December 3, 2024 • 10 mins
The Government will soon determine the fate of 76ha of prime Wellington real estate, which local resident Sir Peter Jackson is advocating to be turned into a public reserve - what are the chances Jackson will get his wish?
Also, the Ombudsman has launched an investigation after Kiwirail refused to reveal how much it has spent on consultants - a figure Finance Minister Nicola Willis said concerned her, but was unable to disclose herself. Will the public ever see the figure?
To answer those questions, NZ Herald's Wellington issues reporter Georgina Campbell joined Nick Mills for the Capital Letter.
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Speaker 1 (00:07):
You're listening to the Wellington Mornings podcast with Nick Mills
from News Talks EDB taking the pulse of the city.
The Capital Letter on news Talks EDB.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Joining us for her regular Capital Letter slot is New
Zealand here and Wellington's Issues Reported. Georgina Campbell, Good morning, Georgina,
good morning. Now, you wrote a very interesting story about
an area in the Miramar that Polinsula that Peter Jackson
once turned into a reserve. Is that so that no
one else can build something up around the back of
him or is that just a thing that he thinks
(00:39):
would be good for the area.
Speaker 3 (00:41):
So I've got an update on this story.
Speaker 4 (00:44):
I decided to follow up on it after I published
the first story earlier this year because a reserve on
Watt's Peninsula was first announced in twenty and eleven a
public reserve, and there is no public reserve on that
piece of land. You know, it's been more than a
decade now, so we're talking about the northern tip of
(01:04):
Mirrama Peninsula.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
It's you know, if.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
You can so basically, can I just can I just
explain to people? So there's a lot of people that
wouldn't have a clue what we were talking about so
that we don't live in our area. So if you
went from the chocolate frog, is it the chocolate fish,
chocolate fish round to the scorching bay, it's sort of
on that type.
Speaker 4 (01:24):
Yeah right, yeah, so if you were like had an
aerial shot, it's the really green part at the end
of the pensul think no, howes, thank you and anyway.
Minister for Land Information Chris Pink has received some updated
advice from officials to determine the future of the site finally,
and he says he's discussing that advice with his ministerial
(01:46):
colleagues and other interested parties. But he says, you know,
there are a number of stakeholders involved with this. It's
made for quite a complex process, but he's committed to
resolving the matter as soon as possible. He has acknowledged
that the local community might be a bit frustrated with
the rate of progress, but they're working at pace and
(02:07):
he is expected to reveal plans in the early new year.
So I think this is significant because it's seventy six
hect years of land. It's just been sitting there. It
is used by the community currently, but no sort of
like formal arrangements.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
Really, I've seen cows and stuff there.
Speaker 3 (02:28):
Yeah, there's a farm there too.
Speaker 4 (02:29):
There's also adjoining the site, there's the former Mount Crawford prison.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
Yes, so be at the top part of it.
Speaker 4 (02:39):
Yeah, yeah, so, and there's a working farm there. There's
a community garden where the old prison garden was there.
There's sort of like a separate process going on for
the Mount Crawford Land Local. We were keen to built
houses there but failed to get fast tracked consent, so
they've gone back to the drawing board. We don't know
what's happening there yet, whether there will one day be houses,
(03:02):
but yeah, we'll find out soon.
Speaker 2 (03:04):
So that could actually be a subdivision you're saying.
Speaker 3 (03:07):
Yeah, it could be.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
I mean if they tried to build I think it
was about seven hundred homes there but failed to get
fast track consent so went back to the drawing power.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Would they get people there and back? That's the problem,
isn't it.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
I Mean there are existing roads up there, but they
need to.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Be You mean you'd come up from that, you come
up from New Bay Road, you come up the top
of Mirrormar type thing.
Speaker 4 (03:28):
Oh, I see, I mean you could right like all
those roads are there, sure that need improving, but a
developer could do that if they wanted to.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
Peter Jackson wants it to turn into a reserve, so
none of that can happen. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (03:41):
Well, there are two bits of land. So that there's
the one bit of land which you know has been
airmarked for.
Speaker 3 (03:46):
A public reserve.
Speaker 4 (03:47):
We're expected to hear from the government exactly what they
are doing on that in the early new year. Then
there is the land next to it where a housing
development has you know, they've tried to push their head
before but have failed, and we still don't know what's
happening with that bit of land.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
All right, So you'll keep us posted in the new
year when you will.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
I think it'll be a big announcement when it happens.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
Oh okay, I will wait with baited breath for that.
Kiwi Rail has had had a big spend up on consultants,
but they won't release it. How can they spend money
on consultants when the government's told them to stop spending
money on consults.
Speaker 3 (04:19):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (04:20):
Well, this is something that really frustrated me because Finance
Minister Nicola Willis has so vocally been unhappy about the
cost of these consultants. It's Mackenzie and company. Kee we
Row engaged Mackenzie to undertake a strategic review, you know,
to try and lift performance across its rail, freight and
(04:40):
fairy business. Nicola Willis, as Finance Minister, found out about it.
She said she was immediately concerned by the mate matrude
of the cost and she viewed it as excessive and
non justifiable. Now, people, if this sounds familiar, it's because
it is. I wrote this story earlier on in the year.
We tried to get that figure released but were unsuccessful.
So the Herald complained to the Ombardsman and I can
(05:03):
confirm that the Chief Obardsman has now started and investigation.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
Are we talking big numbers?
Speaker 4 (05:09):
Well, I mean, okay, right, if Nikola Willis is so unhappy,
it must be fairly reasonable. And you know, I think,
given Nikola Willis has expressed such concern about the cost
of these consultants, I think that that cost should be.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
Made publicly available.
Speaker 4 (05:29):
At Kiwi Rail says you know that they maintain the
need for commercial confidentiality on the cost of that advice.
Nikola Willis said to me that her views on both
the strategic review and the non disclosure of the cost
haven't changed and she awaits the Ombudsman's investigation with interest.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Now talking about Kiwi Rail, there was something I read
a couple of weeks ago where Winston Peters has got
involved and said we're going to have an announcement before Christmas.
Now we're getting pretty damn close to that. Are you
hearing anything?
Speaker 4 (05:56):
Yeah, So we talked about this, I think either last
week or the week before last. Winston's deadline which is
next week. So yeah, we're getting close. I mean no,
no rumors, no, and it has been very tightly held.
But just remember that while Winston has set the deadline
(06:17):
for next week, Christopher lux and the Prime Minister is
still saying by the end of the year.
Speaker 2 (06:21):
Okay, well, I mean everything finishes on that week anyway,
doesn't it. So you know, basically everyone goes into Christmas
holiday mode.
Speaker 4 (06:28):
I'm not sure if Parliament will be going into you
don't think it was holiday mode that early, but you think.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
Twentieth of December. I reckon twentieth of December will definitely
be there last day, won't it.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
Yes, I've got next week and then the sorry.
Speaker 2 (06:39):
Next week, Okah, I got you. Sorry, Now you've spoken
to someone interesting about Wellington's new Crown Observer. Now there's
something rumbling a ray with that, because I've heard a
couple of rumors and rumblings too. What's going on.
Speaker 4 (06:51):
I spoke to Next Smith about Wellington's Crown Observer, Lindsay
McKenzie last week, because I think I've said I've met Lindsay.
He was really nice but respectfully declined an interview because
he wants to keep his observations about the council to
his reports the Minister. So I thought i'd have a
chat to Nick Smith, who of course is the Mayor
of Nelson, but is also you know, was a long
(07:14):
standing MP there and a minister and he was actually
the local government minister at one point, and I just,
you know, I said to him, you know, what is
Lindsay McKenzie like, because Next Smith actually recommended him for
the Crown Observer role, and he said he's a behind
the scenes, competent operator who's able to work across the
political spectrum and try and get people to constructively work together.
(07:36):
He was very complimentary of him, and I just thought
it would be good to talk to somebody who actually
knew what he was like, you know, because we're still
sort of getting a feel for him, and if he
is a behind the scenes operator, we're probably not going
to hear a lot from him.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
Okay, so you've seen him a couple of times. You've
seen him around the council. You're in the council stuff,
you're in the inner sanctum there. What's the vibe. What
are people treating him like he's a mate or he's
a leper in the room?
Speaker 4 (08:03):
I think it's a respectful relationship. You I think all
of those counselors are mindful that the government has intervened
in their council, and I imagine that they will be
treating him with respect and hoping to get some helpful
advice from him on how to improve.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
It's what I was trying to get to. You know,
you can from a distance, you can see that they're
either getting on with him or he's just there as
a pain in the backside. Do you think it's the
getting on with him more than the pain and the
excel think?
Speaker 4 (08:33):
To be honest, it is actually difficult to see because
of the formal council meeting. He's sitting at a totally
different table to them so, and they're not you know,
he's sitting there observing, he's not interacting with them. He
will be meeting with them, but of course those meetings
are in private, so there's.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
Going to be no media from him whatsoever. So we're
not going to find out, as Wellingtonians who are paying
his damn wages, We're not going to find out any
of his thoughts or what he's going through, or what
he's doing or what his plans are. It's all going
to go to Simmy and Brown and it's up to
Simmy and Brown whether he releases them to us. Is
that what you tell me?
Speaker 4 (09:07):
That would be my broad understanding of probably how it's
going to go. But as you rightfully point out, great
payers are you know, paying for his remuneration. So I
would speak expect some transparency around Sam and Brown's office
in terms of making some information available to us at
at whatever time.
Speaker 2 (09:26):
Texts just come through Georgia, you'll be interested in. Nick
Watts is a big part of the lungs of Wellington.
Leave it as it is. You just can't leave a
big piece of dirt doing nothing, can you really? Well?
Speaker 4 (09:36):
I think you know a public reserve, I wouldn't expect
that to change the face of that land too much.
I think the point is with a public reserve is
that it will stay sort of you know, green, rather
than have a whole lot of houses on it.
Speaker 2 (09:52):
That's exactly what we want. Georgina Campbell always a pleasure,
Thank you very much. I'm not going to ask you
what you're working on, because you're not going to tell me.
I'm just when do you knock off for Christmas?
Speaker 3 (10:01):
I don't actually I'm working.
Speaker 2 (10:03):
You're working through Okay, there are listeners. You'd be able
to get articles from Wellington's Issues reporter on the Herald
right through Christmas. So anything big happens, you know how
to get hold of Georgina, Email her and give her
the story because she's going to be working right through
and she'll credit our show for getting her any inf stories,
major stories that she gets. Thanks George.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
For more from Wellington Mornings with Nick Mills. Listen live
to news Talks It'd be Wellington from nine am weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.
You're listening to the Wellington Mornings podcast with Nick Mills
from News Talks EDB taking the pulse of the city.
The Capital Letter on news Talks EDB.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Joining us for her regular Capital Letter slot is New
Zealand here and Wellington's Issues Reported. Georgina Campbell, Good morning, Georgina,
good morning. Now, you wrote a very interesting story about
an area in the Miramar that Polinsula that Peter Jackson
once turned into a reserve. Is that so that no
one else can build something up around the back of
him or is that just a thing that he thinks
(00:39):
would be good for the area.
Speaker 3 (00:41):
So I've got an update on this story.
Speaker 4 (00:44):
I decided to follow up on it after I published
the first story earlier this year because a reserve on
Watt's Peninsula was first announced in twenty and eleven a
public reserve, and there is no public reserve on that
piece of land. You know, it's been more than a
decade now, so we're talking about the northern tip of
(01:04):
Mirrama Peninsula.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
It's you know, if.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
You can so basically, can I just can I just
explain to people? So there's a lot of people that
wouldn't have a clue what we were talking about so
that we don't live in our area. So if you
went from the chocolate frog, is it the chocolate fish,
chocolate fish round to the scorching bay, it's sort of
on that type.
Speaker 4 (01:24):
Yeah right, yeah, so if you were like had an
aerial shot, it's the really green part at the end
of the pensul think no, howes, thank you and anyway.
Minister for Land Information Chris Pink has received some updated
advice from officials to determine the future of the site finally,
and he says he's discussing that advice with his ministerial
(01:46):
colleagues and other interested parties. But he says, you know,
there are a number of stakeholders involved with this. It's
made for quite a complex process, but he's committed to
resolving the matter as soon as possible. He has acknowledged
that the local community might be a bit frustrated with
the rate of progress, but they're working at pace and
(02:07):
he is expected to reveal plans in the early new year.
So I think this is significant because it's seventy six
hect years of land. It's just been sitting there. It
is used by the community currently, but no sort of
like formal arrangements.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
Really, I've seen cows and stuff there.
Speaker 3 (02:28):
Yeah, there's a farm there too.
Speaker 4 (02:29):
There's also adjoining the site, there's the former Mount Crawford prison.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
Yes, so be at the top part of it.
Speaker 4 (02:39):
Yeah, yeah, so, and there's a working farm there. There's
a community garden where the old prison garden was there.
There's sort of like a separate process going on for
the Mount Crawford Land Local. We were keen to built
houses there but failed to get fast tracked consent, so
they've gone back to the drawing board. We don't know
what's happening there yet, whether there will one day be houses,
(03:02):
but yeah, we'll find out soon.
Speaker 2 (03:04):
So that could actually be a subdivision you're saying.
Speaker 3 (03:07):
Yeah, it could be.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
I mean if they tried to build I think it
was about seven hundred homes there but failed to get
fast track consent so went back to the drawing power.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Would they get people there and back? That's the problem,
isn't it.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
I Mean there are existing roads up there, but they
need to.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Be You mean you'd come up from that, you come
up from New Bay Road, you come up the top
of Mirrormar type thing.
Speaker 4 (03:28):
Oh, I see, I mean you could right like all
those roads are there, sure that need improving, but a
developer could do that if they wanted to.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
Peter Jackson wants it to turn into a reserve, so
none of that can happen. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (03:41):
Well, there are two bits of land. So that there's
the one bit of land which you know has been
airmarked for.
Speaker 3 (03:46):
A public reserve.
Speaker 4 (03:47):
We're expected to hear from the government exactly what they
are doing on that in the early new year. Then
there is the land next to it where a housing
development has you know, they've tried to push their head
before but have failed, and we still don't know what's
happening with that bit of land.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
All right, So you'll keep us posted in the new
year when you will.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
I think it'll be a big announcement when it happens.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
Oh okay, I will wait with baited breath for that.
Kiwi Rail has had had a big spend up on consultants,
but they won't release it. How can they spend money
on consultants when the government's told them to stop spending
money on consults.
Speaker 3 (04:19):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (04:20):
Well, this is something that really frustrated me because Finance
Minister Nicola Willis has so vocally been unhappy about the
cost of these consultants. It's Mackenzie and company. Kee we
Row engaged Mackenzie to undertake a strategic review, you know,
to try and lift performance across its rail, freight and
(04:40):
fairy business. Nicola Willis, as Finance Minister, found out about it.
She said she was immediately concerned by the mate matrude
of the cost and she viewed it as excessive and
non justifiable. Now, people, if this sounds familiar, it's because
it is. I wrote this story earlier on in the year.
We tried to get that figure released but were unsuccessful.
So the Herald complained to the Ombardsman and I can
(05:03):
confirm that the Chief Obardsman has now started and investigation.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
Are we talking big numbers?
Speaker 4 (05:09):
Well, I mean, okay, right, if Nikola Willis is so unhappy,
it must be fairly reasonable. And you know, I think,
given Nikola Willis has expressed such concern about the cost
of these consultants, I think that that cost should be.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
Made publicly available.
Speaker 4 (05:29):
At Kiwi Rail says you know that they maintain the
need for commercial confidentiality on the cost of that advice.
Nikola Willis said to me that her views on both
the strategic review and the non disclosure of the cost
haven't changed and she awaits the Ombudsman's investigation with interest.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Now talking about Kiwi Rail, there was something I read
a couple of weeks ago where Winston Peters has got
involved and said we're going to have an announcement before Christmas.
Now we're getting pretty damn close to that. Are you
hearing anything?
Speaker 4 (05:56):
Yeah, So we talked about this, I think either last
week or the week before last. Winston's deadline which is
next week. So yeah, we're getting close. I mean no,
no rumors, no, and it has been very tightly held.
But just remember that while Winston has set the deadline
(06:17):
for next week, Christopher lux and the Prime Minister is
still saying by the end of the year.
Speaker 2 (06:21):
Okay, well, I mean everything finishes on that week anyway,
doesn't it. So you know, basically everyone goes into Christmas
holiday mode.
Speaker 4 (06:28):
I'm not sure if Parliament will be going into you
don't think it was holiday mode that early, but you think.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
Twentieth of December. I reckon twentieth of December will definitely
be there last day, won't it.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
Yes, I've got next week and then the sorry.
Speaker 2 (06:39):
Next week, Okah, I got you. Sorry, Now you've spoken
to someone interesting about Wellington's new Crown Observer. Now there's
something rumbling a ray with that, because I've heard a
couple of rumors and rumblings too. What's going on.
Speaker 4 (06:51):
I spoke to Next Smith about Wellington's Crown Observer, Lindsay
McKenzie last week, because I think I've said I've met Lindsay.
He was really nice but respectfully declined an interview because
he wants to keep his observations about the council to
his reports the Minister. So I thought i'd have a
chat to Nick Smith, who of course is the Mayor
of Nelson, but is also you know, was a long
(07:14):
standing MP there and a minister and he was actually
the local government minister at one point, and I just,
you know, I said to him, you know, what is
Lindsay McKenzie like, because Next Smith actually recommended him for
the Crown Observer role, and he said he's a behind
the scenes, competent operator who's able to work across the
political spectrum and try and get people to constructively work together.
(07:36):
He was very complimentary of him, and I just thought
it would be good to talk to somebody who actually
knew what he was like, you know, because we're still
sort of getting a feel for him, and if he
is a behind the scenes operator, we're probably not going
to hear a lot from him.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
Okay, so you've seen him a couple of times. You've
seen him around the council. You're in the council stuff,
you're in the inner sanctum there. What's the vibe. What
are people treating him like he's a mate or he's
a leper in the room?
Speaker 4 (08:03):
I think it's a respectful relationship. You I think all
of those counselors are mindful that the government has intervened
in their council, and I imagine that they will be
treating him with respect and hoping to get some helpful
advice from him on how to improve.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
It's what I was trying to get to. You know,
you can from a distance, you can see that they're
either getting on with him or he's just there as
a pain in the backside. Do you think it's the
getting on with him more than the pain and the
excel think?
Speaker 4 (08:33):
To be honest, it is actually difficult to see because
of the formal council meeting. He's sitting at a totally
different table to them so, and they're not you know,
he's sitting there observing, he's not interacting with them. He
will be meeting with them, but of course those meetings
are in private, so there's.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
Going to be no media from him whatsoever. So we're
not going to find out, as Wellingtonians who are paying
his damn wages, We're not going to find out any
of his thoughts or what he's going through, or what
he's doing or what his plans are. It's all going
to go to Simmy and Brown and it's up to
Simmy and Brown whether he releases them to us. Is
that what you tell me?
Speaker 4 (09:07):
That would be my broad understanding of probably how it's
going to go. But as you rightfully point out, great
payers are you know, paying for his remuneration. So I
would speak expect some transparency around Sam and Brown's office
in terms of making some information available to us at
at whatever time.
Speaker 2 (09:26):
Texts just come through Georgia, you'll be interested in. Nick
Watts is a big part of the lungs of Wellington.
Leave it as it is. You just can't leave a
big piece of dirt doing nothing, can you really? Well?
Speaker 4 (09:36):
I think you know a public reserve, I wouldn't expect
that to change the face of that land too much.
I think the point is with a public reserve is
that it will stay sort of you know, green, rather
than have a whole lot of houses on it.
Speaker 2 (09:52):
That's exactly what we want. Georgina Campbell always a pleasure,
Thank you very much. I'm not going to ask you
what you're working on, because you're not going to tell me.
I'm just when do you knock off for Christmas?
Speaker 3 (10:01):
I don't actually I'm working.
Speaker 2 (10:03):
You're working through Okay, there are listeners. You'd be able
to get articles from Wellington's Issues reporter on the Herald
right through Christmas. So anything big happens, you know how
to get hold of Georgina, Email her and give her
the story because she's going to be working right through
and she'll credit our show for getting her any inf stories,
major stories that she gets. Thanks George.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
For more from Wellington Mornings with Nick Mills. Listen live
to news Talks It'd be Wellington from nine am weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.
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