February 20, 2017
Auckland Council fears loss of green space
Auckland Mayor Phil Goff wants to see some other way of compensating Ngati Paoa that doesn’t involve building on the city’s remaining green spaces.
Mr Goff yesterday spoke to parliament’s local government and environment committee which was in the city hearing submissions on a bill to fast track the sale of a council-administered reserve at Point England to the iwi for housing.
He says with the neighbouring Tamaki Regeneration the area’s population is set to grow by more than 20,000 extra people over the next 20 years, and green space will be critical.
"We’re very sympathetic to Ngati Paoa and their justiified grievances that need to be addressed. But what we are asking is first, were there other ways that that could have be done using the Tamaki Regeneration land and secondly there has to be an assurance that if this land is taken, it's not a case of windfall profit for the crown that can take the money and use it somewhere else. It needs to be reinvested for that local community in open public space. That's an absolute bottom line," he says.
Phil Goff says he also wants a guarantee that if Ngati Paoa’s development doesn’t go ahead, the land will go back to being a reserve.
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