$13m stadium funding 'error' revealed

Stop the Stadium may have lost its Court of Appeal case, but the group says it has exposed incorrect claims about stadium funding by the Dunedin City Council.

Council chief executive Jim Harland said yesterday he accepted some of the figures were "an error", and the council had to borrow a further $13 million to make up the funding shortfall.

Stop the Stadium officials declined to speak to the Otago Daily Times about the decision yesterday, but said in a emailed statement it had forced the council to admit the error.

"Stop the Stadium is disappointed with the Wellington Court of Appeal result but pleased the action has forced the Dunedin City Council to admit that what they told the Christchurch High Court was wrong and the council, not the central Government, are making up the $13 million shortfall."

The Court of Appeal judgement said Stop the Stadium, in an April High Court hearing at Christchurch, had argued the stadium cost had increased by $13 million because of the extra price paid for land, and a decrease in funding from the Community Trust of Otago.

The council had argued that was made up by a $15 million grant from the Government, an argument accepted by Justice Lester Chisholm in April.

But council finance and corporate support general manager Athol Stephens told the court last week in his affidavit the anticipated receipt of private sector funding from seating package sales had changed.

Only 3% would be received by the time the stadium opened, and the Government funding would be used for a bridging loan of about $42 million required to offset that.

The court said it was clear the $15 million Government contribution could not "net off" the unallocated $13 million funding shortfall, though: "For present purposes, we simply record that we are satisfied that the unallocated $13 million shortfall has now been picked up by the council, thus increasing its capital contribution to the project by about $13 million."

Mr Harland said yesterday the council did not explain changes to the funding as clearly as it could have.

- david.loughrey@odt.co.nz [1]