MEDIA RELEASE Outdoor Recreation NZ
23 November 2006

Water front Stadium, at what Cost?

Outdoor Recreation NZ (ORNZ) chairman Phil Hoare said today that the ORNZ Party opposes Minister of Sport Trevor Mallard’s misguided enthusiasm for a water front Stadium, which he and the Government are forcing upon Auckland businesses, public and ratepayers.

ORNZ would hope that sanity prevails amongst the Auckland councils, whether the new stadium is built on the waterfront site, or an upgraded Eden Park is confirmed as the venue for the final of the Rugby World Cup in 2011.

ORNZ supporters have indicated in a recent poll conducted by the party, that they support an upgraded Eden Park. Mr Hoare said that ORNZ believes that the consultation process is flawed; the allocated time frame for a decision on this important project is far too short. There doesn’t appear to have been any other seriously considered alternatives considered, such as erecting temporary seating at the Eden Park venue or to seriously consider an upgrade of the Albany Stadium, which has twenty eight hectares of available land and is ready to start building within a very short time frame, free from RMA complications etc.

This is typical of the current Government; they appear to have already made the decision without proper and transparent consultation. Auckland is a major trading port, how is this construction going to affect local commerce i.e. the Ports of Auckland operations, where do they propose to relocate shipping traffic to etc, and at what cost?

ORNZ also understands that a prominent Auckland University law lecturer has compared this government's disregard for public consultation and due process to that of Muldoon’s 'Think Big' projects. As with the think big projects, the real cost of the waterfront stadium could be a great deal more than the public is being lead to believe, not to mention the on going costs of maintenance etc. ORNZ also understands that there has been no proper tender process for the construction, and that new law will be required to bypass the Resource Management Act.

Eden Park is a real alternative - it's one of the world's renowned rugby grounds.

ENDS

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