North Shore Councillor Chris Darby seems to be channelling Joel Cayford in hamstringing Port of Auckland to which would have effects further down the line such as the industrial complexes in South Auckland.
The bottom of this Orsman article has me worried Councillor Darby might not be aware of the risks of what he is trying to pull:
Len Brown puts Auckland port on the spot
5:00 AM Thursday Feb 19, 2015
Mayor to ask why council or public not told of plans to demolish end of Marsden Wharf
Auckland Mayor Len Brown is seeking an urgent explanation from Ports of Auckland after it announced plans yesterday to begin demolishing the end of Marsden Wharf next week.
“While Ports of Auckland is within its rights to begin the work, I am disappointed that they would fail to mention it to their shareholders, political governors or the wider public at a time of considerable public interest,” he said.
……..
Councillor Chris Darby said it appeared the mayor was a week late in asking questions of the company.
“While he is rightly asking questions of the announcement, he ignores the bombshell dropped on Aucklanders last week when the port company’s cunning plan to create massive wharf extensions to facilitate cavernous reclamations was revealed.”
Last week, councillors were surprised to learn that council officers had approved consent for the port company for two wharf extensions into Waitemata Harbour and would need to reclaim 3ha of seabed.
Mr Darby is seeking a notice of motion to hold an extraordinary meeting of the council’s Auckland development committee to revoke a decision last week to weaken controls over further harbour reclamation for port use.
Demolition due
• Ports of Auckland announces plans to demolish Marsden Wharf
• Mayor Len Brown seeks an urgent explanation from port bosses
• Cr Chris Darby seeks to revoke weaker rules for harbour reclamation
The Port of Auckland Reclamation Rules issue is heading to mediation before the Unitary Plan Hearings Panel. After that it will go into a full open hearing of the Panel where we can hear all the evidence, all the rebuttal, and finally the Panel’s decision on the rules for reclamation for Port of Auckland.
So I wonder if Councillor Darby has:
Asked an Environment Court Lawyer the risk of Council jumping around between one rule and another before mediation of the reclamation issue
Ask that same lawyer whether the Non Complying Rule for Reclamation would stand the scrutiny from the Unitary Plan Panel. Judge Kirkpatrick and his Panel have already savaged Council for being wafer thin in solid material to back claims or objects made by the Council for the Unitary Plan Regional Policy Statement on Urban Growth
Thought to himself that there is absolutely nothing stopping the Panel from making a final ruling that the Reclamation for Port of Auckland is set to be a Discretionary Activity per the Resource Management Act. Now if that was to happen and most likely to what then Councillor?
Darby has a tendency to meddle in things that should be left to either bureaucrats or in this case the Unitary Plan Hearings Panel. Whether it is design by committee for QEII Square or this issue with the Port, this is micro level meddling I do not expect nor should expect from the Governing Body. You are there for Governance that determines the framework for such situations, not manage it as that is what the bureaucracy is for.
Let me give you another example if this were to occur closer to home for say South Auckland
I submitted to the Unitary Plan and while I covered a range of topics the main topic was seeking to add the Super Metropolitan Zone into the Unitary Plan. The purpose behind the Super Metropolitan Centre Zone was to seek a compromise for Manukau City Centre in that Council was not willing to zone the area as a City Centre Zone like the main CBD, but to me zoning Manukau as a Metropolitan Centre was underwhelming.
So to recognise Manukau City Centre’s uniqueness I drew up a new zone to sit between the Metropolitan and City Centre Zones and called it the Super Metropolitan Centre Zone. That SMC Zone would sit in between the City Centre and Metropolitan Centre Zones in the Centres hierarchy of the Unitary Plan.
Now I have been given my notice on when the mediation and subsequent hearing before the Panel is to happen on the Super Metropolitan Centre Zone addition (September for the hearing). Before mediation the bureaucrats will have a direction from either the Unitary Plan Subcommittee or the main Auckland Development Committee on what position the Council takes in regards to the Super Metropolitan Centre Zone concept.
Staying with me here and working through this, if we are to use the Port of Auckland situation, say the Committees resolved to change their mediation position from opposing to supporting my Super Metropolitan Centre Zone concept. This changes how I approach the mediation and later hearing as I am no long presenting in adversary to Council but in support. Thus we both go to the main Panel and give our supported cases for the addition of the Super Metropolitan Centre Zone. And of course I would be gathering evidence to back the supporting claims.
This is what it would be like with the Council resolving to take into mediation that Port reclamation is to be Discretionary Activity.
Manukau SMC Zone MK2
Now for some unknown reason (well political and politicking) an Extraordinary Meeting of the Auckland Development Committee was called six weeks after the ordinary Committee resolved to support the SMC Zone. In that extraordinary meeting it was resolved to rescind that original support and now the Council goes back to opposing the Super Metropolitan Centre Zone in mediation and hearings.
That would be the biggest spanner thrown into the works and seriously piss me off. Because after six weeks of gathering evidence to back supporting claims, I now have to change my argument and gather evidence as I will be in opposition (thus an adversary). Of course I have six weeks less time to do it as well before mediation and the hearings.
Furthermore it throws South Auckland into the lurch as well as the sub region has no idea if the Councillor is Arthur or Martha with the Super Metropolitan Centre Zone.
This is what it would be like if Council for some unknown reason rescinded that motion on taking into mediation whichever rule it will be for reclamation.
So will the Council make up its mind and stop jerking the City around. More to the point stop meddling when a matter is before the Unitary Plan Hearings Panel as well.
Talking Southern Auckland 