NEWS RELEASE – 27 July 2010

We Can’t Afford Another Harbour Bridge

Cr. Cocurullo, a Whangarei mayoral candidate, believes ratepayers cannot afford the current plan for a fourth bridge to cross the harbour. “Council has not truly investigated all the options open to it, and under the current economic climate the expenditure spells a great, and unnecessary, ratepayer burden,” says Mr Cocurullo.

On June 23, all but one Whangarei District Council councillor (Cr. Cocurullo) approved the agenda item relating to the proposed annual plan.  With this approval council now has the ability to spend $30 million dollars on a fourth harbour crossing. This represents $20 million more than was budgeted for in the LTCCP (Long Term Council Community Plan).

"Three years ago, one of my main concerns was the unnecessary expense for the construction of a set of traffic lights at the bottom of fire brigade hill. Chiefly because it necessitated the construction of another $8 million bridge, while relegating an existing bridge to an elegant carpark for 15 vehicles.”

“Now this council has approved the construction of another bridge, without fixing up the issues remaining from the Dent Street upgrade."

"We budgeted $10 million dollars via the LTCCP, 2 years ago, to put towards a bridge this year. Whangarei District spending is now over the $130 million threshold council stated it would not exceed, yet the Council has voted to spend an additional $20 million on another bridge.  How can we afford this now? I ask the ratepayers to recognise that council has to date been unable to sell the properties which might have made a difference to our spending capacity."

"With my civil engineering background, in my first year as Okara Ward councillor, I produced a traffic layout design that would reduce the number of traffic lights downtown from seven to three, and would cost the District approximately $4 million. WDC staff examined the layout and concluded that it would definitely increase traffic flow as well as ease traffic congestion within the city for another 10-20 years.”

“Instead of implementing the plan, the Council, without any consultation with its own councillors, installed another set of traffic lights higher up on fire brigade hill. Surely, 10-20 years of eased traffic congestion and much improved flow, would give the council time to plan financially for the construction of another harbour crossing, if at that stage it was deemed integral to good traffic flow, because we may not even be using cars due to fuel prices becoming excessive."

"We have a harbour that needs cleaning up, city entrances which need beautification, and a district that needs pride.  We are supposed to be the 'Gateway to the North,' a representation of what is clean and good, but instead we intend to burden our ratepayers by building bridges over our harbour, while we oblige them to run an awkward traffic gauntlet to get home every night.”

“Let’s improve our traffic flow, so that visitors have a relaxed impression of our city, and at the same time, ease the burden on our ratepayers, making our District a more interesting prospect for potential new residents."

ENDS