NEWS + UPDATES

[Humptydo]

Originally Posted by tommo39

yeah it'll probably be struck off, but seems to be the most popular option in the stuff poll, so politicians can't just scrap it the usual way I hope. It'd be by far the best option in terms of space, and Welly has the density to pull it off I reckon...

Trust me, it's already been struck off. Tremendously expensive ego project for a tiny city that will net a grand total of what, 2 inner city stops and maybe another between the city and the hospital... maybe? And mostly on reclaimed land on a giant faultline - yeah, clever stuff.

Fortunately Stuff polls, predominantly voted on by Wellingtonians still deluded about the size of their city and who pays for things, as it proxies for the Dominion Post website, are irrelevant and treated accordingly.

Light rail is looking unlikely too from what I hear. The question being - what does light rail add that buses can't already deliver? NZ Bus is calling for the removal of the ridiculous trolley buses (already not operating on the weekends) because of their substantial maintenance and repair costs.

Light rail may look nice, but for such a tiny area and small population already complaining about fares, it's just not gonna happen. But the Counci lwill waste time on it as Councils always do.

[KLK]

Originally Posted by Humptydo

The question being - what does light rail add that buses can't already deliver?

There is a really informative piece at transportblog.co.nz which looks at this, at least from the perspective of Auckland:

http://transportblog.co.nz/2012/05/2...-easy-cop-out/

I agree its not a like-for-like comparison, with Wellington (as I understand it) debating about a specific corridor rather than how to service the wider network. Nonetheless I thought the comments about cost and capacity were interesting, and that last one for me is crucial.

One of the biggest eyesores (and bottlenecks) in the CBD is the trail of buses on Willis St at peak time (ironically referred to be some people as a "train" of buses...). And that is what eventually will happen to any corridor dedicated to buses.

A better comparison in Auckland is the northern busway - and outstanding success (even if it continues to be hamstrung by NZTA in places like Fanshawe St). Now, everybody concerned agrees that eventually it will get to a point that there will be so many buses (and so many drivers) that the economics mean it needs to be converted to a light (or heavy) rail corridor.

So if that is the destiny of a busway in the Wellington CBD, why not bite the bullet, accept your fate, and go light-rail now, when it is cheaper?

[Humptydo]

Originally Posted by KLK

There is a really informative piece at transportblog.co.nz which looks at this, at least from the perspective of Auckland:

So if that is the destiny of a busway in the Wellington CBD, why not bite the bullet, accept your fate, and go light-rail now, when it is cheaper?

Um, that's comparing heavy rail with buses. The underground already discounted in Wellington, the comparison is with light rail.

Light rail - trams, effectively - is just buses on tracks, spouted off by fanboys creaming themselves over turning New Zealand cities into European legosets. Nevermind when you actually have to live with them, as I do in Melbourne, they're by and large a royal pain in the arse, suck the life out of other, more flexible and cheaper forms of PT, cost a huge amount to maintain and cause huge disruption for other traffic. They also bleed fare revenue as they're impossible to effectively police.

Auckland is actually pursuing the sensible option with double decker buses. Wellington should too if capacity really is an issue. The external aesthetics of the options really shouldn't come into it.

[GI_Joint]

Originally Posted by Humptydo

Ugh, design doesn't get more ordinary than that. Totally and utterly bland. Wellington, "coolest capital" or whatever it is that it desperately clings to, really has an awful lot of clunkers around the place.

Originally Posted by Humptydo

Fortunately Stuff polls, predominantly voted on by Wellingtonians still deluded about the size of their city and who pays for things, as it proxies for the Dominion Post website, are irrelevant and treated accordingly.

Originally Posted by Humptydo

And no doubt they'll keep tryng (and Infratil will pass down the cost to passengers) because Wellington is oh-so edgy and out there.

Originally Posted by Humptydo

Wellington has actually gone quiet of late, with an awful lot of production taking place in Auckland's western studios. I know three people in the business (set designers and costume peeps) who have shifted north since 2008.

So is it just another case of Wellington hype? Does anyone actually quantify these claims?

We get it, you don't like the place.

[tommo39]

hehehe. Should also add that external aesthetics do very much "come into it". If we go for function without form, we end with cities like Auckland, which have neither

[DML2]

Originally Posted by tommo39

hehehe. Should also add that external aesthetics do very much "come into it". If we go for function without form, we end with cities like Auckland, which have neither

[GI_Joint]

Someone get rid of this please!
image hosted on flickr

[KLK]

Originally Posted by Humptydo

Um, that's comparing heavy rail with buses. The underground already discounted in Wellington, the comparison is with light rail.

Light rail - trams, effectively - is just buses on tracks, spouted off by fanboys creaming themselves over turning New Zealand cities into European legosets. Nevermind when you actually have to live with them, as I do in Melbourne, they're by and large a royal pain in the arse, suck the life out of other, more flexible and cheaper forms of PT, cost a huge amount to maintain and cause huge disruption for other traffic. They also bleed fare revenue as they're impossible to effectively police.

Auckland is actually pursuing the sensible option with double decker buses. Wellington should too if capacity really is an issue. The external aesthetics of the options really shouldn't come into it.

It might be about heavy rail, but the issues around costs and capacity are valid for light rail vs buses too. In fact, some light rail offers even more savings from being driverless. Its interesting you talk of "cheaper forms of PT" when the article shows light rail to be just that when taking into account lower marginal costs and greater capacity for the spend.

No one is saying that Wellington should be covered in light rail lines. Light rail is proposed only for the central corridor between the train station and the airport. So the debate needs to be kept in that space.

PT will only work in that corridor if it has a dedicated thoroughfare where it isn't competing with private traffic. You are saying use buses. I'm saying that eventually that corridor will have so many buses that the economics will make light rail a better option. So why not think ahead a little.

However, this is NZ. We do things for half the cost, half a day late, and get only half of the benefit. We call that approach "the no.8 wire mentality" when in reality it is penny-pinching up front, and costing us more in the future. In that context I'd be content with them building a busway between the two points, to be converted to light rail when the inevitable happens.

Anything less than a PT-only corridor will just be wasting everybody's time and money. You might as well do nothing.

[GI_Joint]

How safe are the capital's office buildings?
Problems tipped for 1980s-era city buildings

The low earthquake rating of Greater Wellington Regional Council's office block raises serious questions about the safety of many other relatively modern Wellington high rise buildings, says structural engineer Adam Thornton.

The 10-storey block, built during the mid 1980s building boom, has been assessed as earthquake prone – at only 30 per cent of new building standard and liable to fail in a moderate to severe earthquake.

Thornton said this was a typical "brittle" 1980s block.

A lot of attention had been given to older unreinforced masonry buildings "but we really need to address these modern brittle buildings", he said.

Many were now rated at 50-60 per cent of code and tended to be worse when built on the softer Te Aro flat soils and better on The Terrace.

The fact this building now rated at only 30 per cent suggested it was not built to the codes that applied at the time.

Wellington City Council earthquake resilience manager Neville Brown also believed many other buildings of that era would have similar faults.

"But to be honest we just don't know because the target of our assessments across the city have been pre-1975 buildings and we're not at the end of that.

"Without doubt the 1980s vintage ara is one we are going to have to investigate and we'll be on to it when we finish the current series of work," Brown said.

Engineering consultants Spencer Holmes, who were commissioned to assess Greater Wellington's Wakefield St office block, described it as a high risk D grade building.

It was built on land classified as having a high potential for liquefaction and bore tests found the top three to four metres of soil was loose, sandy and likely to liquefy in a large earthquake, which the building's foundations were not designed for.

"The implications on the building structure are serious and could lead to a potential failure of the piles, gravity structure, severe damage of the shear wall foundations and unpredictable behaviour of the seismic resisting system."

The piles were described as very lightly reinforced and did not appear to have the load capacity to comply with current codes. Other design flaws were also identified.

There was less reinforcement and stiffness above the fifth level than on lower levels and there was an uneven mass distribution through the building.

The 10-storey tower and its five-storey annex were too close to each other – just 80 millimetres – and in the event of a major earthquake there was potential for severe pounding damage as they crashed against each other.

Shear walls – designed to brace the buildings against lateral forces – were brittle and liable to crack and lose their strength because they lacked sufficient reinforcing.

Hollow core concrete flooring, used in a lot of commercial buildings in the 1980s, were fragile and liable to fail as the building flexed in a major quake.

Ceiling tiles were liable to fall and bring down fire sprinklers.

The pre-cast concrete cladding panels were also identified as a hazard.

The way they were fixed to the building exterior did not make enough allowance for the building to flex in a moderate quake.

The way the pre-cast concrete stairs were fixed meant they would be subject to very high forces as the building moved in a quake.

Concerns about the building go back more than 20 years when it was damaged by vibration from groundwork during construction of Te Papa, more than 200m away. And in 1990 council staff found cracks in columns on level three.

"An investigation of the columns established a poor standard of workmanship in general for the building construction with low concrete strength in the columns. Strengthening of selected columns was undertaken as was repair of the seismic joint.

"Significant inadequacies in the fixing of the pre-cast concrete panels were also identified soon after the column strengthening was undertaken."

Multiple issues raised in report on council offices

Spencer Holmes director Philip McConchie said he was unable to compare this building to the CTV or PGG buildings which killed so many in the Canterbury quakes because he was not familiar with them.

However, "it is not a building we identified as having critical structural weaknesses".

"Seismic performance is extremely complex. Some buildings of that era with similar features are good, some are bad and some are in between."

He would not be reluctant to work in the Greater Wellington offices, saying "the risk of being in that building is a fraction of the risk I take everyday driving to work".

"If we felt the building was unsafe we would make that recommendation [to vacate it] but the there are lots of buildings in the city like that."

The consultants estimated that strengthening the Greater Wellington building to 40 per cent of new building standard would cost $5.2 million and a full upgrade to 100 per cent would cost $32.5m. Both options have been dismissed by council officers.

The cheaper option was deemed imprudent because it was unlikely to meet new minimum standards that could result from the Royal Commission on the Canterbury earthquakes.

And Greater Wellington chief executive David Benham said the $32.5m needed for a full upgrade was totally uneconomic because it would cost more than the building was worth.

Council development manager Murray Kennedy said the building's earthquake status was not the only problem. In the event of a major quake damage to other buildings in the area would probably mean it was red zoned and inaccessible, and it was important for council to be able to function if there was a major disaster.

Options for moving were now being considered and a report would be prepared for council by September.

Finding alternative office space could be hard. Buildings meeting at least 67 per cent of the new building standard in Wellington were in short supply, he said.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post...fice-buildings

[IThomas]

Satellite city: Waikanae booms

In Waikanae there are some pretty nice houses and one of them is Gerhard Ammermann's. In 18 years at his Puriri Rd property, he and his wife Merle have turned swamp and scrub into a 2.8 hectare garden and native bush paradise. "Some people buy yachts, some people buy racehorses or just collect shares and some people build themselves nice houses or gardens," he says to explain the collection of magnificent homes in the area. Year-round warm temperatures, moderate rainfall and less wind than Wellington has made the township one of the region's top retirement destinations. City executives in particular are fond of buying a bach there until they can move there permanently. The town's nickname is "God's waiting room".

The Ammermanns are typical of the trend. For years they lived in inner Wellington, until Ammermann was deployed by his company overseas. When the couple returned, "most of our friends had moved up to the coast so this was a normal destination". However, Ammermann has noticed things are changing. There are "many more younger people – I think they're planning another school in here – and the services are fairly good and the rail connection now goes from town right up to Waikanae". As if to prove the point, the Ammermanns have just sold their property to a younger professional couple who already lived nearby. They were braced for a long wait, but the property was snapped up within weeks.

Waikanae's transformation has been quiet but steady. Until recently its two primary schools were bulging. New air links to Auckland have been unrolled, and the extension of the rail service has made the township much more viable for professionals and commuters. "The biggest single group here now is the group that wasn't here previously in any large number," says Waikanae Community Board chairman Michael Scott. "Over the last 20 years what has changed is the two-parent, three-children families that have moved in ... There are so many kids here."
Waikanae's growth has to be seen against the backdrop of the Kapiti Coast, which has long been one of the fastest growth areas in the country. Its cheaper housing and a climate similar to Nelson's are obvious attractions. But Wellington is where most of the jobs are, and the hour or more journey has always been daunting, made worse by traffic snarl-ups and crashes along a notorious stretch of State Highway 1. That may change, following a recent announcement favouring Transmission Gully. If the Gully motorway goes ahead, motorists will shave 10 minutes off the journey between Linden and Paraparaumu. And where it finishes, a four-lane expressway will take over from MacKays Crossing all the way to Otaki. The New Zealand Transport Agency hopes to have all the consents for the first stage to Peka Peka by March next year.

Will this make Waikanae more attractive? "Absolutely," says Scott. He's predicting something similar to the effects of the motorway changes in Brisbane and Melbourne, which made certain far-flung suburbs suddenly fashionable. "My pick is, it will make Waikanae and the north considerably easier to access." With or without the expressway, council forecasts predict Waikanae will continue to outpace the rest of the coast.

Over the next 20 years its population is expected to grow 35 to 45 per cent, compared to 20 per cent for Kapiti overall, and it will account for 40 per cent of the district's growth. The key reason is Waikanae's abundance of land. Paraparaumu is largely built out and the local council is keen to control urban sprawl. However, that growth is hard to see right now because of the global economic slowdown. Kapiti has long benefited from expatriates returning for the lifestyle and greenfields housing development, but migration and building consents are down.

Waikanae School principal Bevan Campbell has seen the downturn firsthand. He says every term he would field two or three emails from British families wanting to emigrate. "That has just dried up, and with the retrenchments in town, I think internal migration's slowed down as well." This is no bad thing to Campbell, whose school was overflowing at the end of 2010. The recapitation of another primary school halfway between Waikanae and Otaki has taken his roll back to comfortable levels, but he believes the district will definitely need a new school in time. So does the Education Ministry, which recently earmarked a piece of land for a third primary school in Waikanae North.

The promise of better transport links does not appear to be sending buyers beating down real estate agents' doors just yet. But Ray Marshall, of Harcourts, is full of praise for the train, which has "increased the saleability of some places, and it has also had an effect on Otaki". And with some of the uncertainty about roading removed, local initiatives with an eye to Kapiti's growth are now hoping the economy will pick up to add some substance to the forecasts.
One such initiative belongs to Air Nelson, which last October began three flights a day to Auckland from Paraparaumu. Eight months on, general manager Grant Kerr says the service had been generally well supported by locals, although the turnaround flight in the middle of the day is under review. He says the airline will continue to fine-tune the schedule. "Once we have a service that is a reliable service, I'm sure the patronage will continue to grow. Waikanae also has two large property developments in a state of flux. Plans for a village at Ngarara Farm, in north Waikanae, were affected by the expressway decision and understood to be still under discussion.

The other major development is Waimaru, a proposed 70ha community with consents for 500 sections, lifestyle blocks, shops and medium-density zoning. Recently the developers made good progress, selling land to the Education Ministry for the school, and to Ryman Healthcare for a $100 million retirement village. These are expected to be very positive to Waikanae's economy, but the fate of the remaining 55ha is up in the air. The land is on the market following the withdrawal last month of the project's managers, AMP Capital Investors. Local planner Paul Turner, of Landlink, says there is no reason other developers won't carry on with Waimaru's vision. "There is real clarity of what can and can't be done. There are no planning risks for the Waimaru project and that's a big element of doubt for developers gone." Like all property development, he says, it's about confidence. "If confidence about the future improves, the risk for developers or a council goes down."

WELLINGTON demographer James Newell says the last thorough analysis on Waikanae and Kapiti was based on the 2006 census. He hopes to take a fresh look at what's happening to the district's population soon. However, when residential housing does pick up, he warns it is just as possible that there will be a slight reduction in Kapiti's population and more growth in Porirua and other places closer to Wellington. Housing consent figures show Porirua was less hard hit than the suburbs further north. But all the positive factors in Kapiti's favour make him think Kapiti's growth rate will return. Transmission Gully "increases accessibility for the commuter population, but Kapiti has a growing internal economy ... It's got its own growth dynamic so it doesn't necessarily always go completely in concert with Wellington".

KAPITI FACTS
Kapiti's population: 47,000 at the last census. Tipped to rise to 56,000 by 2026.
Kaikanae's population: 10,700. Tipped to rise to between 14,400 and 15,500 by 2032.
Distance from Wellington to Waikanae: 60km.
Average house price: Kapiti district $373,309 (Wellington region $443,070).
Standard adult train fare from Wellington to Waikanae: $12, to Paraparaumu, $11.
Key growth consideration: The long-term price of petrol.

[IThomas]

Ratepayers to loan $5.6m for waterfront work

Wellington Waterfront will receive an extra $5.58 million loan from ratepayers to fund development work after planned income was scuppered by an Environment Court ruling. But, in a fiery debate punctuated by points of order and amendments, not all councillors supported the extra loan. Wellington City Council's strategy and policy committee is in the third day of a meeting to finalise the long-term plan. In a two hour debate, councillors this morning considered the future of Wellington's waterfront. Earlier this year a planned district plan change that would have paved the way for a six-storey office block was rejected by the Environment Court, who said any buildings in the North Kumutoto area would need to be at a lower height. Yesterday, the council was told by the Wellington Waterfront Company that the Variation 11 ruling meant planned income from the development would not be coming, leaving the company unable to pay for other planned works, including replacing wharf piles. Chief executive Ian Pike requested the further $5.58m loan to cover the shortfall, to be repaid once development went ahead on those sites.

The council was also told a new "design brief" for the area would be developed in keeping with the court's ruling so that different development projects could go ahead. Mayor Celia Wade-Brown moved the new plan and loan be adopted, saying it was the best solution given the Variation 11 ruling. "It's important the area is turned into something other than an asphalt carpark ... I don't think not having a big building on it means the alternative is that it stays an asphalt carpark." Other councillors agreed, saying the loan was necessary to keep the waterfront development programme moving ahead. Andy Foster said the Waterfront Company could only make money if development occurred, so in light of the court's decisions the loan was necessary. "if Variation 11 hadn't happened, a building had occurred on site 10, that would not have been needed."

However, other councillors expressed concern about ongoing financial support being given to the waterfront when there was no guarantee revenue to repay the loans would come. "I'm kind of astonished at the relatively relaxed attitude around this table to the extra funding," Stephanie Cook said. "The only certain funding to repay the loan is from the OPT [Overseas Passenger Terminal] and it's not enough." Iona Pannett said she was uncomfortable with the ongoing need to financially assist the waterfront company because it seemed "the risk management and financial performance around this project aren't seen as being central". The councillors eventually voted 9 to 4 in favour of the extra loan, and also adopted the revised waterfront development plan. The committee's recommendation will go to the full council meeting later this month for adoption. The councillors will continue debating the long-term plan, which sets budgets for the next 10 years.

[IThomas]

Waterfront may get 'Meridian-style' buildings

Two "Meridian-style buildings" could be built on Wellington's waterfront after public opposition scuttled a planned six-storey office building. Wellington Waterfront is going back to the drawing board to develop a new design brief for the North Kumutoto site, after an Environment Court decision knocked back proposed rule changes governing the shape and size of developments. Addressing the Wellington City Council this morning, Wellington Waterfront chief executive Ian Pike and the council's strategy, planning and urban design director Teena Pennington told councillors a new design brief for the area would now be developed, incorporating the rulings over variation 11. But the loss of commercial revenue because previously planned developments could not go ahead meant the waterfront company would need to borrow a further $5.58 million. The council is in the midst of discussions to finalise its long-term plan, which sets budgets for the next 10 years.

In April the Environment Court ruled against the council's district plan change "Variation 11", which set maximum size limits for three proposed building sites on an eight-hectare site at North Kumutoto, between Queens Wharf and Wellington railway station. Under the proposed rules, developers could have built up to 30 metres in height without public consultation. But the court ruled in favour of opponents, saying it would negatively impact heritage values. Instead, it slashed the proposed maximum heights to 22 metres on site 10, 19m and 16m for site 9, and that site 8 should remain as public space. Mr Pike told councillors today that a previously planned six-storey building Newcrest Group office building, earmarked for land opposite the New Zealand Post offices was no longer possible, but two buildings similar to the Meridian Building could be envisaged for the area. "Since Variation 11 [decision] we have had a lot of interest from developers in regards to those sites and their development." Ms Pennington said the Waterfront Framework would now need to be changed to include a new design brief for North Kumutoto encapsulated the court's rulings.

Design and consent work for buildings on sites 9 and 10 could then go ahead. Developing site 8 as a public space would cost about $2m and would be done once works was completed on the other sites. Mayor Celia Wade-Brown asked if the objectors to Variation 11 could be included in the design brief development, and Ms Pennington said there was a "significant opportunity". However, because budgeted commercial revenue from those sites would not be coming, the waterfront company would need to extend its loan from the council by $5.58m over the next two years to fund planned work - including the strengthening of wharf piles. That should be paid back from commercial proceeds in 2013/14.

[tommo39]

7 day market anyone???

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post...-Shed-35-alive

[KLK]

Whenever 7-day markets are mentioned in NZ I get a bit cautious.....but this is one place I think it could really work.

With all the office-workers moving to Harbour Quays, the IRD HQ just down the road, not to mention the other offices south or the railway station, its got a 5-day captive market during the work week - day and night.

On the weekends, the waterfront is filled with people so no problems there.

For rail commuters (i.e. students) its not that far away as a place to stop off at before or after your commute. Its close to Westpac Stadium when events are on and there is also the people using the sports facilities on Shed 10 (though that is a bit of a long walk around the harbour front).

They just have to get the mix right. It will need a bar or two and a few restaurants to go with the stalls and seating for people to eat. Could have some great outdoor seating when the weather is good - views back to the CBD at night.

Yeah, really encouraged by this....

[mathlete]

Right idea, wrong location.

[IThomas]

$1m upgrade for Newlands town centre

Work on a significant upgrade on Newlands town centre is to begin in the next few weeks. Work on a new New World supermarket is already well underway and work is about to start on the upgrade of the adjacent Wellington City Council-owned McMillan Court car park and mall area. The improvements are expected to take about five months and be finished towards the end of the year. The work is costing about $1 million, partly funded by the sale of council land to Foodstuffs to enable the supermarket development to go ahead. The work is part of the Newlands Centre Plan to provide better public spaces and amenities, encourage investment, and have a greater range of shops and services in the suburb. "The suburb has been without a supermarket for many years so these are very positive changes - not just for Newlands but Woodridge and Paparangi too,'' Councillor Iona Pannett said.

The supermarket was expected to open later this year. As part of the plan, the new car park will have a courtyard next to the supermarket, trees and native plants, better lighting, new seats, bike racks and public toilets, and terraced gardens at the Bracken Rd entry. The mall improvements - which will happen once the car park is well under way - include new lights, paving and landscaping. The old wooden canopy near the play area will be removed. Ms Pannett said there would be some disruption as a result of the work. "It's not possible to make changes like this without some noise and inconvenience but we'll be doing the work in stages and liaising closely with the contractors working on the supermarket to minimise disruption."

[mathlete]

$1m wont save Newlands

It's a start though ...

[tommo39]

I like Newlands I don't live there, I live in the CBD. But I'd be perfectly happy if I did live in Newlands.

[tommo39]

Regardless of whether the 7 day market goes ahead, we apparently have a night market!
http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post...ns-night-scene

[GI_Joint]

Westpac Stadium is getting a $29million facelift - but hardy fans will still have to endure Wellington's wind and rain because a roof won't be part of it.

Details of a new "masterplan" for the stadium, which opened in 2000, are being published today, and include a covered entrance area and landscaping along the walkway, new mezzanine bars with harbour views as part of a revamped concourse, and a complete recladding of the outside.

Behind the scenes, the changing rooms, media areas and match offices will also be revamped.
The work – which will begin in stages from next year – will be funded from the Westpac Stadium Trust's cash resources, and will require no ratepayer money.

Trust chairman Paul Collins said the stadium had to retain a competitive edge against the revamped Eden Park and Dunedin's new Forsyth Barr Stadium. "If we sit back and do nothing, over time the quality of the facility will deteriorate ... It's making sure we stay relevant."

Changes to the concourse will include more windows, and two mezzanine bars where fans can gather before games. The first is planned for the 2013-14 financial year.

"We're not talking about something for members or corporates – this is something for the public," Mr Collins said. There will also be renovations to the members-only areas and corporate boxes.

Stadium chief executive David Gray said the redevelopment would help the stadium retain key events such as the rugby sevens while also making sure it was ready for two world cup events in 2015 – the Cricket World Cup and the Under-20s Fifa World Cup.

The final look of the reclad stadium had not been decided, but one option was to use the plastic cladding used on Beijing's Olympic Aquatic Centre, which can be lit up in different colours.

However, a roof was not on the cards, Mr Collins said. It would cost up to $80m, which the trust could not afford without asking ratepayers to chip in.

"You could debate that the money would be better spent on funding a purpose-built 12,000-seat indoor arena to attract the concerts that are currently touring and bypassing Wellington."

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post...um-but-no-roof