Stadium looms over talks on cutting $10m housing money

City council flats in Kirkaldy St, South Dunedin. Photo by Peter McIntosh.
City council flats in Kirkaldy St, South Dunedin. Photo by Peter McIntosh.
The spectre of the stadium was raised by Cr Teresa Stevenson during discussion on a proposal to cut $10 million from spending on council housing, but her argument was labelled mischievous, deliberately misleading and untruthful.

Council staff have proposed to take $10 million over 10 years from capital spending on the housing, which has been used to build between five and seven new units a year.

Finance and corporate support general manager Athol Stephens told the meeting the council's policy had been to use money from rentals, and from selling unused properties, to upgrade existing housing stock and invest in new, modern, energy efficient, well situated properties.

The council had built 21 new units, and seven were being built.

"What that means is taking out $1 million cash [per annum] that comes to the council that is not any longer needed for housing."

The money would go into general funds to be used to reduce debt or for other council activities.

"It's currently not tagged to anything."

Cr Stevenson asked if that meant money was being taken from tenants for full depreciation, not spent on community housing, instead used "for some unknown project".

Mr Stephens said the money would go into the general funding pool.

Once the stadium was sold to a venues company, as was planned, it would be separate from the council's budget.

Cr Wilson said she was concerned anyone listening to the debate would think the council was not still upgrading housing.

"It's not as though we're taking all the money out."

Cr Wilson said the money should be tagged to the community development budget.

"If we do that, we'll deflect a lot of suggestions we're trying to fill the coffers of the council."

Cr Paul Hudson said Wellington, Auckland, and most other council areas had disposed of their council housing.

If the council kept including money in the community plan, signalling it was going to pay for it on its own, there was no way it would be able to get money for housing from the Government.

Cr Stevenson moved the money be put back in the budget for building new units, but no other councillor would second the motion, and it lapsed.

She said she could not support the recommendation to remove the money, as "$10 million will come from their [tenants] rent and go to other projects.

"That could be a rugby stadium."

The council was trying to find $20 million for the stadium, and the money could provide $10 million of that.

Cr Michael Guest said her comments were misleading, and were "not the truth".

"There is no suggestion whatsoever people are being taxed depreciation which is going to the stadium."

"It is misleading and wrong. Deliberately misleading."

The debate was "very emotive", Cr Hudson said.

The council needed to look to a partnership with the Government to expand its housing stock.

"It's not appropriate for the council to do all this development on its own without some assistance from central Government."

The meeting voted for the recommendation to remove the money, and Cr Wilson signalled she would consider ways to ring-fence the money for community development.

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