But Halswell-Hornby-Riccarton Community Board deputy chairwoman Helen Broughton said she is disappointed the four board members, including herself, who recommended delaying the mega-facility, are copping the blame for the decision.
Cr Chen’s comments, which were made at a city council meeting, come after councillors unanimously voted to get the new $35.7 million Hornby Library, Service Centre and South West Pool back on track.
The decision overturned the board’s recommendation, which had prompted outrage in the Hornby community and saw residents march into the city council to fight the delays.
Cr Chen said he was “very frustrated and disappointed” at some attempts by board members to delay the facility.
But Mrs Broughton said Cr Chen, a Hornby representative, wasn’t at the original board meeting to make a recommendation to the city council on the facility.
She said: “I don’t think he should have criticised other board members. The four board members who voted against it voted on the grounds of land stability and we didn’t expect to be in the majority.’’
Mrs Broughton said if everyone had been at the board meeting, the recommendation to allow the facility to go ahead would have passed.
Cr Chen was absent from the meeting due to being required as city council multicultural committee chairman to attend a ceremony welcoming 180 New Zealand citizens.
But Cr Chen said the four board members need to take responsibility for the decision they made.
He said Kyle Park had already been approved by the board and the city council as the mega-facility’s future home along with the Kyle Park reclassification and changes to the management plan.
The key concern of the four board members who recomended the delay was that a report on gas-testing at Kyle Park will not be available until April when construction on the facility is set to start. At the board’s meeting in August, Mrs Broughton and board member Catherine Chu voted against the changes, while Debbie Mora and Ross McFarlane either voted against or abstained.
Due to absences, only city councillor Anne Galloway and board chairman Mike Mora were left to vote in support for several changes to go ahead.
Mrs Broughton said perhaps the board’s decision on the facility should have been delayed to ensure Cr Chen, Cr Vicki Buck and board member Natalie Bryden were at the meeting.
But Mr Mora said the decision could not be delayed any longer as the board could not afford to have any “unfinished business” before the elections. He was also confident the board’s recommendation would be overturned at the city council meeting. It comes as the city council took away delegation from the community board for making decisions over the facility.
Mr Mora said he suspected the delegation would be taken away but hoped it will be given back to the board after the elections or he would be “very disappointed.”
