Manufacturing Consent in The Capital / Media Collusion in Wellington?
This week in the Capital's politics the temperature rose steeply over the District Plan and infill housing. That was driven by the City's news maker the Dompost with a series of reports designed to give a favourable impression of a Council that has been papering over the cracks of a permissive District Plan. Council did a u-turn on infill, having allowed the developers to have a free hand over the last 9 years. Under the present and previous Mayor the momentum had built but with election year jitters and community annoyance spilling into public places Mayor Prendergast and friends were looking for an electoral insurance policy.
The first speed wobbles came with the rates differential. The Mayor's trusted lieutenant Deputy Shaw called a halt to the wealth transfer, fearing electoral consequences. It would mean an 8 percent rise to the residents and a 2 percent rise to business. In the meantime murmurings were becoming louder over developers taking control of the Council. A symbolic action was deemed necessary. Commercial mayhem would continue in the Central Business District as with subdivisions. The talk of an overheated residential property sector became louder and interest rates continued to climb. With the help of the Dompost sufficient consent would be manufactured to see the City through its current crisis and unattended growing debt (currently at $290.775 million and leaping to $354.829 million gross borrowings in 2008/09). This is set against an unsustainable economy with climate change demanding less productivity. We are headed for a meltdown.
posted by pepptalk at 10:53 PM
1 Comments:
From: Jack Ruben [mailto:jack.ruben@xtra.co.nz]
Sent: Sunday, 6 May 2007 2:49 p.m.
To: contact@pepptalk.net
Subject:
Pepp,
Well done, - yet again! - for reminding Wellingtonians of the great dangers facing us, and the necessity to urgently become more pro-active.
The last three mayors, - Wilde, Blumsky and now Prendergast, - have irreversably changed the whole environment of Wellington for the worst.
Previous councils have been aggressively "property speculator" friendly, and we know why! The Waterfront, Cuba Quarter and the Inner City By-Pass are examples of the damage.
Residential areas have been allowed to over-develop to the detriment of neighbours, facilities and the environment. Hopefully the new District Plan changes will curb the worst excesses of the past.
Tough on you, Property Speculators and your council pals!
Deputy mayor Shaw has already told us rates will rise once the elections are over, if he and the present mayor's cabal get re-elected. We must prevent this.
I'll bet council housing rents will be based on Market Rates too. Remember the Shaw/Piper promises so quickly broken after their elections?
Notwithstanding declarations by Developers and Business-people that the current Rates Differential have no detrimental effect on development or business, 'they' are still determined to change this - see the Prendergast/Shaw/Armstrong/Foster & co pronouncements as to their intentions post election!
We all need to become more pro-active NOW before it is too late. Private mumblings behind closed doors do not achieve anything.
Jack.
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