At yesterday’s Dunedin City Council meeting, councillors voted 12-2 to rebuff Cr Benedict Ong’s motion requesting a report on recognising ‘‘significant philanthropic and corporate contributions’’ with naming rights for select public assets.
‘‘This is a well-suited policy that will be able to tap on the future economic development growth that we can see, the investment and philanthropic opportunities that can grow our city in the time to come.’’
However, most of his colleagues were not convinced, saying the motion was redundant, a poor use of staff time and inconsistent with the council-mana whenua relationship.
Cr Steve Walker said he could not support nor make sense of it.
‘‘With no disrespect to the mover, I really struggle to understand and decipher the notice of motion, despite me reading it probably two dozen times.’’
Cr Cherry Lucas said the council already had processes to attract commercial sponsorship.
‘‘I would really loathe for us to have a Westpac Dunedin Railway Station, the most photographic railway station in the southern hemisphere,’’ she said.
Cr Mickey Treadwell said it felt ‘‘fundamentally inequitable’’ to enable those with more capital to take up public spaces with their names.
The motion could affect the council’s relationship with mana whenua, who the council already ‘‘lean on’’ to gift assets names, Cr Mandy Mayhem said.
‘‘I would shudder to think someone with an open purse would have the opportunity to run roughshod over the respected views of our local mana whenua.’’
Cr Russell Lund said the practice did not pose a threat to mana whenua and naming rights policies existed worldwide.
‘‘We should never underestimate the power of a naming right, particularly for someone who is potentially philanthropic.’’
Cr Andrew Simms also spoke in favour of the motion — saying he backed investigating the public’s view and exploring potential benefits for the Dunedin Tunnels Trail — but ultimately voted against it.
Cr Ong’s motion indicated ‘‘conditional, non-commercial naming recognition’’ of assets, possibly including trails, buildings and facilities, subject to statutory, cultural and community safeguards and consistent with the Treaty of Waitangi obligations.
He had previously suggested investors could be granted naming rights for roads or ‘‘across parts of our city’’.
However, yesterday’s motion excluded residential streets from the proposal.
In November, he was told naming public roads was not like a sponsorship arrangement and council chief executive Sandy Graham said the Local Government Act 1974 did not allow it.
