“Wellington City Council’s rates hike at 6.1% is too high. Priorities are skewed in the wrong direction towards vanity projects for political expediency, and disproportionate “growth-economic” funds and projects. The result: cuts and deliberately delayed spending on essential infrastructure eg. to prevent flooding around the Basin Reserve and Medical Centre) or to strengthen the Capital’sContinueContinue reading “Helene Ritchie: Runaway rates for vanity projects (Opinion)”
Tag Archives: Strathmore Park Blog
The Council has its head is in the sand over sea surges
All the locals new it was coming. Sunday dawned bright and early and I was writing the first blog of the week I could see the salt spray drifting across the airport. A quick check showed that a massive storm system was sending waves north, coupled with a high-tide, was always going to result inContinueContinue reading “The Council has its head is in the sand over sea surges”
That Airport Extension: More optimism bias, less facts and is the extension enough for long-haul planes to land?
A corporate finance partner at Deloitte writes in the Dominion Post this week a rhetorical question to which they clearly think they know the answer. “Should Wellington consider an extension to its runway?” What is interesting about this is that the opinion shows further optimism bias coupled with some facts that are incorrect and theContinueContinue reading “That Airport Extension: More optimism bias, less facts and is the extension enough for long-haul planes to land?”
Whoops: Should the Mayor and Deputy Mayor be able to vote on any future Airport Extension Proposal?
Yesterday’s brief blog has broken all records at Strathmore Park, peaking at nearly two thousand views an hour it has had thousands of you reading. Some of you have pointed out to me what you think is a breach of Council rules, particularly by the Deputy Mayor, and asked if both he, and the Mayor,ContinueContinue reading “Whoops: Should the Mayor and Deputy Mayor be able to vote on any future Airport Extension Proposal?”
Why Air New Zealand and other Airlines will never use a longer Wellington runway
So far missed by the local media an interview this morning was a Radio NZ piece talking to the CEO of Air New Zealand. While Air New Zealand didn’t explicitly rule out flying long haul routes from here, the evidence was absolutely damning. One thing is for sure, you could build an airport extension asContinueContinue reading “Why Air New Zealand and other Airlines will never use a longer Wellington runway”
Wellington Airport extension increasingly coming undone: Fool’s Gold
With the long term plan submission underway this week, the oral ones, we start to see the airport extension starting to increasingly come undone. The consultation to date has been, in my opinion, a sham, typical of the arrogance of the uninformed and money men (and women) who try to sell us this snake oil.ContinueContinue reading “Wellington Airport extension increasingly coming undone: Fool’s Gold”
Airport Extension: Looking like a white elephant and yet another consultation failure brewing
In the latest blow to the Wellington Extension idea the Board of Airline Representatives (BRANZ), representing twenty airlines, are sending some mixed messages about whether airlines will fly here if the extension goes ahead. Radio NZ reports BRANZ as stating that there is no intention by any airline to fly into Wellington if the extensionContinueContinue reading “Airport Extension: Looking like a white elephant and yet another consultation failure brewing”
That Wellington airport extension: Would you invest in it?
Wellingtonians are a funny bunch. We hate change yet we want change. We are prepared to lampoon anyone who either promotes a change, or, anyone who is perceived to be slowing change down. Case in point. A massive negative reaction to a new, I thought clever, design for the airport control tower. Can’t have thatContinueContinue reading “That Wellington airport extension: Would you invest in it?”
Wellington Airport Progress, Leaks, Parking, and Posturing
At the risk of annoying the Chairman of the WIAL Board again, I have some updates on the planned airport extension that have been sent to me by one of the local residents. It makes for interesting reading to say the least and we can be absolutely certain that nothing will be happening anytime soon.ContinueContinue reading “Wellington Airport Progress, Leaks, Parking, and Posturing”
Wellington Airport and the Death of Bridge Street
In May of 2012 residents of Eastern Suburbs warned that airport plans were likely to create a “wasteland” and looking at the evidence, this seems to have come to pass. The airport in its insatiable drive to collect more land (undoubtedly to build more carparks) has destroyed a once thriving community street in Rongotai. InContinueContinue reading “Wellington Airport and the Death of Bridge Street”
Guardians of the Bays 