Tag Archives: Ratepayers

by Elizabeth | May 3, 2017 · 10:24 pm

Dunedin’s second generation district plan (2GP) —notes on Natural Hazards

Received from Neil Johnstone
Wed, 3 May 2017 at 7:19 p.m.

Message: Last Thursday (27 April) I presented the remainder of my submission on Natural Hazards. Notes attached in case they might help anybody’s further efforts.

{The notes from Mr Johnstone are public domain by virtue of the consultative 2GP hearing process. -Eds}

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2GP PRESENTATION NOTES: LANDSLIDES
Neil Johnstone

I have no property interest in any landslide hazard area (although I did previously), nor in the Water of Leith catchment, nor in South Dunedin. My main purpose in appearing at this stage is to bring to the panel’s attention that the expert (so-called) opinions received from Otago Regional Council’s (ORC) natural hazard analysts are often deficient to the detriment of the 2GP process and the city’s residents.

I am a long-term resident of Dunedin and am highly experienced in flood control issues and solutions. I am appearing here on my own behalf, therefore not strictly as an Expert Witness in this instance, although I have done so in past years both in both the High Court and the Environment Court. I also acted as lead technical advisor to the NZ Govt investigation into the massive 1999 Clutha flood. My detailed investigations have ranged from simple issues such as the Water of Leith (as Investigations Engineer at Otago Catchment Board and ORC) to the entire Clutha catchment (in varying roles). These investigations have often incorporated the construction and operation of accurate, properly verified models.

I am now semi-retired MIPENZ, but still running my own consultancy on a reduced basis. I am a highly experienced expert in flood issues, I am much less so wrt landslide identification and mitigation (but I know a nonsensical report when I read one). ORC hazard analysts responsible for the landslide buffer zones originally imposed across my former property (and many others) need to accept that their approach was seriously flawed, and far from expert. Paul Freeland has mentioned to me in a recent phone conversation that Dunedin City Council (DCC) should be able to have confidence that ORC hazard analysts are expert. I have no strong criticism of Mr Freeland, but those days have passed – in this region at least – when expertise was based on proven performance, and not on a position’s title. A property previously owned by my wife and me in Porterfield Street, Macandrew Bay was quite ridiculously misrepresented in ORC’s landslide report of September 2015. The landslide hazard zone on that property has apparently now been removed, but uncaring damage has been done to us, and no doubt to many others. The Hazard 2 zone was reportedly imposed without site inspection, or without anybody properly reviewing output or checking accuracy of references.

[Reason for submitting: Natural Hazards section of 2GP dominated (undermined) by ORC hazards staff input and DCC failure to verify/review; DCC presumption that ORC “experts” do/should have appropriate expertise. We appear to be witnessing a proliferation of Hazard Analysts in NZ Local Government with little relevant experience or skill.]

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2GP PRESENTATION NOTES: SOUTH DUNEDIN
Neil Johnstone

The comments re South Dunedin flood hazard contained in my original written submission were written prior to DCC’s producing its inaccurate flood reports in respect of the South Dunedin flooding of early June 2015 in which high groundwater levels were held to blame. These DCC reports were eventually released in late November 2015 and April 2016 respectively. My analyses (well after my original submission) demonstrated that the prime cause of widespread flooding in South Dunedin was DCC’s failure (in order of probable significance) to utilise the bypass facility at Tahuna Wastewater Treatment Plant, to fully utilise its stormwater pumping capacity at Portobello Road, and to maintain its stormwater infrastructure (mudtanks etc). Inflow of “foreign” water from the St Clair catchment added to the depth of inundation in some areas. All these can be remedied by a diligent Council. Some have already been remedied, as positively demonstrated in the admittedly rather over-hyped rain event of the subtropical cyclone remnant around this past Easter.

ORC natural hazard analysts were probably responsible for the origin of the groundwater myth as a cause of the South Dunedin flooding in their Coastal Otago Flood Event 3 June 2015 report. Reference was made there to “elevated” ground water levels. They followed up with a contentious report (The Natural Hazards of South Dunedin, July 2016). This opens by stating that the June 2015 flooding was caused by heavy rainfall and high groundwater levels, with no mention of mudtanks, or pumping failures (plural). Such reporting cannot be treated as balanced, nor its authors credible. Elsewhere, ORC essentially conceded the groundwater myth in Rebecca Macfie’s excellent NZ Listener article entitled Flood Fiasco (June 11, 2016).

Shortly after, however, ORC produced the aforementioned South Dunedin Hazards report (backed up by an embarrassingly inaccurate video presentation) that seems to reflect a desire to preach doom rather than convey a balanced defendable scientific analysis of South Dunedin realities and solutions where needed.

One of the worst features of the report and subsequent video was the depiction of projected permanently inundated areas of South Dunedin based on ORC modelling of rising sea level effects. These depictions made front page news in the Otago Daily Times with flow-on reporting nationally. The mapped areas of inundation are actually taken from an earlier ORC report entitled The South Dunedin Coastal Aquifer and Effect of Sea Level Fluctuations (October 2012). The modelling was based on limited information, and the findings would therefore be expected to be of limited reliability. The 2012 report essentially confirms this, noting that modelling of existing conditions overestimates actual groundwater levels (by the order of half a metre in places). Figure 2 (Scenario 0) of that report shows significant permanent ponding for current conditions. None exists in reality. Almost lost (in Section 3.8) are the following (abbreviated, and amongst other) concessions:

• Uncertainty of input data
• Potential inaccuracy of model predictions
• High level of uncertainty
• Groundwater system is poorly to moderately well characterised
• Aquifer properties are poorly understood or quantified
• Each of these uncertainties could have the effect of overestimating the groundwater ponding in the current setting.

The reader is advised to read the full Section 3.8 to ensure contextual accuracy. In my view (as an experienced modeller), a study that cannot even replicate known existing relationships is imperfectly calibrated and unverified. It cannot therefore be relied on. Strictly speaking, it does not qualify as a model. The relationship between possible sea level rise and consequent groundwater impact remains highly uncertain.

Unfortunately, the 2016 ORC South Dunedin Hazards report (and video) chose to reproduce the 2012 ponding predictions using more recent data (but without any better appreciation of aquifer characteristics), but the predictions are similar. It is noted that no Scenario 0 mapping is included in the latter report, nor are the model’s inherent weaknesses described. No admission of the potential modelling inaccuracies is presented other than the following note in Section 4.1: “Further discussion of the original model parameters, model calibration and potential pitfalls is included in the ORC (2012a) report, which can be accessed on the ORC website”. I believe that all parties were entitled to know unequivocally that the modelling was unreliable and unverified.

The 2016 report also makes reference to the fact that dry-weather ground water levels at the Culling Park recorder are at or below mean sea level. This is attributed by the authors to leakage of ground water into the stormwater and wastewater sewers. If that is correct (I would reserve judgement as to whether there may be other factors), then we are witnessing just one example of how an engineered solution could be utilised to dissipate increasing depth of groundwater. Such solutions are canvassed in the BECA report commissioned by DCC several years back.

To summarise, South Dunedin’s exposure to flood (current or future) is poorly described by ORC hazard analysts. The 2GP process seems to have seen these analysts “adopted” by DCC planners as their experts. I consider that to be an inappropriate approach to the detriment of our citizens.

The proposal to require relocatable housing in South Dunedin seems premature, and based on highly questionable information. The proposal for relocatable housing in South Dunedin also rather pre-empts the currently-planned DCC study of overseas approaches to sea level rise solutions.

Requiring relocatable houses will likely simply mean that aged houses that should in time be replaced will be repaired instead. Who is going to build a new relocatable house if they have nowhere to relocate to and probably insufficient money to acquire the requisite land? The proposal to require relocatable housing is ill-considered and premature in my opinion.

With respect to ground water issues across South Dunedin, the 2016 Hazard Report presents –

The reason for my pointing out these facts is to encourage Commissioners to take a step back from the current hysteria surrounding South Dunedin. Had the 2015 flooding extent been restricted (as it should have been) to that which occurred in a slightly larger rainfall event in March 1968, the event would have already been forgotten. Seemingly, at least partly as a result of that hysteria, the proposal to require relocatable housing in South Dunedin seems premature, and based on highly questionable information. Just as ORC floodplain mapping contradicts its in-place flood protection philosophy, so does the proposal for relocatable housing in South Dunedin also rather pre-empt the currently planned DCC study of overseas approaches to sea level rise.

Requiring relocatable houses will simply mean that aged houses that should in time be replaced will be repaired instead. Who is going to build a new relocatable house if they have nowhere to relocate to and probably no money to acquire the requisite land? The proposal for relocatable housing is ill-considered and premature in my opinion.

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2GP PRESENTATION: URBAN STREAM HAZARDS
Neil Johnstone

Urban Stream Comment re Leith and Lindsay Streams:

ORC’s mapping is said to be of residual flooding (post-flood protection works of the past 80-plus years), but actually represents what might have been envisaged many decades back in something considerably greater than the record 1929 flood with none of the very significant channel works of the 1930s, 1940s and 1960s; or even those lesser improvement of the 2010s in place. The ORC 2GP mapping includes areas that didn’t get flooded in 1923 or 1929. I agree with some potential dangers of stream blockage (especially in Lindsay Creek, and to a lesser extent at Clyde Street and Rockside Road), but one can only consider locations of feasible blockage in today’s conditions. Furthermore, accepted professional practice for flood plain mapping requires detailed hydrology, probability analyses, climate change allowance, hydrograph routing, in-channel modelling (allowing for stream capacity variability), and overland flow modelling. ORC’s flood mapping incorporates none of these fundamentals; instead, it reads as little more than a colouring-in exercise, when a professionally researched technical document is required. In short, ORC’s hazard analysts have carried out no fit-for-purpose analysis for a District Plan process.

Interestingly, the concerns expressed by ORC hazard analysts re channel blockage are entirely inconsistent with ORC’s own design philosophy and consent application evidence for the recent Flood protection scheme (so called). Design Philosophy minimises the issue.

Very briefly, the mapping is challenged for the following reasons (inter alia):

No descriptions of the effective flood protection initiatives (OHB -1920s and 1930s, DCC -1940s, OCB -1960s) are included. These works have ensured that overtopping is practically impossible in the George Street to Cumberland Street reach, the Clock Tower reach and Forth Street to Harbour reaches. Flood protection in these areas are all built to a much higher hydraulic standard than the so-called ORC scheme of the past decade, and to a far, far higher standard than existed pre-1929.

It is further noted that ORC’s own Design Philosophy Report (OPUS for ORC, 2005) for the proposed Leith/Lindsay flood protection scheme is adamant that debris traps recently (then) constructed at Malvern Street and Bethunes Gully would further mitigate any debris problems. Refer paras 7.7 and 10.6 of that document.

Ponding is mapped where water couldn’t even reach in 1929 (peak flood currently estimated at 220 cumecs, and predating flood protection measures) in the wider CBD area. Flows along George Street in the 1920s only occurred south as far as about Howe Street, then re-entered the river. Nowadays, the accelerating weir above George Street and the structural high velocity channel immediately downstream provide much more clearance than existed in 1929. [Most outflow then from the river occurred much further downstream.] In those downstream reaches, many of the bridges have been replaced or upgraded. Possible remaining points of interest are the hydraulically insignificant extension (circa 2015) of the St David Street footbridge, the historic Union Street arch footbridge, and the widened (circa 2012) Clyde Street road bridge. The flimsy St David Street bridge would not survive any hydraulic heading up so there would likely be of little flood consequence, and backing up upstream of Union St would be largely inconsequential because of the height of the Clock Tower reach banks immediately upstream. The Clyde Street bridge is acknowledged as being lower than optimum, but it has not created any issues in its half century existence. Any overtopping there could only impact on a limited area between the bridge and the railway line.

Overland lows beyond (east of) the rail line remain highly improbable because of the ongoing blocking effect of road and rail embankments. Flows as far as the railway station to the west of the rail line are also highly improbable nowadays as only the Clyde Street area could conceivably contribute.

The 1923 photograph showing ponding along Harrow Street is presented by ORC with an unfortunate caption stating that the water is sourced from the Leith. Some undoubtedly was, but the whole of the city was subject to “internal” stormwater flooding from Caversham tunnel, across South Dunedin to the CBD and beyond. To illustrate further, a NIWA April 1923 flood summary (accessible online) provides a summary of some of the information more fully described in technical reports and newspaper accounts, including:

• Portions of Caversham, South Dunedin, St Kilda, the lower portions of central and northern areas of the City and North East Valley were completely inundated.
• Water in South Dunedin was waist deep.
• The Water of Leith rose considerably and burst its banks in many places, causing extensive damage along its banks and flooding low-lying areas.

Today’s stormwater infrastructure is rather more extensive and effective (when maintained), and DCC has a continuing legal obligation to provide to maintain that service.

The levels plotted across Lindsay Creek seem highly pessimistic. Levels are shown to be of the order of 2 metres above North Road in some locations at least. I have [no] knowledge of any such levels ever having been approached. Care must be taken not to include unfloodable areas in the mapping. I don’t however discount localised channel blockage, and the channel capacity is substandard in many areas. The valley slope ensures that overland flow will achieve damaging velocities. Such velocities are noted in the NIWA summary.

Of greater concern to me, however, is that ORC’s mapping appears to have seriously underestimated the significance of potential Woodhaugh flood issues:-

The river channel through here is both steep and confined. The influences of Pine Hill Creek (immediately upstream) and Ross Creek (immediately downstream) add to turbulence and bank attack. The area was ravaged in 1923 and 1929, and there have been evacuations in some much lesser events in later decades. These areas are at considerable risk in a 50- to 100-year plus event. Hardin Street, Malvern Street had houses evacuated in the 1960s flood. High velocity, rock laden flows and mudslides can all be anticipated, and difficult to counter. Area below camping ground / Woodhaugh was overwhelmed in floods of the 1920s – a focus for flooding depth and velocity.

If the 2GP process is to include urban flood maps, these should be diligently derived, based on historical record and appropriate modelling. The mapping should reflect the real flood risks (including likelihood, velocity and depth). The decreasing flood risk from Woodhaugh (potentially high impact) through North East Valley (moderate impact) through to the main urban area south of the Leith waterway (localised and of little-to-zero impact) should be reflected in the mapping.

[ends]

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█ 2GP Hearing Topic: Natural Hazards
https://2gp.dunedin.govt.nz/2gp/hearings-schedule/natural-hazards.html

█ For more, enter the terms *johnstone*, *flood* and *south dunedin* in the search box at right.

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[DCC Map differs from what was notified]

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

This post is offered in the public interest.

8 Comments

Filed under DCC, Democracy, District Plan, Dunedin, Education, Geography, Health & Safety, Housing, Infrastructure, Name, New Zealand, OAG, Ombudsman, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Proposed 2GP, Public interest, Resource management, South Dunedin, Town planning, Urban design

Tagged as 2GP, Blocked filters (DCC), Central government, Civil engineering, Damaged properties, DCC, Democracy, District Plan, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Dunedin City District Plan, Expertise, Flooding, Hazard analysts, Hazard layers, Hazards, Hearings, Hydrology, Independent assessment, Infrastructure assets, Infrastructure maintenance, Infrastructure services, Landslides, Local government, Logs, Mapping, Mudtanks, Natural disaster, Natural Hazards, ORC, Otago Regional Council, Peer reviews, Pipe renewals, Politics, Pumping stations, Rainfall records, Ratepayers, Second generation district plan (2GP), South Dunedin, Submissions, Unliveable houses, Urban streams, Weather

by Elizabeth | April 23, 2017 · 4:15 am

Regional council builds Palace, refuses help to dredge Otago boat harbour

The ironies are Most Apparent.

The Otago Regional Council contributed $30m to the stadium roof (an activity beyond its local authority mandate), yet the council has no intention of helping the Otago Yacht Club to maintain the city’s marina, the Otago Boat Harbour.

[click to enlarge]
DCC Webmaps – Otago Boat Harbour at Mouth of Leith JanFeb 2013

Otago Yacht Club’s origin dates back to 1892, making it one of the oldest yacht clubs in Otago. The club caters for a range of sailing interests from keelboats to trailer yachts and centreboarders. The club also operates keeler haul-out facilities and welcomes visiting boats. The club manages a full events programme during summer, including harbour, coastal and ocean races. On Sunday mornings in the season the club runs ‘learn to sail’ and ‘learn to race’ programmes which cater for all ages. The clubhouse is a popular venue for private functions and for local organisations to hold meetings and events. Within walking distance of the city centre, the clubhouse offers showers, laundry facilities, email connections etc. The resident caretaker-manager will usually manage to accommodate requests for berthage for boats up to 50 feet. The alongside mooring facilities consist of several large punts inside a walled boat harbour. Due to silting, access to the boat harbour has only been tenable approximately two hours either side of high tide for boats with 2m draft. The Otago boat harbour was last dredged in 1995.
Source: otagoyachtclub.org.nz

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### ODT Online Thu, 20 Apr 2017
Club gets go-ahead to dredge boat harbour
By David Loughrey
The Otago Boat Harbour is about to get its first dredging in more than 20 years, after the facility reached such a state rescue vessels could not leave the harbour at low tide. The work, expected to start soon, has been described as a major achievement by the Otago Yacht Club, which leases the boat harbour. Club vice-commodore Blair McNab said the cost of the project – more than $300,000 – was being paid for from grants and club membership fees. […] The club recently received resource consent from the Dunedin City Council for the work. The consent allowed the club to deposit dredged sediment and soil on land in Magnet St, behind the club, for drying. Mr McNab said once the dredged material had been dried, which took about two weeks, it would be taken to the nearby Logan Point quarry. The consent said once the work was completed, about 100cu m would remain on the grass area at Magnet St to form a barrier around its perimeter, and provide better drainage. The consent decision said the boat harbour was in such a state that at low tide, craft used for harbour rescues could not get out. […] The club had hoped the Otago Regional Council might help with the cost of the dredging, as alterations to the Water of Leith meant more spoil was coming from the nearby mouth of the stream. Mr McNab said it appeared the council was not going to help.
Read more

The Star April 2014 via Otago Yacht Club. Also at ODT Online 22.4.14

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The Otago Regional Council’s “special consultation” over its Dunedin headquarters is flawed, writes former councillor Gerrard Eckhoff.

### ODT Online Tue, 18 Apr 2017
Review needed in lieu of proper consultation
By Gerrard Eckhoff
The Otago Regional Council’s annual plan is now open for public consultation. Implicit in the word consultation is the opening of a meaningful dialogue with the public. It would be entirely disingenuous for any local authority to enter into discussion on their annual plan by merely informing the public of council intent without showing a willingness to accept “the wisdom of crowds”.
….This year’s ORC annual plan contains four lines on “Dunedin building review” in its feedback document which could easily be missed at first reading. To its credit, the council has finally accepted its statutory obligation for “special consultation” on this $30million major project.
….The last time the council ventured forth on a new building project without any prior special consultation, it cost the ratepayers upwards of $3million for the concept design and drawings alone. The cost of that proposal was well over $30million and it was never built. It is, therefore, hard to reconcile how the new building/s is going to be around the projected $20million mark, unless building costs have halved in Dunedin from eight years or so ago. The potential cost of a new car park building must also be factored in, so the ratepayers could soon be the lucky owners of two new buildings, as well as a difficult-to-sell ORC headquarters building in Stafford St.
Read more

DCC Webmap – Dowling St carpark JanFeb 2013, ORC office site starred

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

This post is offered in the public interest.

*Images: Otago Yacht Club except where stated otherwise.

14 Comments

Filed under Business, DCC, Democracy, Dunedin, Economics, Education, Finance, Geography, Heritage, Infrastructure, Media, Name, New Zealand, ORC, People, Perversion, POL, Politics, Project management, Property, Public interest, Resource management, Site, Sport, Tourism, Town planning, Transportation, Travesty, Urban design, What stadium

Tagged as Consultants, DCC, Diligence, Dowling St carpark (DCC-owned), Dredging, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Environmental monitoring, Environmental protection, Feasilibility, Fiduciary responsibility, Forgone conclusions, Headquarters, Intergenerational debt, Offices, Options farce, ORC, Otago boat harbour, Otago Harbour Board, Otago ratepayers, Otago Regional Council, Otago Regional Policy Statement, Otago Yacht Club, Port Otago Ltd, Public consultation, Public funds, Ratepayers, Rates, Silting, Stadium subsidy, Stafford Street, Water of Leith

by Elizabeth | February 14, 2017 · 2:09 pm

DCC not Delta #EpicFail : Wall Street falsehoods and a world class debt

Received from Christchurch Driver [CD]
Tue, 14 Feb 2017 at 9:16 a.m.

Readers

We are at an interesting time in our local history. Your correspondent like hundreds of others was busy cleaning up yesterday, after what NIWA described as a fairly standard thunderstorm where just 13.6mm of rain fell.

Also like hundreds of others no doubt, the question in the mind of your correspondent as he dutifully mopped, was : What is the next public asset to be exposed as poorly run, badly maintained and starved of funds ?

Never before have the executive few lied so comprehensively about the true state of so much degraded public asset. Never before has so much public asset been destroyed by the actions of those few, as Winston might have said.

Economists your correspondent is familiar with would call this the “tragedy of the commons”. We await the “macro-prudential” responses from Central Government. With the stupefying level of underfunding for DCC drainage and other underground services identified by the Auditor-General, coupled with Aurora Energy’s $1B deferred maintenance and capital work, plus the existing DCC debt, there is around $3B that will need to be extracted from ratepayers and power consumers over the next 30 years (see the Dunedin City Council Infrastructure Strategy). Dunedin has achieved its dream as a world leading small city – of debt per ratepayer. Dunedin will be broke beyond comprehension with the policy of 3% annual rises. The 3% limit is a mirage. Rate rises will be much, much more. Not this year, but quite possibly before the next election; if this council does not address the looming crisis there is the increasing possibility of the removal of the council and appointment of a commissioner.

It seems that every week brings some fresh disaster or new development that the DCC attempts to cover up.

Yesterday was a small but telling episode. David Loughrey of the Otago Daily Times kindly confirmed what your correspondent mentioned some months ago, that the DCC had terminated the services of Logic FM because the company would not look the other way while the DCC wilfully failed to fix hundreds of obvious fire rating defects at two of their major assets.

Mr Kevin Taylor wrote that the council [fired] Logic because the company had been “interpreting code compliance…..beyond that required by the law”. Logic publicly scoffed at this saying – correctly – that the code is “relatively black and white”.

What actually happened is that as well as the uncompleted fire penetrations, there is a case of simple DCC incompetence, which was only hinted at by infrastructure networks general manager Ruth Stokes in the ODT article. Here are the facts : The Wall Street mall required daily inspections of certain of its building safety systems. The DCC did not want to pay outside consultants to do this work. Fair enough, said Logic, we will train your staff to inspect the systems and they will then sign off a daily inspection sheet, which Logic as the IQP (Independent Qualified Person) need to sight every month.

[teamarchitects.co.nz]

Month after month, the monthly reports could not be signed off because no one had completed the daily sign-off sheets. There were offers of more training to the apparently mule-like staff responsible but City Property could not be bothered to do it properly —and thought they could get away with not doing these daily inspections by appointing another more compliant IQP in-house and seeking cover with a further fire report by Beca.

It is very relevant that after sacking Logic FM, and commissioning the report from Beca, DCC refused to provide a copy of the Beca report to Logic. Logic had asked repeatedly for the report to see what the alleged areas of “over compliance” were.

It is ‘madeira cake to margarine sandwiches’ that there were no areas of over compliance, and but for Elizabeth Kerr’s LGOIMA request and latterly, the ODT, City Property may well have gotten away with inaccuracies!

As it is, your correspondent sees only static for Mr Taylor in the DCC crystal ball. He is merely the latest in a line of unlamented DCC property managers, including Robert “Hydraulic” Clark, and Dave McKenzie.

Ruth Stokes also needs to very careful about stepping into this mess – and dissembling to protect Mr Taylor. Stating that “things could have gone a bit better, but they’ve all been addressed” does not fool anyone. Mr Taylor may have have fantasised to Ms Stokes that “all” the fire rating faults were fixed but remember your correspondent advised there were hundreds of faults, not just a few faults in one single wall as has been pretended. There is no way all the faults have been fixed.

This is what Richard Healey would describe as the Delta dishonest reduction defence…. no, not a 1000 dangerous poles without red tags, but perhaps there are just a few…. and now we learn on that fiasco, that the ‘new’ Delta plan, unannounced to the region’s mayors, is that they can be magically restored to full strength by yet another re-classification.

Chief executive Sue Bidrose started her tenure with a promise of greater transparency and openness (read “honesty”) that was sorely needed. There was some early progress, but the transparency project appears a priority no more.

With the financial storm clouds assembling over the DCC that the chief executive cannot fail to be aware of, some honesty about the actual costs the DCC faces over the next decade is needed. It ranges from the small – just how much will it take to fix Wall Street mall to the $1B existential Aurora problem. The CEO and her staff have been invisible on this critical issue, instead producing reports of risible fantasy such as last year’s effort that valued Delta at over $50M, and Aurora at over $200M. Facing up to an austere decade is the only way that Dr Bidrose and Councillors will avoid having their careers and reputations destroyed by the appointment of a commissioner.

[ends]

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Council Documents:
● DCC Infrastructure Strategy
● DCC Long Term Plan 2015/16 – 2024/25
● Audit Opinion – Independent auditor’s report on Dunedin City Council’s 2015-25 Long‑Term Plan. Author: Ian Lothian, Audit New Zealand on behalf of the Auditor‑General, Dunedin NZ.

ODT Stories:
14.2.17 Councils, Aurora poles apart on ‘removing risk’ definition
13.2.17 Without warrants for years
11.2.17 Aurora affected by pole, staff shortages
8.2.17 Action by Delta decried
29.12.16 Director for $30m pole project
2.12.16 Resignation blow to pole work

█ For more, enter the terms *delta*, *aurora*, *grady*, *wall street mall*, *richard healey*, *steve thompson*, *dchl*, *epicfail*, *epicpowerfail* or *epic fraud* in the search box at right.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

This post is offered in the public interest.

*Images by Parker Warburton Team Architects

17 Comments

Filed under Aurora Energy, Business, Central Otago, Construction, DCC, Delta, Democracy, Design, Dunedin, Economics, Education, Electricity, Events, Finance, Geography, Health, Infrastructure, LTP/AP, Media, Name, New Zealand, OAG, Ombudsman, People, Perversion, Politics, Project management, Property, Public interest, Queenstown Lakes, Resource management, Site, Structural engineering, Travesty, What stadium

Tagged as Audit New Zealand, Auditor-General, Aurora Energy Ltd, BECA, Building safety systems, Central Government commissioners, Central Otago District Council, City Property, CODC, Code compliance, Council debt CRISIS, David Loughrey, DCC, DCC Infrastructure Strategy, Defects, Delta Utility Services Ltd, Dunedin City Council, Economics, Fire engineering, Fire rating, Infrastructure renewals, Lack of accountability, Lack of transparency, LGOIMA, Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, Logic FM, Long Term Plan 2015/16 - 2024/25, Mayors, New Zealand Building Act 2007, ODT, Otago Daily Times, Pole replacement program, Poor contract management, Poor management, Property, Public assets, QLDC, Queenstown Lakes District Council, Ratepayers, Rates increases, Stuart McLauchlan, Wall Street Mall

by Elizabeth | November 22, 2016 · 11:53 pm

Baron de Gurgelaars on “Poles”

Delta needs more

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Received.
Tue, 22 Nov 2016 at 7:56 p.m.

Winston said it best, without the poles we could not have won World War One.

He was right of course.

Poles allowed the allies to have rallying points around which the Anzacs could rally before running at the German machine guns with impunity.

Poles were helpful during World War II when they proffered their land to soak up the blitzkrieg, thus saving Russia and England who were then stuffed up by lend-lease so that all of their assets were owned by good old USA.

Poles have been helpful in Dunners as they kept the sand on the beach at St Clair until the DCC came up with an alternative to get Rid of the beach. After all, why should St Clair residents enjoy themselves at the beach whilst we are working diligently on Trade Me, stealing cars, conversion, contract fraud and obfuscation?

Our Poles are a critical element in our ambition to increase wages by 10%, increase staff numbers at the DCC by 10% and increase rates by over 10%. I mean you have all voted at the website supporting our plans to stuff Dunedin, you have all voted in the absolutely useless six existing councillors. And me! You’re going to get it-

More shops empty except in buildings owned by us.
No extra Hotel rooms unless they are based on less carparks for Dunedin ratepayers.
We will support Compass- After all how can we differentiate Compass Hospital food for the needy from perks for councillors?

Look we are here to help you.

To Help you to contribute more to rates, parking fees, and any other robbing scheme to boost our personal and collective DCC incomes at your (The ratepayers) expense.

The Baron de Gurgelaars

[ends]

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

This post is offered in the public interest.

[you think this is a spoof ?]

*Image: newyorker.com – (civil) forfeiture

1 Comment

Filed under Aurora Energy, Business, Citifleet, Climate change, DCC, Delta, Democracy, Design, Dunedin, Economics, Education, Events, Finance, Geography, Health, Hot air, Hotel, Infrastructure, Name, New Zealand, People, Perversion, Pet projects, Politics, Project management, Property, Public interest, Resource management, South Dunedin, Tourism, Town planning, Transportation, Travesty, Urban design, What stadium

Tagged as Baron de Gurgelaars, Blitzkrieg, Climate Change, Compass Group, Council, Councillors, Cull de Mare, Doldrums, Doom, Dunedin, Economic growth, Elections, Employment, Governor, Income, Parking fees, Perks, Poles, Ratepayers, St Clair, Strategy, Wars

by Elizabeth | November 22, 2016 · 11:52 pm

Baron de Gurgelaars on “Accountability” @ #DUD #Delta

Received.
Tue, 22 Nov 2016 at 7:34 p.m.

The Pimp from hell is back.

Le Baron de Gurgelaars on de French political system.

Le Interviewer: a qvestion

Le Cull de Mare- Cur, can you pls advise your council’s response to the suggestion that Delta is not involved in electricity generation.

Le Cull de Mare- Ve vill not find any vone guilty.

Le Interviewer- During 2016 your council has stuffed up on flooding, mud tank cleaning, paying Delta for a truck that did not exist in Dunedin, reducing the value of all houses in South Dunedin and not charging for water takeoff on the peninsula. What do you have to say about diese errors of judgement.

Le Cull de Mare- Ve vill not find any person guilty, particularly me.

During 2016, You personally blamed the flooding of South Dunedin on climate change. Do you believe that heavy rain did not fall on Dunedin prior to man’s intervention?

Le Cull de Mare- naturlich- Dunedin was a Desert.

During 2016- Fulton Hogan was exposed for not having any vehicle capable of cleaning the mud tanks and thus completing their mud tank contract. Did you consider a drawback of over $200,000 on their unperformed contract?

Le Cull de Mare- Nein, how can DCC staff get their Christmas bonuses without recourse to increase in rates unless they are allowed contractual licence (see poetic licence)

Le Interviewer- Today Cull de Mare, some properties in South Dunedin particularly Victoria street had reduced QV values. Whilst that will reduce their rates by 1%, their valuations can cause mortgagee sales by banks, increased weekly payments apart from divorces and suicides.

Le Cull de Mare- vot are you saying, you blame me for naming climate change for causing these personal catastrophes, you tink I am ze cause, vot u think I vant diese resulten?

Do u think I am Adolf Hitler?

De Interviewer-

Not Yet.

But power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

—

Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

This post is offered in the public interest.

*Image: cartoonswallpapers.net – Futurama Bender the Pimp

Johnstone on ORC report : ‘The Natural Hazards of South Dunedin’ (July 2016)

█ The Natural Hazards of South Dunedin – July 2016 [read online]
Otago Regional Council
ISBN: 978-0-908324-35-4
Report writers:
Michael Goldsmith, ORC Natural Hazards Manager
Sharon Hornblow, ORC Natural Hazards Analyst
Reviewed by: Gavin Palmer, ORC Director Engineering, Hazards and Science
External review by: David Barrell, Simon Cox, GNS Science, Dunedin

—

Received from Neil Johnstone
Sun, 29 Aug 2016 at 8:17 p.m.

Message: Misinformation on the causes of the June 2015 South Dunedin flood have abounded since the event. As if the victimised residents haven’t suffered enough from others’ inactions (before and during the event), they are now being subjected to a hazards discovery process whose vigour appears to be exceeded only by its own recklessness. Following are a commentary of the hazards approach adopted by the Otago Regional Council (ORC), and a summary of my investigations into the flood event that I commenced after the publication of Dunedin City Council’s first flood report back in November 2015.

You can download Neil Johnstone’s report or read it below (formatted slightly differently to suit the WordPress template).

█ Download: A REVIEW OF ORC REPORT THE NATURAL HAZARDS OF SOUTH DUNEDIN (1) (PDF, 587 KB)

—

AN APPRAISAL OF RECENT REPORTING OF SOUTH DUNEDIN HAZARDS

N.P JOHNSTONE, BEng (Civil), MIPENZ

1. Introduction

There is some irony that DCC and ORC should be planning “drop in” sessions for residents in respect of South Dunedin hazard issues during September 2016, some 15 months after the major flood. The prime cause of flooding in June 2015 was DCC’s failure to maintain its infrastructure (not just mudtanks), and its failure to operate its pump stations to their intended capacities. The subsequent spread of misconceptions (i.e. groundwater levels, rainfall significance etc) surrounding the flood causes was at least partly due to inaccurate ORC analyses and reporting.

Repetitive and new doubtful information emanating from ORC via its latest report has been noted. Presentations and an over-simplistic video production have been observed. A footnote covering these observations is included at the end of this appraisal.

Long-delayed DCC reports on causes of the South Dunedin flooding have already been strongly criticised by the author. Specifically discredited are misrepresentations of sea level, groundwater and rainfall ranking. Accepted now by DCC as factors (somewhat grudgingly, and depending on the audience) are mudtank blockage and Portobello Road pump station failures (plural); still to be fully acknowledged are the failures at Musselburgh Pumping Station.

Attention is now turned to significant parts of hazard reports produced by the Otago Regional Council and utilised by DCC.

2. Coastal Otago Flood Event 3 June 2015 (ORC, published October 2015)

This report deals with a wider area than South Dunedin. It is apparent that ORC staff never visited the flooding areas of South Dunedin on 3 June, but took advantage of fine weather to take some water level readings the following day. The opportunity for useful progressive surface water level recording was thus lost. Levels were collected at some 150 points on 4 June. ORC’s main conclusion was that “localised variations in topography were probably the main driver of flood depth”. Or, put another way, water depth was deepest where the ground was lowest. This seems hardly surprising, and even trivial. No attempt was made to explain the photographic images presented of extensive ponding remaining well after the rains had ceased. The phenomena of blocked mudtanks and unutilised pumping capacity went seemingly unnoticed.

The report does usefully reference ORC’s four borehole recorders of groundwater, but makes the somewhat misleading assessment that groundwater levels were “elevated” prior to the rainstorm. This misinformation was seized upon by agencies such as DCC and the Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment to highlight climate change impacts.

Having obtained the actual groundwater level data from ORC via the LGOIMA process, the author was able to reveal this “groundwater fallacy” in reviews from February 2016, but it was not until the publication of NZ Listener’s article (June 11-17, 2016) entitled ‘FLOOD FIASCO’ that ORC admitted that pre-flood groundwater levels were in fact “just a little bit above average”. ORC now seems intent on resurrecting this fallacy.

The ORC report fails to address the real and key issues of pumping station failures (Portobello Road and Musselburgh), or comparisons with much lesser flood impacts in the larger rainfall event of March 8/9 1968.

The report states that the 2015 24-hour rainfall was the largest since 1923. This was patently incorrect, but again was utilised by DCC to divert blame from their role in the disaster.

3. The Natural Hazards of South Dunedin (ORC, published July 2016)

The report states unambiguously in its Opening Summary that the major flooding of June 2015 was “a result of heavy rainfall, surface runoff, and a corresponding rise in groundwater”. By now, most people are aware that the causes of the flooding’s disastrous impact were failure to optimally operate pumping stations, failure to clear mudtanks, and failure to deploy staff to key areas during the event. Again, none of these factors is addressed in ORC’s report.

The report presents a table on its second page entitled “Factors Which Can Influence Flood Hazard”. Examples of exaggerated negativity include:

1. Heavy Rainfall:
– Many recorded instances of rainfall leading to surface flooding.
– Heavy rainfall events have occurred frequently over the last decade.

Comment: These conclusions do not appear to be supported by the report’s text, and are vague, factually challengeable and alarmist. Prior to 2015, no major flooding had occurred in South Dunedin since 1968, and even that was minor by comparison.

2. Sea Level:
– Groundwater level fluctuates (by up to 0.5m near the coast) on a twice-daily cycle in response to normal ocean tides.

Comment: All of South Dunedin is near the coast; most of the area does not experience such large fluctuations. This should have been made clear by the inclusion of groundwater data from all 4 ORC sites across the plain, not just from Kennedy Street.

3. Seismic:
– Large earthquakes could result in increased flood hazard on the South Dunedin plain, due to liquefaction-related land subsidence or direct, sudden, changes in land elevation relative to sea level.

Comment: All areas of NZ have some susceptibility to earthquake damage. Dunedin is amongst the areas at lowest risk; no incidences of even minor liquefaction have ever been reported in South Dunedin, and little or no clearly liquefiable materials have been identified (Refer GNS, 2014*). Continue reading →

27 Comments

Filed under Baloney, Business, Climate change, DCC, Democracy, District Plan, Dunedin, Economics, Finance, Geography, Health, Heritage, Housing, Infrastructure, Name, New Zealand, OAG, Ombudsman, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Proposed 2GP, Public interest, Resource management, Site, South Dunedin, Town planning, Transportation, Travesty, Urban design, What stadium

Tagged as Blocked filters (DCC), Broken businesses, Central government, Contingency?, Contracts unsupervised, Council debt CRISIS, Cr Kate Wilson, Cycleways, Damaged properties, DCC, DCC Infrastructure Services, DCC Infrastructure Services Committee, Democracy, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Evacuations, False politics, Flood recovery, Flooding, Fulton Hogan (mudtanks contract), Greenies, Hazards, High water table, Infrastructure assets, Infrastructure maintenance, Infrastructure services, Insurance, LGOIMA, Local government, Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, Logs, Mayor Dave Cull, Media statements, Mudtanks, Natural disaster, Natural Hazards, NZTA, ORC, Otago Peninsula, Otago Regional Council, Pipe renewals, Politics, Protuberances, Pumping stations, Rain, Rainfall records, Ratepayers, Roads, South Dunedin, Unliveable houses, Weather

by Elizabeth | June 22, 2016 · 3:58 am

ORC New HQ : Reminder, fiduciary duty and core responsibilities

Land ● Water ● Air ● Coast ● Built Environment ● Biota ● Natural Hazards ● Energy ● Wastes and Hazardous Substances

The core business of the Otago Regional Council is environmental protection, not real estate investment. –Eckhoff

### ODT Online Tue, 21 Jun 2016
Environmental cost to building
By Gerrard Eckhoff
OPINION The decision the Otago Regional Council will have to make on a new administration block sometimes means deciding on the lesser evil. Whatever the decision, councils don’t get much thanks for avoiding one bad choice in favour of another. The option of leasing space in an existing building, thereby leaving a large amount of capital free for the ORC’s primary environmental functions, has been summarily dismissed by the chairman of the ORC. This is despite matters of “significant investment” (such as a new building) requiring special consultation with our ratepayers, who will in turn expect that their or any suggestion will not be so easily dismissed. […] The ORC’s failure to understand that environmental inaction simply transfers cost from this generation to the next and with a multiplier effect is inexcusable. What price must environmental imperatives pay for a new building? That is the real question the ORC must ask of itself.
Read more

● Gerrard Eckhoff, of Central Otago, is an Otago regional councillor.

—

Otago Regional Council meeting
█ [today] Wednesday, 22 June 2016 at 9:00 a.m.
Council Chamber, 70 Stafford Street, Dunedin
Members of the public are welcome to attend.

Download: Agenda includes minutes and reports (PDF, 2402 KB)

Go to Part C Item 7 (pages 68-70)
Report: ORC Head Office Accommodation Update. DCS, 16/6/16
The report provides an update on the Council and staff workshops held to help inform the next stage of the project.

[extract]

Related Posts and Comments:
● 9.6.16 ORC empire building again : Consultants give questionable options…
11.8.12 ODT editorial (spot on!) — ORC temporary headquarters
26.6.09 ORC headquarters [incl news items to present day]

—

Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Election year. This post is offered in the public interest.

18 Comments

Filed under Agriculture, Architecture, Business, Construction, Democracy, Design, Dunedin, Economics, Education, Events, Finance, Geography, Heritage, Infrastructure, Media, Name, New Zealand, People, Pet projects, Politics, Project management, Property, Public interest, Resource management, Site, Tourism, Town planning, Transportation, Travesty, Urban design, What stadium

Tagged as Air, Aurora Energy Ltd, Building industry, Chalmers Properties Ltd, Consultants, Core business, Diligence, Dowling St carpark (DCC-owned), Dunedin, Environmental protection, Feasilibility, Fiduciary responsibility, Forgone conclusions, Headquarters, Intergenerational debt, Intergenerational equity, Landscapes, Office accommodation, Offices, Options farce, ORC, Otago ratepayers, Otago Regional Council, Otago Regional Policy Statement, Port Otago Ltd, Public consultation, Ratepayers, Rates, Soil, Stadium subsidy, Stafford Street, Water, Wilding conifer management

by Elizabeth | June 9, 2016 · 8:38 pm

ORC empire building again : Consultants give questionable options for new office solutions

█ Should ORC be made to stay at its current Stafford St site for greater efficiency and cost saving ?

whatifdunedin says:
● Is new officing needed for ORC ? —Not clear.
● Is officing for ORC a worthy use of the prime site to Queens Gardens ? —NO, definitely not.
● Has there been full diligence around the building and site options available at Dunedin ? —Instant laughter. Look at the options listed at ODT, really ? That list has been utterly contrived for ONE set outcome, no more and no less.
● This “ORC Quest” (paraded as diligence for All councillors’ consideration) is empire building by a small rough set bunch of local body bureaucrats and their nest-feathering consultant-buddies with construction industry connections to particular councillors who should know better than not to declare their strong conflicts of interest, right now.

—

In the Otago Daily Times, developer and heritage building owner Russell Lund writes: “Public scrutiny is required to ensure the most efficient solution is found for the ORC’s new Dunedin building”. He goes on to detail that the regional council “does not have a good track record of project control in relation to its previous attempt to build”.

Wed, 8 June 2016
ODT: Where to now for ORC and its desire for new headquarters?
By Russell Lund
OPINION The Otago Regional Council wants a new facility, in all likelihood a new building, that it owns. When the ORC last attempted to build a new headquarters in 2008, the cost was about $38million … the most expensive office buildings ever constructed in New Zealand to cater for 105 staff … The 2008 building had a floor area of 5600sq m. This equates to 53sq m a staff member, when the recently completed ECan HQ building in Christchurch has just 17sq m a staff member. Cr Kempton, who has been on the new building working party since 2011, will be aware of the cost and size of the ECan building as his company, Naylor Love, built it.
Read more

*whatifdunedin notes: Trevor Kempton is also a Director for Boards of the Dunedin City Council-owned companies Delta Utility Services Ltd and Aurora Energy Ltd.

****

Thu, 9 Jun 2016
ODT: ORC considers Dowling St HQ
After a decade of controversy and delays, an Otago Regional Council committee yesterday recommended a car park in Dowling St, Dunedin, as the preferred site for the council’s new head office. […] The ORC wants a 3000sq m building, either new or redeveloped, with at least 60 car parks, and including a 240sq m council chamber. Its preferred option is now to build a two-storey building on the Dunedin City Council-owned Dowling St car park. It is understood a considerable part of the car park, at 15 Dowling St, would not be required for the proposed development, and could remain as parking.
Read more

[click to enlarge]
DCC Webmap – Dowling St car park JanFeb2013 (ORC preferred site)

Dunedin Street View [Google] – Dowling St car park following the line of the Harcourts building, off lower High St parking area, Queens Gardens

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Related Posts and Comments:
11.8.12 ODT editorial (spot on!) — ORC temporary headquarters
26.6.09 ORC headquarters [incl news items to present day]

Expensive. ORC harbourside proposal, Mason & Wales Architects (2009)

—

Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Election Year. This post is offered in the public interest.

16 Comments

Filed under Architecture, Business, Construction, Democracy, Design, Dunedin, Economics, Finance, Infrastructure, Media, Name, New Zealand, People, Pet projects, Politics, Project management, Property, Public interest, Resource management, Site, Town planning, Urban design, What stadium

Tagged as Aurora Energy Ltd, Building industry, Chalmers Properties Ltd, Consultants, Diligence, Dowling St carpark (DCC-owned), Dunedin, Feasilibility, Forgone conclusions, Headquarters, Office accommodation, Offices, Options farce, ORC, Otago ratepayers, Otago Regional Council, Port Otago Ltd, Public consultation, Ratepayers, Rates, Stadium subsidy, Stafford Street

by Elizabeth | May 4, 2016 · 2:03 pm

Delta #EpicFail : L is for (Slow) Luggate Learner and T is for Turnip.

Received from Christchurch Driver [CD]
Wed, 4 May 2016 at 12:55 a.m.

Readers, I must admit defeat. I have I think, even if I say so myself, achieved some quite good lines in my quest to succinctly describe the various acts of stupidity committed by Delta at the Noble Subdivision. But recently, an associate (probably keen to cut me down to size !) sent a piece from Fairfax by Tim Hunter, now at the National Business Review, following the Auditor-General’s report in 2014. I saw immediately I had been bested by a better scribe : He memorably described the Delta management as having “commercial acuity about as sharp as a turnip” . That I could reach such cutting brevity !! Mysteriously, no threat of defamation was forthcoming to Mr Hunter….

And as the coast is clear, to honour Mr Hunter, Delta management shall henceforth be referred to as the Delta Turnips….

Your correspondent was intrigued to read of the Lazarus like re-emergence of Luggate Park as a premium lifestyle subdivision destination of choice with prices for sections between $325,000 – $495,000. (Note, no offers are entertained – these are fixed prices say developers Willowridge !) If this goes according to plan, there appears to be a profit even larger than the reported Delta loss of $5.9M* for the enterprising Mr Allan Dippie, the latest owner of the ex Delta land.

Now, your correspondent understands that Mr Dippie may not have as many university degrees as the Delta directors, or possibly not one at all. Mr Dippie does not breathe the same rarefied directorial air as the likes of Mr Stuart McLauchlan, Mr Denham Shale and other ….directors. However Mr Dippie does know his Central Otago subdivision market very well, and further knows that land development sometimes has to be viewed long term, the way a Japanese banker views the deadbeat property loans they made in Tokyo in the 1980s that are still underwater. That is, if you still own the asset you haven’t lost anything, and time will do its work and lift values. The critical thing is to have the courage of your initial convictions, and stay the course. Yes, yes, I know, the Japanese banks are still waiting, but no waiting is required, it seems, in Luggate.

Readers, take a good long draught of Choysa : Delta had TWO choices in 2012 : Sell the land for basically nothing ($1M vs a total Delta investment of around $7M), or…wait until the market improves. Of course, Delta chose to destroy ratepayers’ funds value in a desperate attempt to show ratepayers they had “moved on” and it was all a bad dream –

If Delta had an ounce of the foresight of someone like Mr Dippie, who has been both very successful, and also very patient at times, they would have held the land. A few facts about the land – the 42 entry level sections to be sold in the next stage will be worth around $6M, added to the $9.17M of the 22 premium sections, gives a total of $16.2M. There possibly could be further sections that would increase the value, but the glass is dark on this detail.

After allowing for subdivision infrastructure and selling costs, the land that Delta sold for $1M three years ago would now realise them $9-10M. Yes readers, Delta could have made a genuine, non Aurora subsidised profit and got the civil work they wanted, at good prices. They could have even paid Mr Boult’s bank debt off, paid off the $1.935M bank loan, some interest to DCC treasury and the entire $5.5M advance and still have a bit left over.

What possessed them to act like lemmings jumping off a financial cliff ? Two words … Denham Shale. Mr Shale was the alleged heavy hitter brought in to clean up the Dunedin City Holdings Ltd (DCHL) and Delta mess after the Larsen report in 2011, along with Mr Bill Baylis and others. He knew even less about property development than the likes of Mr Ray Polson. L for Learner developers indeed. As Mr Hunter exclaimed, turnip acuity was all around. Mr Shale was of the school that says when you have a mess, a clean out, not a clean up is needed…. A clean up keeps the items that have a chance of retaining value. Mr Shale told Mr Polson to write down the value of Luggate and get shot of it in April 2012. Mr Polson, being the ~~invertebrate~~ mild mannered accountant he is, then parroted that line to the Delta board a month later. The rest is well known. A bath. This is all in the Auditor-General’s report, in Section 6, for readers that doubt your correspondent.

Mr Denham Shale’s legacy to the City of Dunedin is a $8-9M loss due to turnip advice (aka profoundly stupid advice) to sell land for a fraction of its cost and value. Any developer or person involved in land in Central Otago for any length of time has seen huge fluctuations in value, generally in a 7-year cycle… Your correspondent is one such person, who lays no claim to visions of the future, but who has had to hang tough for extended periods in Central Otago on various deals.

All Delta had to do was talk nicely to DCC Treasury, to explain the $5.5M advance they gave Delta was a couple more years away – they had already waited for five years, who’s counting anyway ? Make an offer to Mr Boult of his 50% share of slightly more than the $1M they received (he had already asked Delta to buy him out having seen the Delta trough was empty), and start paying interest on the $1.935M bank loan. Not difficult. But required some vertebrates.

Mr McLauchlan, Mr Shale, Mr Cameron and the other directors, yes, they all displayed “commercial acuity about as sharp as a turnip”. –How I love that phrase ! This band of Delta Directors could not grasp what to Mr Dippie is as natural as breathing – that they stopped making land a long time ago, around the time of the flood and Noah’s Ark. That people want to live in Central Otago, so therefore the land price will rise, maybe not when you think, but given time rise it will. This, Mr Shale, Mr McLauchlan, and (2014 Young Director of the year) Mr Cameron is called, SUPPLY & DEMAND. Your elementary lack of foresight and myopia has cost the City of Dunedin millions. L is for Learner, T is for Turnip. Which one applies, readers ?

[ends]

Election Year : This post is offered in the public interest. -Eds

—

Related Post and Comments:
30.4.16 Luggate à la Dunedin’s lad, Dippie

Auditor-General’s overview
Inquiry into property investments by Delta Utility Services Limited at Luggate and Jacks Point. Access the Auditor-general’s full report here:
http://www.oag.govt.nz/2014/delta

*The ‘Auditor-General’s overview’ states (page 5):
“Delta lost about $5.9 million on the Luggate investment and has projected a loss of about $2.8 million for Jacks Point. These losses are before tax, and Delta expects that they might yet be oﬀ set by tax credits of about $1.5 million for Luggate and about $0.8 million for Jacks Point. If so, the overall loss would be about $6.4 million.”

█ For more, enter the terms *delta*, *luggate*, *jacks point*, *auditor-general* or *noble* in the search box at right.

—

Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Image: pinterest.com – turnip

4 Comments

Filed under Aurora Energy, Business, DCC, DCHL, DCTL, Delta, Democracy, District Plan, Dunedin, Economics, Finance, Geography, Housing, Infrastructure, Media, Name, New Zealand, OAG, Ombudsman, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Public interest, Resource management, Site, Town planning, Transportation, Travesty, What stadium

Tagged as Auditor-General, CCOs, Central Otago, DCC, DCHL, DCTL, Delta directors, Delta Investments Ltd, Delta Utility Services Ltd, Dunedin City Council, Dunedin City Holdings Ltd, Dunedin City Treasury Ltd, Finance, Infrastructure, Investment, Jacks Point, L-plates, Land values, Landscapes, Losses, Luggate Park, National Business Review, NBR, Noble subdivision (Yaldhurst), Office of the Auditor-General, Property market, Property speculation, Ratepayers, Rural subdivision, SLUGS, Sprawl, Subdivision, TORTOISES, Turnips, Willowridge Developments Ltd

by Elizabeth | April 30, 2016 · 2:49 pm

Luggate à la Dunedin’s lad, Dippie

The jovial CD was driving towards Dunedin this morning…. gave me a wake-up call to foreshadow a new post pending for that old spectre : “L” for Luggate, or learner plates for Delta Directors and Mr Cameron.

Yessss. While the Noble subdivision at Yaldhurst heads for the rocks, it appears DCC Ratepayers have been doubly triply shafted at Luggate. Anyway, won’t steal CD’s thunder. He is in the offing!

—

Sat, 30 Apr 2016
ODT: Former Delta sections in Luggate hot property
Part of the big Luggate Park subdivision that lost Dunedin City Council-owned infrastructure company Delta $5.9million before tax in 2012 is being advertised for sale. The 22 sections in “Luggate Heights”, near Wanaka, range in price from $325,000 to $495,000, providing the owner, Willowridge Developments Ltd, with a potential gross return of $9,170,000. Similarly-sized sections at lower altitudes nearby were selling for as little as $128,000 five or six years ago.

Willowridge, owned by Allan Dippie, bought the 50ha, 160-section Luggate Park development last year from Auckland development company Dentils Ltd, which was unsuccessful in attempts to sell the sections. Dentils had bought the development from Delta and Queenstown property developer Jim Boult.

█ Willowridge Developments Ltd http://www.willowridge.co.nz/
█ LUGGATE PARK http://luggatepark.co.nz/

Auditor-General’s overview
Inquiry into property investments by Delta Utility Services Limited at Luggate and Jacks Point. Access the Auditor-general’s full report here:
http://www.oag.govt.nz/2014/delta

█ For more, enter the terms *delta*, *luggate*, *jacks point* and *auditor-general* in the search box at right.

—

Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

*Image: roadcodepractice.co.nz – ‘L-plate’

6 Comments

Filed under Business, DCC, DCHL, DCTL, Delta, Democracy, Design, Economics, Finance, Geography, Housing, Infrastructure, Media, Name, New Zealand, OAG, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Public interest, Resource management, Site, Tourism, Town planning, Transportation, What stadium

Tagged as Auditor-General, CCOs, Central Otago, DCC, DCHL, DCTL, Delta directors, Delta Investments Ltd, Delta Utility Services Ltd, Dunedin City Council, Dunedin City Holdings Ltd, Dunedin City Treasury Ltd, Finance, Infrastructure, Investment, Jacks Point, Landscapes, Losses, Luggate Park, Noble subdivision (Yaldhurst), Office of the Auditor-General, Property market, Property speculation, Ratepayers, Rural subdivision, SLUGS, Sprawl, Subdivision, TORTOISES, Willowridge Developments Ltd

by Elizabeth | November 21, 2015 · 4:50 pm

Mayor Cull won’t admit lack of maintenance #SouthDunedinFlood

Mayor calls on government for help
39 Dunedin Television 20.11.15
A rising issue for seaside suburbs, a new report shows Dunedin is most at risk of suffering the negative effects of rising sea levels due to climate change. South Dunedin residents in particular are likely to experience flooding from rising ground water. Ch39 Link

—

█ Preparing New Zealand for rising seas: Certainty and Uncertainty
A report by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment shows Dunedin is one of the most vulnerable areas in the country.

—

Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

34 Comments

Filed under Architecture, Business, Construction, Cycle network, DCC, Democracy, Design, Dunedin, Economics, Events, Geography, Heritage, Hot air, LGNZ, Media, Name, New Zealand, NZTA, OAG, Ombudsman, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Site, Tourism, Town planning, Transportation, Urban design, What stadium

Tagged as Blocked filters (DCC), Broken businesses, Central government, CLIMATE CHANGE MYTHS, Contingency?, Contracts unsupervised, Council debt CRISIS, Cr Kate Wilson, Cycleways, Damaged properties, Dave Cull, DCC, DCC Infrastructure Services, DCC Infrastructure Services Committee, Democracy, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Evacuations, False politics, Flood recovery, Flooding, Fulton Hogan (mudtanks contract), Greenies, High water table, Infrastructure assets, Infrastructure maintenance, Infrastructure services, Insurance, Jan Wright (PCE), LGOIMA, Local government, Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, Logs, Mayor Cull, Mayor Dave Cull, Media statements, Mudtanks, Natural disaster, NZTA, Otago Peninsula, Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Pipe renewals, Politics, Protuberances, Pumping stations, Rain, Rainfall records, Ratepayers, Roads, South Dunedin, Unliveable houses, Weather

by Elizabeth | November 3, 2015 · 6:08 pm

South Dunedin Flood | Correspondence & Debriefing Notes released by DCC today #LGOIMA

Downloads:

█ Kerr, Elizabeth LGOIMA Correspondence Hendry and Williams 2015

█ Kerr, Elizabeth LGOIMA Flood Debrief Notes 2015

—

See earlier exchanges (via LGOIMA) and other comments at this post:
█ 30.9.15 DCC liability? South Dunedin Flood (June 2015) #LGOIMA [post removed]

Otago Daily Times Published on Jun 4, 2015
Raw aerial video of Dunedin Flooding
Video courtesy One News.

█ For more, enter the terms *flood* and *south dunedin* in the search box at right.

—

Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

12 Comments

Filed under Business, Construction, DCC, Democracy, Design, Dunedin, Economics, Events, Geography, Name, New Zealand, OAG, Ombudsman, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Site, What stadium

Tagged as Blocked filters (DCC), Broken businesses, Central government, Contingency?, Contracts unsupervised, Council debt CRISIS, Cr Kate Wilson, Cycleways, Damaged properties, DCC, DCC Infrastructure Services, DCC Infrastructure Services Committee, Democracy, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Evacuations, False politics, Flood recovery, Flooding, Fulton Hogan (mudtanks contract), Greenies, High water table, Infrastructure assets, Infrastructure maintenance, Infrastructure services, Insurance, LGOIMA, Local government, Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, Logs, Mayor Dave Cull, Media statements, Mudtanks, Natural disaster, NZTA, Otago Peninsula, Pipe renewals, Politics, Protuberances, Pumping stations, Rain, Rainfall records, Ratepayers, Roads, South Dunedin, Unliveable houses, Weather

by Elizabeth | October 27, 2015 · 6:58 pm

Ratepayer eyes

Received from Hype O’Thermia
Tue, 27 Oct 2015 at 2:55 a.m.

—

Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Fairfax: DCC has no insurance cover for flood-damaged roads

Funding assistance would be available from New Zealand Transport Agency, with ratepayers set to pay the balance.

### Stuff.co.nz Last updated 14:57 12/06/2015
Insurance won’t cover flood-damaged Dunedin roads
By Hamish McNeilly
Damage to Dunedin’s roading network following last week’s widespread flooding is not covered by insurance, with ratepayers facing a hefty bill for roading repair.
Dunedin City Council Group Chief Financial Officer Grant McKenzie confirmed the cost of roading repairs was not covered by the council’s insurance, because it had become “too expensive” following the Canterbury earthquakes.
Read more

—

A Givealittle page, Dunedin Flood Appeal, has been set up, while donations to the flood appeal are also being accepted at all Dunedin Westpac branches.

Donations can be made directly to 03 0905 0184000 18 and a street appeal will be held on Friday, 19 June.

—

Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

53 Comments

Filed under Business, Construction, DCC, Democracy, Design, Economics, Geography, Media, Name, New Zealand, NZTA, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Site, What stadium

Tagged as Contingency?, Council debt CRISIS, DCC, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Flood recovery, Flooding, Infrastructure assets, Insurance, NZTA, Otago Peninsula, Ratepayers, Roads, South Dunedin

by Elizabeth | July 19, 2014 · 12:18 am

Whaleoil / Cameron Slater on ratepayers’ lament

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█ Cartoon of the Day (Len Brown by SonovaMin)
Posted by Cameron Slater on July 18, 2014 at 11:00am

█ Len Brown’s failures will cause Auckland headaches for decades
Posted by Cameron Slater on July 18, 2014 at 11:30am
A Local Authority like Auckland Council plans capital expenditure for urban projects – like the pretty CBD road and footpath improvements. The problem with infrastructure maintenance is that it is very expensive, and it occurs in the future. Competing against the pretty high profile projects it suffers because it takes second place. On the Audit NZ website is a document that records an audit of the performance of Local Government that is pertinent to this topic.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

125 Comments

Filed under Business, Construction, DCC, Democracy, Design, Economics, Geography, Media, Name, New Zealand, NZTA, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Town planning, Urban design, What stadium

Tagged as Amenity improvements, Auckland, Auckland Council, Audit New Zealand, Body Corporates, Council debt, Council debt CRISIS, Cycle network, Cycleways, DCC, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, fubar stadium, Infrastructure, Infrastructure maintenance, Len Brown, LGA, Local Government Act, Maintenance, New Zealand, Otago Stadium, Project management, Public transport, Ratepayers, Ratepayers and Residents, Shit hits the fan, Stadiums

by Elizabeth | March 19, 2014 · 1:30 pm

ORFU: Black-tie dinner, theft or fraud?

[screenshot]

• Dave Goosselink — Dunedin face (and voice) for TV3 News & Sports
• Samuel Gilchrist — social media handler for The Highlanders @Highlanders

Retweets by @whatifdunedin and @SearleJamie
• Jamie Searle — Southland Times racing reporter

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Correspondence received.
Wednesday, 19 March 2014 10:58 a.m.

From: Bev Butler
To: Steve Tew [NZRU]; Doug Harvie [ORFU]
CC: Murray Kirkness [ODT]; Steve Hepburn [ODT]; Rebecca Fox [ODT]; Ian Telfer [RNZ]
Subject: Black-tie dinner bill to be paid?
Date: Wed, 19 Mar 2014 10:56:35 +1300

Wednesday 19th March 2014

Dear Steve

The following was posted on a local blogsite “What If Dunedin”.

“The conscience of the ORFU is totally absent. The normal procedure for staging an event such as the black-tie dinner is to budget all costs, set the entrance fees to cover those costs and establish a profit level. That is both normal and straightforward – some I’m sure, would say honest, business practice..

The way the ORFU operated was to set the costs, pay out the organiser – who just happened to be the wife of Laurie Mains – ignore the costs and bank the difference. Can anyone tell me that if this scenario happened with anyone else other than the dear old rugby-mad idiots on the Council involved, would this be tolerated? Not on your nelly. Can anyone tell me why this isn’t either theft or fraud?” *

What especially interests me about this post is the question posed as to whether theft or fraud is involved.
It feels like it to me but I’m not sure whether it would hold up in a court of law.
Maybe it could…maybe it couldn’t.
My limited understanding of the Crimes Act is that the hardest part to prove is intent.
In the case of the black-tie dinner, did the ORFU have any intent on paying the bill?
In my opinion, if they did they would have paid it when they received the money from the guests – because obviously it was the intent of the guests for their money to be paid for their evening out.
What do you think, Steve? I’d appreciate your view on this.

I noticed on twitter, media and rugby officials tweeting about this issue.
Strange how the Highlanders’ social media official, Samuel Gilchrist, refers to me as a ‘warmonger’ because I am asking for some honesty from the ORFU. The problem down here is that there is no decent leadership in rugby and hasn’t been for years.
We have Roger Clark as the current CEO of The Highlanders – he was the CEO of Southland Rugby Union at the time when they
they owed over $100,000 in booze. I fear that nothing much has changed.

I had hoped that with the new ORFU board that some leadership would be shown over the black-tie dinner scandal but, to date, that hasn’t happened. Change needs to come from the top so that people like Samuel Gilchrist understands that it is not okay to run off without paying your bills. He doesn’t seem to be able to figure this out for himself. I guess when things have been bad down here for so long those who can’t think for themselves look to the leaders for guidance which is lacking.

That is why I have turned to you, Steve, to finally show some leadership and right this wrong.

I hope I don’t have to continue to prod any deeper.

Yours sincerely
Bev Butler

Previous letter to Steve Tew deleted, read it here

[ends]

*Link to source

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Related Posts and Comments:
17.3.14 ORFU: Black-tie dinner on ratepayers
14.3.14 ORFU flush to pay creditors

For more, enter the terms *orfu*, *dinner*, *jeremy curragh*, *bailout*, *martin legge*, *dia*, *pokies*, *jokers*, *ttcf*, or *pokie rorts* in the search box at left.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

6 Comments

Filed under Business, DCC, Democracy, DVML, Economics, Events, Hot air, Media, Name, New Zealand, ORFU, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Site, Sport, Stadiums

Tagged as Anne-Marie Mains, Bailout package, Black Tie dinner, Creditors, Dave Goosselink (TV3), DCC, Debt to ratepayers, Department of Internal Affairs, DIA, Doug Harvie, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Dunedin Venues Management Ltd, DVML, Eion Edgar, Event Management, Financial statements, Forensic audit, Fubar, Gaming money, Insolvency, ITM Cup, Jeremy Curragh, Lawrie Mains, Liquidation, Media, ORFU, ORFU Board, Otago Rugby Football Union, Otago Stadium, Pay wives first, POKIE RORTS, Pokies, PROFESSIONAL RUGBY, Ranfurly Shield, Ratepayers, Rugby, Sam Gilchrist (Highlanders sm), Stadiums, Steve Tew (NZRU), Wayne Graham

by Elizabeth | March 14, 2014 · 12:41 pm

ORFU flush to pay creditors

When asked whether the union would consider repaying some creditors who lost money when the deal was agreed to save the union from liquidation, Union chairman Doug Harvie said that would not happen.

### ODT Online Fri, 14 Mar 2014
Profit pleases ORFU
By Steve Hepburn
The Otago Rugby Football Union has recorded a $406,800 profit, just over two years after it faced going out of business because of debts of more than $2 million.
The union now has reserves of more than $500,000, and is predicting a small profit for the coming year. […] In March 2012, the union was a few days away from going out of business, with debts of $2.2 million and creditors failing to come to agreement. But a rescue package was nailed down and the union traded its way out of difficulty, albeit with some concessions from creditors.
Read more

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Correspondence received.

From: Bev Butler
To: Doug Harvie [ORFU]
CC: Steve Hepburn [ODT]
Subject: ORFU board responsible for paying the black tie dinner bill
Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2014 07:31:59 +1300

Friday 14th March 2014

Dear Doug

In today’s ODT the ORFU have reported a profit of $406,859 for the 2013 financial year and a profit of $134,656 for the 2012 financial year. Part of this so called profit is just pocketing of monies from unpaid bills.

As you are fully aware, the ORFU ran up a DVML bill of $25,352 for their black tie fund raiser at the stadium on 5th August 2011. This was for food, booze, soft drinks and cleaning.

Not only did the ORFU run off without paying this bill but the ORFU paid no venue hire for this brand new venue. Then to top it off the ORFU pocketed $52,000 from this fundraising event into their ‘pot’ which then is reported as profit for the 2012 financial year.

The fact that the ORFU then pressurised the Council to ‘write it off’ does not excuse the ORFU from the moral obligation to pay this bill.

I was quoted in the ODT as saying this was ‘obscene’. It is like booking a large restaurant, gorging yourselves on all their food and drink and hospitality then doing a runner.

It is ‘obscene’ and I expect this bill to be paid in full.

Laurie Mains, and his wife, Anne-Marie, refused to answer questions as to whether Anne-Marie was paid for her services in organising this event. I actually have no problem with her charging for her professional services. What I do have a problem with is that it is standard practice for professional event organisers to ensure all outstanding bills are paid before the ‘surplus’ is paid to the organisation. This did not happen. I don’t know whether Anne-Marie was paid $10,000, $12,000 or even more but whatever the amount the issue is that the other bills should have been paid first.

I fully expect this bill to be paid as the ORFU did actually have sufficient funds to pay this bill as evidenced by the reported profit of $134,656 for the 2012 financial year.

I also remind you that the $350 [sic] guests to this black-tie dinner paid $250 per ticket which would have been paid with the understanding that this would cover the costs. When a function such as this is organised, the ticket price is to cover the costs of the meal, venue hire, cleaning etc. Once the bills are paid, then any surplus is genuine ‘profit’ and the organisation then can legally pocket this ‘profit’.

The fact that the ORFU pocketed this money instead of paying their bill is unacceptable.

It is time the ORFU did the decent thing and pay this bill.

Yours sincerely

Bev Butler

——————————

From: Doug Harvie [ORFU]
To: Bev Butler
CC: Steve Hepburn [ODT]
Subject: RE: ORFU board responsible for paying the black tie dinner bill
Date: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 20:16:32 +0000

You have your facts wrong Bev – ALL creditors of ORFU have been satisfied in full, in one way or another.

I will not be responding to any further correspondence on this matter.

D J Harvie
Partner

Harvie Green Wyatt
(P O Box 5740, Dunedin 9016, New Zealand. Phone +64 3 4775005 or +64 21 2234169. Fax +64 3 4775447

——————————

From: Bev Butler
To: Doug Harvie [ORFU]
CC: Steve Hepburn [ODT]
Subject: RE: ORFU board responsible for paying the black tie dinner bill
Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2014 09:43:19 +1300

Dear Doug

Saying that “ALL creditors have been satisfied in full, in one way or another” is not the same as saying that all creditors have been PAID in full.
I know it is uncomfortable for you to be reminded of this but it still does not excuse the ORFU from doing the decent thing and paying their obscene black-tie dinner given they already had the money but decided to pocket it instead.
How about showing some decency or goodwill towards those that bailed you out of your financial mess now that you are flush with $406,859 profit?

Yours sincerely
Bev Butler

[ends]

For more, enter the terms *orfu*, *dinner*, *jeremy curragh*, *bailout*, *martin legge*, *dia*, *pokies*, *jokers*, *ttcf*, or *pokie rorts* in the search box at left.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

13 Comments

Filed under Business, DCC, Democracy, DVML, Economics, Events, Hot air, Media, Name, New Zealand, ORFU, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Site, Sport, Stadiums

Tagged as Anne-Marie Mains, Bailout package, Black Tie dinner, Creditors, DCC, Debt to ratepayers, Department of Internal Affairs, DIA, Doug Harvie, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Dunedin Venues Management Ltd, DVML, Eion Edgar, Event Management, Financial statements, Forensic audit, Fubar, Gaming money, Insolvency, ITM Cup, Jeremy Curragh, Lawrie Mains, Liquidation, Media, ORFU, ORFU Board, Otago Rugby Football Union, Otago Stadium, Pay wives first, POKIE RORTS, Pokies, PROFESSIONAL RUGBY, Ranfurly Shield, Ratepayers, Rugby, Stadiums, Wayne Graham

by Elizabeth | December 30, 2013 · 3:13 am

Botanic Garden: Ouroboros

### ODT Online Sat, 14 Dec 2013
The worm has turned up
By Debbie Porteous
A giant glowing worm has appeared above ground at the Dunedin Botanic Garden. It is not a supernatural phenomenon, but the city’s latest piece of public art. The flexible worm, which can bend because it is constructed from thousands of pieces of interlocked and articulating marine-grade stainless steel, was installed over the past two days.
Read more

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Comment at ODT Online:

Worm and landscaping spend
Submitted by ej kerr on Mon, 23/12/2013 – 3:20pm.
Interesting as always to read your columnist Peter Entwisle’s opinions of the stainless Ouroboros at the Botanic Garden (Art Beat, 23.12.13), and the shoddy process adopted by the city council. This alien is planted in an exceptionally poor section of ‘landscaping’ – a meaningless affront of professionally laid and poorly envisioned hard paving, with a ‘playground’ landing pad. The effect of this cynical deadening forecourt on the tea kiosk with its umbrella-style roof is harsh and fully remiss, architecturally – a boffin job of worst kind. Even the ducks are electing to rest for the evening on nearby lawn – having left their excrement across the pavers. Not sure this metalwork is composting!

On Sunday afternoon I was photographing the wormy presence, it’s bluntly phallic at the supported ‘head’ end… when a local resident asked me what I think of the whole thing. Not a good thing to say. He wasn’t terribly impressed either – he said the project in total was worth about $150,000. For such a cruel mess.

Poor Wendy and … Attendants, they need rescue! The fairy tale plot is lost, crashed, abused.

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Related Post and Comments:
15.7.13 Art in public places: Dunedin worms and wyrms #snakesinthegrass
20.5.13 Comment [ODT item and DCC report]

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Post and images by Elizabeth Kerr

14 Comments

Filed under Architecture, Construction, DCC, Design, Economics, Hot air, Media, Name, New Zealand, People, Pics, Politics, Project management, Property, Site, Urban design, What stadium

Tagged as Artists, Botanic Garden, Cars, Clive Lister Garden, Community and Recreation Services, Context, DCC, Design, DPAG, Dumb animals, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Dunedin Public Art Gallery, Julia Morison, Landscape Architecture, Location, Mythology, Ouroboros, Paving, Phallicism, Public art, Ratepayers, Registrations of Interest (ROI), Sculpture, Serpents, Snakes, Stainless steel, Tea kiosk, Worms

by Elizabeth | October 18, 2013 · 9:27 pm

Demolishing serious mistakes

[Rebuilding Awatea Street?]

### myfoxdetroit.com Oct 17, 2013 11:03 AM Updated: Oct 18, 2013 2:40 AM
Wayne County’s new jail being turned into a pile of rubble
By Charlie LeDuff – FOX 2 News
DETROIT (WJBK) — So I’m driving by the Wayne County Jail and – look – what are they doing? Working on it again? Nope.

They’re taking it apart.

And where are they taking it? They’re bringing it to be crushed up into dust. $404 million dollars – WASTED.

We’ve told you for two years that this thing was going to be over budget and not be big enough. They’ve already sunk $200 million into it – plus interest. Don’t forget the interest. $404 million. So what’s the answer? They’re crushing it. They’re crushing it without having told the county commission, the news media and most importantly: the taxpaying public.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

*Image: myfoxdetroit.com – Wayne County jail crushed

Local body elections: Voting papers due #Dunedin

The *calibre* of unknown candidates, known candidates, and all those “standing again” for the lack of transparency and non-accountability to continue at Dunedin City Council… is set to rack and torture all good voting citizens who want the council SORTED financially. Bankrupt DCC, we hear you say?

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Dunedin City Council – Media Release
Voting Papers Out Soon

This item was published on 18 Sep 2013.

Voting papers for the October local body elections will be arriving in letterboxes from Friday.

The Electoral Officer for the Dunedin City Council, the Otago Regional Council and the Southern District Health Board, Pam Jordan, says the elections are held by postal vote and voting papers will arrive from 20 September to 25 September.

Voting papers must be mailed back in time to be received by 12 noon on Election Day, Saturday 12 October.

If you have not received your voting papers by 26 September, you can cast a special vote. To get special voting papers posted out phone 03 477 4000 or email specialvotes @ dcc.govt.nz. Alternatively, people can visit the Special Voting Booth in the Plaza Meeting Room in the Civic Centre, which will be open from 20 September. The booth will be open Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5pm, and also on the morning of 12 October.

The Dunedin City Council and Southern District Health Board elections will be conducted under the Single Transferable Vote (STV) system, while the Otago Regional Council will be elected under the First Past the Post (FPP) system.

Election information, including details about STV, is available at http://www.dunedin.govt.nz/elections.

This year, names on the voting papers will be in random order for the DCC, ORC and SDHB. Each voting paper will be unique.

Contact Electoral Officer on 03 477 4000.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

3 Comments

Filed under Business, CST, DCC, DCHL, Delta, Democracy, DVL, DVML, Economics, Geography, Hot air, Hotel, Media, Museums, ORFU, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Site, Sport, Stadiums, Tourism, Town planning, University of Otago, Urban design, What stadium

Tagged as Board directors, Community, Councillors, Councils, DCC, Democracy, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Elections, Electoral officer, Local body elections 2013, New Zealand, ORC, Otago, Otago Regional Council, Postal voting, Ratepayers, Representation, Residents, SDHB, Southern District Health Board, Trimester, Voters, Voting, Voting forms, Voting papers

by Elizabeth | May 27, 2013 · 9:13 pm

Carisbrook and Leith flood protection

Received from Rob Hamlin.
Monday, 27 May 2013 1:03 p.m.

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Carisbrook on Sunday (26.5.13)

A picture of doomed dereliction – Innit? I tried to take photos of this last week, but the weather wasn’t good enough. I seem to recall that the comb lines in the manicured grass were going in a different direction then, indicating that further ratepayer-funded pampering has occurred this last week. What earthly reason can there be for the DCC to be spending money doing this on a structure that they claim they have a) sold and b) issued a demo permit for? Some seats are missing (but could be inside). The lights are gone, but Delta bought the last set anyway so why not ‘play it again Sam’?

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Otago Regional Council – Leith Flood Protection Scheme

001 ‘Sad Sacking’
The results of the equally seawall-like doomed attempts by the ORC and their representatives to establish a million dollar[?] lawn in the middle of winter in the bottom of a drainage channel occupied by a major flood prone waterway (the Leith). An act of simply heroic lunacy. This is the aftermath of the minor flood last week. The proto-lawn is covered in sacking further up the river, except for the bit next to the water – that’s now wrapped around the post in the foreground. Luckily it did not end up in the harbour – although many tons of silt presumably did. No doubt the ORC will be able to issue itself with a retrospective resource consent for this uncontrolled discharge into the environment.

002, 004 ‘Washed away’
For weeks now and presumably at great expense to the ORC, the contractors (Lund if the site signs are to be believed) have been laying down what looks like micropore mat, hexagon reinforcement, and what looks like a very expensive chicken wire plastic mesh combo – stitched together. They then planted grass on it. This can be seen growing feebly on the slope in 002. Alas, the minor flood that dislodged the sacking also gently sluiced out the soil and grass from the expensively-laid reinforcements on the level parts of the lawn laid (lunacy) right up to the edge of the river.

000 gives a higher angle shot showing the artistry of this now exposed and empty (of soil) soil stabilisation system, along with the feeble grass above it. I am not sure how they will reposition the soil into this stuff short of ripping it up and starting again. Presumably if all this expensive stuff was intended to stop soil coming out, it will be equally good at resisting attempts to put it back in again by mechanical means. Oh dear!

003 ‘Mighty defences’
Here we have what is actually supposed to keep the Leith in the straight and narrow from now on. This is the concrete shuttering for an incomplete part of the bank (this shuttering is now filled with shyte from the flood). The wall when poured (one hopes after clearing out said shyte) will be a worthy successor to the St Clair seawall – it is about 12 inches tall and 8 inches thick. It is plastered onto the top of (rather than onto the front of as with the seawall) the remains of its more substantial predecessor. The lawn (in the areas where it used to be there) starts directly behind it…

005 ‘Classy concrete placing’
The mighty foot-high defences take an interesting course in the photograph taken looking up the left-hand bank from the Forth Street Bridge. I do not know if this feature-bulge in the mighty wall is the outcome of a molar-like architectural design feature to increase the organic appearance of the site or if it’s simply a concrete shuttering quality control issue. It’s your rates money – you decide.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

*Photos: Rob Hamlin (May 2013)

7 Comments

Filed under Construction, DCC, Design, Economics, ORC, People, Pics, Project management, Property, Site, Sport, Stadiums, Urban design

Tagged as Campus Area, Carisbrook, City Property, Construction, DCC, DCC Projects, Design, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Embankments, Flood protection, Flood works, Grass areas, Landscaping, Lawns, Leith, Leith Flood Protection Scheme, Lund South Ltd, ORC, ORC Projects, Otago Regional Council, Ratepayers, Seawall, Sports ground, St Clair, Stream, Technology, University of Otago, Water channel, Water of Leith

by Elizabeth | February 15, 2013 · 10:12 pm

Carisbrook: Call for OAG investigation into DCC / ORFU deals

Time for Public Vote of No Confidence in your Council?

Latest via Fairfax . . . local residents Bev Butler and Russell Garbutt are calling for an investigation into Dunedin City Council deals involving Carisbrook and the ORFU (professional rugby).

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### stuff.co.nz Last updated 10:38 15/02/2013
Call for Carisbrook losses to be investigated
By Wilma McCorkindale – DUNEDIN
Critics of Dunedin City Council say more losses of millions of dollars for city ratepayers from the sale of Carisbrook should be included in a current Auditor General’s investigation. The Office of the Auditor-General is investigating other property deals by the council’s companies.
Russell Garbutt and Bev Butler, both critics of financial arrangements between the council and the Otago Rugby Football Union (ORFU), say the millions of dollars in losses incurred by city ratepayers in the sale of Carisbrook require explanation.
The council has entered a conditional sale agreement to unload Carisbrook, which it bought from the financially ailing ORFU for $6 million in 2009. It paid $1 million for adjacent housing owned by an ORFU trust resulting in the council borrowing the $7 million total package price. The council is releasing few other details about the sale agreement but it is being widely reported that construction company Calder Stewart is the buyer, for $3.5 million. Council had reportedly already sold half the car parking for $727,000 and the housing was sold some time ago for $692,000.
Ms Butler believed an investigation should be included in one under way by the Office of the Auditor-General into council-owned company land deals in the Lakes District. ”Obviously there are some questions that still need to be answered in terms of the actual value of the Carisbrook property.”
Mr Garbutt described the Carisbrook deals as extraordinary.
Read more

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Councillors Kate Wilson and Richard Thomson should be DUMPED

### ch9.co.nz February 15, 2013 – 6:49pm
Auditor General advises councillors they can participate
The Auditor General has advised two DCC councillors they can participate in decisions on an Events Attraction Fund. Richard Thomson and Kate Wilson declared their business interests at an Annual Plan Meeting in January. Both said their businesses benefited from the Elton John Concert. They were excluded from participating and voting on proposed events. The Office of the Auditor General says while they were affected in a similar way to the public they would not be prohibited in participating.
Ch9 Link

Related Post and Comments:
29.1.13 Pecuniary interest: Crs Wilson and Thomson in events fund debate

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

32 Comments

Filed under Business, DCC, DCHL, Economics, Media, Name, ORFU, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Site, Sport, Stadiums

Tagged as Athol Stephens, Auckland, Calder Stewart Ltd, Carisbrook, DCC, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Executive Management Team (EMT), Fairfax News, Greater Dunedin, Jim Harland, Jokers bars, Loans, Mayor Cull, Money laundering, OAG, ODT, Office of the Auditor-General, Official Inquiry, Old boys' networks, ORFU, Otago Daily Times, Otago Rugby Football Union, Peter Chin, POKIE RORTS, PROFESSIONAL RUGBY, Property deals, Ratepayers, Rugby, Valuations, White collar crime

by Elizabeth | February 10, 2013 · 11:13 pm

ODT Online: ‘Gone, deleted, it never happened, Councillor’

All is safe, RT. We know nothing!

Elizabeth @ What if? Dunedin
Submitted on 2013/02/10 at 12:39 pm | In reply to Hype O’Thermia.

This one sent to http://www.odt.co.nz/opinion/opinion/244913/do-maths-stadium-costs hasn’t aired, thrown into the ghost bucket, I guess:

Public accountability, arithmetic
Submitted by ej kerr on Sat, 09/02/2013 – 6:49pm

There’s reason to be grateful to members of the public quickly leaping on superficialities put out by the councillor, as ‘spokesman’ for the DCC on the loss making stadium.

The city council in its wisdom formed a series of shells to ‘see through’ the stadium project; these have resulted in a lack of transparency in governance, a resounding loss of accountability, and multiple opportunities for potential misrepresentation to citizens and ratepayers.

The cumulative bid to foster acceptance in the community for ‘intergenerational debt’ being loaded on citizen ratepayers – as if ‘sustainable’, as if ‘logical’, for future fortunes to be made and shared – was/is a highly immoral behaviour that council politicians are ultimately responsible for.

At the Milton Hilton rests a flag-waver to a board’s lack of diligence and knowledge of its own accounting systems. We don’t need another flag waver, councillor…. not in apology to the city council’s callous disregard for financial prudence.

UPDATE 11.2.13
No longer at the Milton Hilton, the crim-flagwaver has been moved to a 4-bedroom house in “the grounds” of another HM’s establishment near Christchurch.

Related Posts and Comments:
6.2.13 Editorial bias
29.1.13 Pecuniary interest: Crs Wilson and Thomson in events fund debate

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

19 Comments

Filed under Business, Construction, DCC, DCHL, DVL, DVML, Economics, Hot air, Media, Name, ORFU, People, Politics, Project management, Property, Site, Sport, Stadiums, Urban design

Tagged as 2013 Local Body Elections, Abridged comments, BIAS, Business ethics, Carisbrook, Clowns, Community, Conflict of interest, Council business, Council debt CRISIS, Councillors, DCC, DCC Draft Annual Plan 2013/14, DCHL, Dunedin, Dunedin City Council, Dunedin City Holdings Ltd, Dunedin Venues, Dunedin Venues Management Ltd, DVML, Editorial bias, Editorial stance, Electioneering, He got off which bus?, Illegalities, Local body elections, Local Government Act, Non publication of contrary views, numbers numbers numbers, ODT, ODT Online, ORFU, Otago Daily Times, Otago Stadium, Pecuniary interest, Property valuations, RANKLE, Ratepayers, Stadium, words words words

by Elizabeth | February 6, 2013 · 1:15 pm

Editorial bias

Received today from Russell Garbutt [email].

Have readers of the ODT online site noticed the failure of the ODT Online Editor to acknowledge that they are abridging comments or simply wiping them?

Two examples of mine recently spring to mind and the context shows where the sympathies of the ODT lies. The first was in response to a comment made by speedfreak43 who noted that the GV of Carisbrook at the time the dear old DCC masquerading as a body acting in the interests of the ratepayers was about $1.5m when the purchase price from the ORFU who really run the DCC, was $7m. This is what I wrote, which simply vanished into thin air:

“speedfreak43, I think you are pretty close to the mark with the recollection of a GV of about $1.5m for Carisbrook. That makes this story even more worth pursuing by the ODT. Here we have a previous owner in the financial doodah for $7m – interestingly because of their purchases of Auckland bars to carry out their pokie fund rort – bailed out by a Council decision to purchase at a price many times more than what is clearly a market price. All backed up by “valuations” that appear to be nothing other than part of the shonky deals done behind closed doors. All replicated almost exactly with Luggate and Jack’s Point. Bearing in mind that every $1m of spend without income that this Council does equates to 1% on the rates and you can see that these 3 property deals alone have cost Dunedin ratepayers close on 15% of rates increases. My question again – who is going to hold these Councillors accountable?”

Now why this sensitivity? The ORFU were involved in a rort and everyone knows that. Were there shonky deals done behind closed doors? Well, we have Carisbrook, Jacks Point and Luggate as examples that are in the public domain. Is it that the ODT don’t want some Councillors to be exposed for what they are? Well here my posting in another thread with the deleted portion emboldened.

“If the promoters are well aware in advance of sound issues at the stadium and have prepared accordingly, then a simple question remains unanswered. Why do patrons who shell out money to see and hear acts at the stadium rate the sound quality over the PA systems as “abhorrent”? While pondering that answer, why is it that, after we were all told that the surface was the most high-tech, durable and incredible surface ever devised that the recent soccer fixture rated the surface as being the worst they had played on? When considering the answer to that question, readers may like to consider just how much they have paid in their rates to achieve these levels of mediocrity. Perhaps Malcolm Farry and the stadium Councillors could provide some answers?”

So, the ODT had printed stories about the sound quality and the turf quality so they couldn’t take exception to that, but they didn’t want Farry and the Stadium Councillors being asked to be held accountable.

This I suggest, is a very clear indication of where the ODT’s sympathies and probable support will be for any forthcoming Council elections. Can it logically be seen in any other way?

[ends]

Editorial Note:
When the What if? moderators enter “abridge” in their dashboard search box up come 74 items of observation and complaint on multiple threads about comments being abridged or not published after submission to ODT Online.
Spot the trend.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

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by Elizabeth | December 6, 2012 · 10:33 pm

Local Government Act Amendment Bill

Federated Farmers
Media Release

Local Government Bill passes, but funding must be next

30/11/2012 4:10:00 p.m.

Federated Farmers welcomes the passage of the Local Government Act Amendment Bill, but more must be done to contain and reduce the rates burden.

“The passage of the Bill is good news for ratepayers. Since 2002 rates have increased an average of 7 percent per year,” Ms Milne says.

“This growth is unsustainable and to rein it in councils and communities need better guidance and clarity on local government spending priorities.

“The Bill does this by changing the purpose of local government away from its activist, open-ended job description towards something more like what most people think local government should focus on: local infrastructure, local public services and local regulation.

“However, the Bill really just tinkers at the margin and will only go part of the way to containing and reducing the rates burden.

“What‘s needed now is funding reform, which so far has been the missing element of the Government’s work.

“It is well known that rates fall heavily and inequitably, with farmers being particularly hard hit. Far too many farmers pay more than $20,000 per year in general rates to fund activities they barely use or benefit from.

“What is perhaps less well understood is that funding policy also affects councils’ regulatory performance, especially when central government makes laws for councils to enforce, but does not provide any resources. The incentives are all wrong.

“We also think limited funding options are a factor in housing affordability, for example when councils impose high development contributions that push up the costs of sections.

“The burden of funding local government must be spread more equitably and that means moving away from the over-reliance on a 17th century system of property value rates and finding new and better tools for councils operating in the 21st century.

“Federated Farmers has always been up for this debate. With growing concern about housing affordability we sense the time is right to make some progress,” Ms Milne says.

For further information contact:

Katie Milne, Federated Farmers rural security spokesperson, 0274 244 546, 03 738 0189

Link to article

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Related Post:
24.9.12 DCC against imposition of local government reforms

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

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Filed under Business, Economics, Media, Name, People, Politics, Property

Tagged as Communities, Councils, Development contributions, Farmers, Federated Farmers, Funding reform, General rates, Growth, Housing affordability, Local government, Local Government Act Amendment Bill, Local government spending, Local infrastructure, Local public services, Local regulation, Property value rates, Ratepayers, Rates, Rates burden

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