Funny Money

Recently the Hastings District Council announced a contribution to the sports park from the Lotteries Commission, a fund set up specifically to fund such community projects. This is the second donation towards the park that is clear of scandal and not an effective ratepayer payout. The other was from Hastings Pack and Save towards developing the netball courts.

Contributions from the Hawke's Bay Regional Council, and Unison are either rates funded or are from some sort of compulsory levy, and are not given freely by those who are actually paying. There is no little box on our rates demands and power accounts allowing us to support or declining these payments.

I am not going to get into the details of the Higgins donation, but in my opinion awarding millions of dollars of contracts in return for a donation does not constitute a donation as was claimed by the Hastings Mayor. The process may have been cleared by the Audit Office but that investigation was requested by Council rather than being the result of a complaint. Personally I find it shady and not the sort of thing any council should be getting up to.

Buried in the Hastings District Council estimated for at least the past two years has been the sum of one million dollars intended as a contribution from Hastings towards the planned extensions to the museum in Napier,

It seems there might be a similar sum in Napier being set aside as a possible contribution towards the Sports Park. No doubt when the appropriate decisions are made to release these monies there will be much fanfare and toasting by the two Mayors.

We should see the situation for what it is. Rather than admitting to pouring money into the park and the museum, the councils are simply swapping cash and calling it a donation. Hastings will give Napier a million dollars and Napier will give Hastings a million dollars. In no way, shape, or form, are these true donations.

Ratepayers in both councils need to realise they are about to be conned.

Somewhere in all this nonsense it also seems to be forgotten that at the time Nelson Park was sold an undertaking was given to allocate $3 million of the proceeds to central city green areas. That is, $3 million of the $17 million net received from the sale. So far there is no sign of this happening, and while in due course something will be done, the reality is the Sport Park has already gobbled up all the proceeds from the sale.

The sports park funding seems clouded in secrecy and misleading disclosure. Recently I attended a public meeting on the subject. For some strange reason it was chaired not by the Mayor who is also Chairman of the Sports Park, but by Ross Bramwell former Chairman of the Regional Council and also Hawke's Bay Inc.

I asked about the cost of water and waste water services. These services are likely to be very expensive, for instance waste water will require a three Kilometre pipeline. The Mayor claimed both water and wastewater costs were in the budget but I have my doubts.

I also asked about roading upgrades for both Evenden and Percival Roads and was informed by the Chief Executive that the cost was included in the LTCCP and not the park estimates. I have yet to find the amount but clearly it is likely to be in the millions of dollars as well.

I think other Sports Park costs are being buried. A chief executive has been hired and now the position of Recreation Programmer is being advertised. There have also been significant fund raising costs including the $300 000 a year paid to Kelt Capital.

Clearly contributions to the park are not paying for these expenses.

Its a pity the Mayor and the clutch of tame councillors who seem to fall into line every time a contentious issue arises, find it necessary to support this lack of transparency. It is giving the sports park a bad image.

Though I have always disagreed with the Sports Park location, the athletics track and grand stand were always going to be built somewhere once Nelson Park was sold.

The velodrome is a new new idea but I have come to the conclusion that provided a Government contribution can be obtained we should support it whether we are cyclists or not.

Our visitor industry is in the doldrums. We need attractions that will bring more people here. With the only other indoor velodrome located at the bottom of the South Island we should get a useful boost should our efforts succeed.

But it is difficult to to determine either the costs or the returns, when the Hastings District Council is determined to conceal critical financial information that might help people make an informed decision on the issue.