Rotorua reserves proposal: Mayor Steve Chadwick uses casting vote to push sale plan through

Outgoing Rotorua mayor Steve Chadwick has used her casting vote to approve a proposal to re-classify seven reserve sites so they can be sold and developed.

The decision was made in the final council meeting of the term, and Chadwick's last after nine years as mayor.

The proposal would revoke the reserve status of seven sites in order to sell most for housing. The vote was split equally, with Chadwick using her casting vote to break the tie.

The approval of the proposal meant the council would now pursue a local bill through Parliament to enable the revocation of the reserve sites, as opposed to via the Reserves Act, which the council has previously expressed would take longer.

Councillors Raj Kumar, Tania Tapsell, Reynold Macpherson, Fisher Wang and Sandra Kai Fong voted against approving the proposal to proceed.

Chadwick, deputy mayor Dave Donaldson, Mercia Yates, Merepeka Raukawa-Tait and Trevor Maxwell voted in favour of it.

When a vote is split equally it falls to the chairperson of the meeting to make the deciding vote. The mayor is the chairwoman of the council.

In the meeting, Chadwick said leadership was not about being popular and she was in "total support" of the move.

"This is certainly one that hasn't been popular at all.

"The process was one that has been held to account and I can't see for why."

She said she was proud of the recommendation.

"We listened to the public.

"Taking in mind also, the huge issue … of housing. An incoming council is going to have to show leadership about housing.

"The discussion is that perhaps we're not showing enough leadership on this. And I think going soft on the reserves is a sad day to hear that."

She said the public would again be able to submit on the proposal as it progressed as a local bill through select committee.

Chadwick said "misinformation" had been "promulgated" and she had received "hate".

"I was Uma Thurman [in a social media post], kill the bill, dressed in leather, with a gun in my hand. I didn't appreciate that.

"We've got to be brave, we've got to do the right thing, we've got to house our people."

Tapsell said there was "no doubt" the proposal had been "heartbreaking" for residents nearby the identified reserves.

"It has caused a lot of stress and a lot of misery and I do believe that the process at the start could have been improved with more transparency and information to them."

She was concerned nearby residents would not have "protection" about the "types of dwellings" on the revoked reserve sites.

"I believe if we started this process with an open discussion with plenty of time for the community to come back, there could have been other options."

An example of one Tapsell believed "makes sense" would be pensioner housing on the sites.

"Unfortunately these discussions were not able to be had because of pushing this through at such pace."

She said there was a possibility the next council could pull the local bill and she said those opposed should not "give up hope".

"There could still be an opportunity to save these reserves."

Tapsell also joined Kai Fong and Wang in expressing displeasure the motion before the council was to be taken in bulk, as opposed to one reserve at a time.

It meant that if a councillor supported the revocation of one reserve but not another, voting for or against the motion meant specific positions on each reserve would not be reflected. Kai Fong said because of that she had to vote against the motion entirely.

District development deputy chief executive Jean-Paul Gaston told the council there had been an expression of interest in one of the sites from Ngāti Whakaue Tribal Lands.

Maxwell said he hoped there were not "any leakers" in the next council as previously-secret documents from council closed-door workshops in the public domain had caused "quite a big huge problem".

Kumar said workshops "were never supposed to be secret".

Raukawa-Tait said the council had to "do what we can to provide homes for the people who need them" and there was "no need for this debate and the dithering that's gone on this morning".

The reserves proposal had been met with vehement opposition - as well as pockets of support - through its consultation process from 30 May to 14 July.

It had been discussed in closed-door council workshops prior to that, and was first revealed through documents obtained by Local Democracy Reporting in April this year.

More than 600 people submitted on the proposal, most in opposition, and a council committee heard verbal submissions over four days of hearings.

Four petitions opposed to the proposal were also submitted, totalling more than 1200 signatures, and a small picket was held outside the council building on Thursday morning ahead of the meeting, with protesters holding "kill the bill" signs.

In May, Local Democracy Reporting revealed the council had discussed the revocation of reserves - at that time for temporary housing - as early as April 2021.

The original proposal tipped six sites for direct sale to Kāinga Ora for public housing, but the final proposal identified just one - on Glenholme Reserve, next to existing Kāinga Ora housing.

In the meeting, the council also approved the implementation of developer contributions, which would come into effect for new developments lodged from December 1 this year.

It meant developers would have to contribute to infrastructure to support their developments.

Tapsell, Wang and Kai Fong voted against the decision, citing timing issues as they believed December was too soon and that it may disincentivise development, including housing.

However, Kumar said it was important ratepayers did not bear the cost.

Raukawa-Tait said other councils had implemented similar policies and not experienced a drop in development.

"It's time to put our big city pants on."

How they voted

On revoking pursuing revocation of the reserve status of seven sites so they can be sold and developed:

For: Mayor Steve Chadwick, deputy mayor Dave Donaldson, Councillors Mercia Yates, Merepeka Raukawa-Tait and Trevor Maxwell.

Against: Councillors Raj Kumar, Tania Tapsell, Reynold Macpherson, Fisher Wang and Sandra Kai Fong.

The reserves are: Wrigley Rd Reserve (part); High St Reserve (part); Glenholme Reserve at 171 Clinkard Ave; Turner Dr Reserve (part); Park Rd Reserve (part); Linton Park West (part); Gallagher St Reserve.

Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air