves, worth millions.
WHAT, you say. Noooooo.
Let’s hope our elected representatives are onto it.
Historical, it appears.
Thus the shadow boxing about town: raising all the circular questions of who and how, historically.
New blood to a system is supposed to flush out nasties, this takes hard analysis of past annual reports and investments, and of ‘figures’ present and correct —or not. Anything strange or unseemly, a mere whiff of stray fur, should be swiftly signalled to the chief executive for immediate independent audit, especially if to do with a property division.
The age-old question for local government continues to be: if you’re not a business person, how do you smell rats in your balance sheets and upon whom do you rely for sound advice, internally and externally, for the health and solid whereabouts of your ratepayer funds and assets. Indeed, without this staunch critical oversight how on earth can a council operate or even run its companies.
And how do you screen applicants; and monitor job performance.
Without great gaping holes in the cheese and skirtings, People!
[pennlive.com]
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Related Post and Comments:
A selection only. Some comments or links to related posts under these post titles are very telling in the collective sense.
26.2.17 No news : Appointment of Group CFO
14.2.17 DCC not Delta #EpicFail : Wall Street falsehoods and a world class debt
22.1.17 DCC LGOIMA Response : Wall Street Mall and Town Hall Complex
9.9.16 Calvert on DCC, ‘We could have a much more democratic and transparent operation of council’
12.8.16 DCC trifecta : openness, transparency, accountability —All dead?
10.6.16 g’bye & ’ello [GCFO resigns]
3.12.15 DCC factory crew issues, ELT, CEO….
16.11.15 DCC operating deficit $1M worse than budget
6.11.15 DCC non compos mentis
8.9.15 DCC Citifleet: Council steered off SFO investigation
17.3.15 DCC whistleblowing —what is open government ?
23.2.15 Wall Street Mall drops glazing panel to George Street
29.12.14 DCC gets QLDC talent…. the weft and warp deviously weaves
18.12.14 DCC: Deloitte report released on Citifleet
18.9.14 DCC considers sale of “149 properties”
15.9.14 Cull’s council spent the cash
11.9.14 DCTL: New treasury manager
8.9.14 Jim Harland and the stadium MESS
1.9.14 DCC Fraud: Further official information in reply to Cr Vandervis
28.4.14 DCC loses City Property manager in restructuring
28.8.14 DCC: Tony Avery resigns
22.8.14 DCC: Deloitte report referred to the police #Citifleet
31.7.14 DCC: Services and development #staffappointment
3.7.14 Stuff: Alleged vehicle fraud at DCC
1.7.14 DCC: Far-reaching fraud investigation Citifleet
3.6.14 DCC unit under investigation
2.5.14 DCC $tar-ship enterprise
24.1.14 Stadium: It came to pass . . .
28.12.13 Sue Bidrose, DCC chief executive
18.11.13 DCC: New chief executive
24.9.13 DCC chief executive Paul Orders recommended for Cardiff
14.10.13 DCC: New chief financial officer
7.9.13 Stadium: $266 million, more or less?
2.8.13 DCC, Stadium —sorry picture
24.7.13 DCC / DCHL shake up !!!
4.7.13 Carisbrook: DCC losses
25.5.13 Paul Orders: Dunedin or Cardiff ???
11.5.13 Stadium: Truth, usual whitewash or prosecution ?
21.3.13 DCC: Opportunity created by Stephens’ departure
20.11.12 Dunedin City Council vs Anzide Properties decision: The road “has no legal basis”
31.10.12 Dunedin City Council – all reports posted, belatedly!
26.10.12 DCHL borrowed $23 million to bail DCC
22.8.12 Mr Orders, sir! About your staff expertise…
9.6.12 City Property to compete more obviously in the market (their excuse: PPP)
4.5.12 Who was it – Malcolm Farry? Peter Brown?…
9.11.11 Paul Orders for change!
17.9.11 Paul Orders starts Monday
19.5.11 Information received today
29.12.10 Jim Harland
29.10.10 DCC Chief Executive resigns – timing is everything!
16.8.10 Dunedin City Council security for borrowings
29.7.10 Dunedin social housing
12.6.10 DCC Media Release – CEO salary and performance
18.5.09 Mayor Peter Chin: ‘not about social housing’
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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr
This post is offered in the public interest.
What if? Dunedin... 
A colleague provided this reference, which includes a photo of the former head offices of Zelko New Zealand Ltd in Alexandra and a mention of Wall Street mall, Dunedin.
Friday, 5 August 2011
ODT: Project manager Zelko shuts
By Sarah Marquet
A-based project management business Zelko New Zealand Ltd has closed, but another has sprung up in its place. When approached by the Otago Daily Times, none of the directors of Zelko would comment on the reasons, but two confirmed the business had ceased operations. In a report to the Central Otago District Council, council property manager Mike Kerr said “the directors of Zelko had decided to disestablish the company and cease trading from June 30, 2011. The management of that company intend to establish a company to offer the same services.” Mr Kerr confirmed DM Property Solutions Ltd, owned by former Zelko general manager Dave McKenzie, was carrying out services previously offered by Zelko in the interim to “enable consideration for the long term”. In the report, Mr Kerr said Zelko “provides building compliance and checking services, and facilitates unplanned maintenance.” DM Property Solutions’ involvement with the council came into effect on July 1. Cont/
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DM Property Solutions Limited (2099166)
http://www.companies.govt.nz/co/2099166
Someone else mentioned the unfinished battle over the SH88 realignment. Anzide Properties Ltd v DCC. And separately, a company in Stuart St specialising in property consultancy and real estate services. Another, the problems with the Town Hall Redevelopment project. Another, the house in Central built for a former council staffer (not from Property Dept, but then so many people go to Central). And of course, the Carisbrook fiasco. Tips of the iceberg.
Further to this comment:
Received.
“That company [Zelko] was in the property management business and did work for the CODC. It seems to have shut down and the CODC has taken up services from DM Property Solutions” …. [last seen] “servicing the toilets at Central Stories a month or so back and then at the CODC counter a little while later…a bit of fall from grace?”
Another Central Otago reader comments:
“Apparently the company is as thick as thieves with the [CODC] Property Manager up here and gets a LOT of contract work. Spots and leopards.”
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The colloquial phrasing repeated here does not imply anything untoward. Of course, a lot of people at Dunedin and up Central know the company.
Another mention – this time, Dunedin’s Ice Stadium as a City Property development project possibly worth looking at how payments might have been made from (other) City Property ‘funds’ in the hope project management stuffups weren’t discovered by council executives scrutinising the books.
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The city council’s 2015 Resident’s Opinion Survey said:
Results of the survey show an increase in satisfaction with a wide range of general and recreational facilities including: Forsyth Barr Stadium (up 5% to 83%); the Ice Stadium (up 11% to 82%); Dunedin’s Chinese Garden (up 4% to 73%); and winter sports fields (up 7% to 81%). Link
Phil said:
2009/11/02 at 11:34 pm
Probably the biggest bouquet has to go to the operators of the Ice Stadium. Following on from the history of the previous facility on Kaikorai Valley Road, it had failure written all over it. I guess it shows what the right location, and a willingness to adapt to the market can achieve. Rather than simply offering a “take it or leave it” service. With the recent worldwide rise in profile of the NZ ice hockey team, and the ability of the venue operators to recognise that, I think that venue is the real unsung hero of the city right now. If the Ice Stadium is to form part of the new venues company, I hope that the skill of those operators are fully utilised to advance the profile of the other facilities within the group.
The boys’ rumour mill may be a little out of wack about “reserves” missing from City Property, but we will keep on it a while longer.
Indeed, it is more like misappropriation of funds which in the end adds up to large sums and if the resulting Deloitte audit doesn’t track these then Houston we have a problem. The scale of the racket was known to have been going on by (a) high-staioned officer but who didn’t sort it.
I wish the chief executive well in her administration to have the Deloitte report bring the sinister to public light with whatever lawful means used to eradicate the poison.
Now about that ex staffer’s house in Central. Time to name connecting names.
City Property news today…. retention funds for the Dunedin Town Hall Redevelopment project were paid out early to ABL – thereafter, a downward spiral in the council books, given work to correct very substantial numbers of defects was not completed or affordable. More to come.
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“It is long-established practice in New Zealand and around the world for retentions to be held under construction contracts to ensure that – if there are defective works – the head contractor or principal is able to recover the cost of fixing those defects.”
Read more at http://www.gerryrea.co.nz/construction-contract-retentions-the-upcoming-changes/
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Too late…. the Dunedin Town Hall Redevelopment project is not caught by the Construction Contracts Amendments Act 2015.
This from the New Zealand Law Society website (brief excerpt):
Changes to the construction retentions regime
23 March 2017 – By Jonathan Aquilina
You may be aware of the new statutory regime for construction contract retentions which comes into force at the end of this month. Essentially the new law imposes a trust regime around retention funds. We highlight some key information on the law change below:
The Construction Contracts Amendment Act 2015 (“CCAA”) introduces amendments to the Construction Contracts Act 2002, with effect from 31 March 2017. The retention money requirements only apply to commercial construction contracts entered into, or renewed, on or after 31 March 2017.
The new retentions regime applies to all retention funds held in relation to head contractors and sub-contractors (at this stage MBIE does not propose to set a de minimis threshold for the level of retention). So a contractor will benefit from the protections of the new regime where it is a head contractor, but it will also be subject to the new regime in relation to how it deals with sub-contractor retentions. It is not permitted to contract out of the new regime.
Read more at https://www.lawsociety.org.nz/practice-resources/practice-areas/commercial-and-business-law/changes-to-the-construction-retentions-regime
It must be something about using OP’s money, stewardship becomes “Ahh screw-it-ship, let’s go for coffee”.
Paying for suckertruck work that wasn’t done by a suckertruck that wasn’t even in town….. and not even checking when That Troublemaker Vandervis pointed out the sucky “service” ie none.
“It’s only money.”
“Just pay it all now, saves having to think about it later.”
Just another example of a group of hopeful, but untried businesspeople who have managed to find a job in local government and have used OPM to firstly fail dismally; secondly, coverup continually.
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{We don’t disagree with your full comment. The website can’t go there. There will be more than one protagonist. We need await DCC’s receipt of the Deloitte audit report before knowing the ‘damage’. -Eds}
[click to enlarge]
Sheffield 7/08/2017 Link
█ Position Description: 741183 – CB – DCC