Category: General

Everything else

Glenora Road Station?

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And what about Te Mahia and Westfield

 

I saw in the Auckland Transport Board Meeting closed agenda for this month as well as the forward program sheet that three stations are up for discussion and possible decisions.

They are:

  1. Whether to close Te Mahia and/or Westfield Stations
  2. Allow Glenora Road Station to be built next to the Takanini Village

 

The Agenda and Forward Program papers that caught my attention

 

 

Comments

I note that the discussion around all three stations is behind closed doors under the justification of frank and free discussion to which a decision will be noted (rather than actioned by the looks of it). All three stations have stirred up the emotions with Manurewa Local Board roping in the Mayor to get Te Mahia to stay open while Papakura Local Board and Councillor Calum Penrose are fighting to get Glenora Road Station built and operation (rather than Auckland Transport’s favoured Tironui Station).

What could be indicative around Westfield and Te Mahia is that they are on the Auckland Plan Transport Network funding program for upgrades. Meaning if full funding is available the stations would be upgraded within the next 10 years otherwise not at all under the current Basic Transport Network scenario. However, that APTN and BTN could change depending how the Governing Body treats the final version of the Long Term Plan next year.

That said Glenora Road Station is not on either the APTN or BTN but if Auckland Transport give it the green light then somehow the Council will need to get funding for it.

 

The agenda paper notes that the decisions around those three stations will be released in due course. It will be VERY interesting to see which way AT fall over these stations.

 

Coming Up on The Weekend Analysis

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End of the Line?

 

For my last Weekend Analysis for 2014 I was going to look back at the City Rail Link debate that happened on Tuesday. Well Kane from All About Auckland who was there when the Governing Body failed in their one job (Council: You Had ONE Job! UPDATED) delivered this promotional piece for his show on Monday:

The End of the Line?

The Governing Body convened for an Extraordinary Meeting on Tuesday to debate the City Rail Link for the 7th time. Quite why they were required to perform yet again remains unclear.

Most likely reasons being that a letter arrived on the Auditor General’s desk from some Councillors which may have had an unsettling effect on her.

Another reason being that the last meeting to discuss the CRL, at the Budget debate, saw a spilt decision on allowing a road tolling option to be included in the Transport Funding consultation document.

Len could not afford the political risk inherent in a decision that saw the far left and far right join forces against the centrists so when the opportunity for another vote loomed up in the form of the Auditor General rejecting the Budget while it included Central Government funding for the CRL, rather than quietly negotiating through it, he used the chance to improve his mandate.

The debate, which was a good one, marks the sorry end to Len’s political career as the Mayor with the Mojo. The Mayor in waiting said it all when,  part way through the debate, she took careful aim and explained to him exactly how he should do his job. And all the while those on the left and the right giving him the benefit of their advice

—-ends—-

 

Ouch!

Kane’s piece certainly delivers enough material to work on as does Bob Dey’s piece as well.

So tomorrow on The Weekend Analysis I look back at the CRL debate as well as my picks for Councillor(s) of 2014 – both good and bad!

 

Promo piece

All About Auckland Show

On This Week’s Show:

The End of the Line?

Episode 47

SkyTV Channel 83 FACETV

Monday at 9pm – repeats Tuesday 12.30pm

Facebook Like Button

………..

 

OIA Request Back from the Auditor General

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And we learn something new

 

After Councillor Cameron Brewer was flinging around assumptions about correspondence between the Auditor General and Auckland Council I decided to file an Official Information Act request with the Office of the Controller and Auditor General to see if there was any correspondence that could be found to substantiate Brewer’s claims.

This was the OIA I sent:

From: Ben Ross

December 09, 2014

Dear Office of the Controller and Auditor-General,

I am aware that Audit New Zealand audited the Auckland Council
Draft Long Term Plan 2015-2025 in which Audit NZ through its audit
has stated: that owing to circumstances it would be prudent of
Auckland Council to push back the City Rail Link start date from
2015/2016 to another date owing to uncommitted funding by
Government prior to 2020.

My information act request centres around correspondence between
Auckland Council and your Office in relation to the audit of the
2015-2025 LTP and/or the City Rail Link start date situation.

What if any correspondence was had between Audit New Zealand, the
Office of the Controller and Auditor-General, and Auckland Council
before and after Audit NNZ carried out its audit of the Long Term
Plan draft.

If there was any correspondence can it be released into the public
domain please as we have confusion coming from Auckland Council
specifically our elected representatives on whether there was
correspondence that either lead to or came as a result from Audit
NZ auditing the draft Long Term Plan.

Yours faithfully,

Ben Ross

……

 

And this is the reply I got back today (which was very fast):

From: Tamar McKewen
Office of the Controller and Auditor-General

December 10, 2014

Kia ora Ben,

Thank you for your query. Auckland Council and Audit New Zealand’s correspondence is part of an ongoing audit process. On 18 December an audit opinion will be issued concluding this process.

The Auditor-General is not subject to the Official Information Act. But as noted above, you will not need it as the opinion will be made public when it is finalised.

Ngā mihi,

Tamar McKewen
Communications Advisor (media)
Reports and Communications Group
Office of the Auditor-General Te Mana Arotake and Audit New Zealand Mana Arotake Aotearoa

 

——

Source: https://fyi.org.nz/request/2312-correspondence-between-auckland-council-and-the-office-of-the-controller-and-auditor-general-in-regards-to-the-2015-2025-long-term-plan-including-around-the-city-rail-link#incoming-7503

 

And there where have it in that I learnt something new insofar as I can not OIA the Auditor General.

 

In any case though my OIA was answered satisfactorily and we will see that opinion on the 18th – the same day the Governing Body meets for the final time this year.

 

My thanks to the Auditor General’s office for a very prompt reply 🙂

 

City Rail Link Start Date Set to 2018

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Governing Body Agrees Finally

 

Just In:

After debating – well relitigating four years of previous debate the Governing Body in an extraordinary session of Council has agreed by a vote of 14-6 (one absent) for the main City Rail Link project to start 2018. That is Option Two of the recommendations per the agenda (below).

As for the Notice of Motions I called for well they didn’t happen (was to be expected but tried) so will try again in the Long Term Plan submission rounds early next year.

 

The debate itself which dragged from 1:30 to 4pm and should have realistically taken 45 minutes was absolute torture and shows the lack of capacity some of our elected representatives have in that Governing Body. The sole purpose of that debate today was to vote for Option Two and work out funding arrangements to satisfy the Auditor General’s concerns she has raised over the situation. NOT to push a personal barrow from the last four years and especially since the Government has agreed to the City Rail Link in the first place.

 

So yep again the Governing Body did screw up a debate and continue on its history path of being ineffectual as a collective. Which is a damned shame as we do have some fine and smart individual Councillors in there.

Bring on 2016!

 

Reference Post and link to agenda

Amendment to CRL Start Date in the Long Term Plan