People should not read too much into the revote on the transport centre says Mayor Stuart Crosby.
His resolution to revoke the council's previous decision to place the bus centre in Willow Street is to improve discussion at Tuesday's council meeting.
'It is intended to allow the councillors more freedom and options,” says Stuart.
On Tuesday, councillors will be free to suggest options other than Willow Street for the transport centre.
The mayor's late resolution was made public after Thursday's transport centre workshop, where councillors, the public and officials worked through issues raised following the previous council decision to place the transport centre in Willow Street.
The original vote on Willow Street was taken with four councillors absent.
Willow Street was chosen as the bus centre site largely because it attracted a $450,000 subsidy from the New Zealand Transport Agency. Durham Street, which was presented as the only alternative, did not qualify for any NZTA subsidy.
'Durham Street does not have the cost benefit support that Willow Street does,” says Stuart. 'In other words, for every dollar Willow Street got a better return.”
The NZTA representative at Thursday's workshop also answered some of the questions raised about the way the cost benefit analysis was weighted.
The public feedback figures did not affect the result, says Stuart.
He was referring to accusations the figures were skewed in the council staff report prepared before the original vote.
Councillor Murray Guy says the original staff report disallowed a lot of public opposition, and tipped the balance for the NZTA analysis.
Stuart says the NZTA cleared that up at the workshop. Their cost benefit analysis wasn't tipped by the council figures.
'You have to be careful how much weight you place on feedback,” says Stuart.
'It is not a pure numbers game and it is actually a small sample. Every week there are 7500 people that move through the Wharf Street Willow Street site.
'So if you get feedback from say 500 people, you have got to put that into context.”
Murray Guy says the revoking resolution happened because he forced the issue at the workshop. Standing orders place a time limit of five working days before a meeting, but committee chairpersons and the mayor have a two working day limit. The next council meeting is on Tuesday, four working days from the workshop, at which no resolutions could be passed.
As it stands, Tuesday's agenda resolution seeking confirmation of the Willow Street site pre-empts the workshop discussion, says Murray.
Even with a $450,000 subsidy to establish the centre, the ratepayers will still be paying operational costs.



0 comments
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to make a comment.