Security concerns over Auckland’s ‘most bitterly contested sporting decision’

Sunday, 29 March 2026

An impending vote on Western Springs Stadium has already been coloured by claims of threats, fraud, predetermination, politically motivated attacks and a bristly encounter with a toilet brush, reports Jonathan Killick.

Councillor Ken Turner says he refuses to be intimidated or told what to do.

“I’m here for the people, not the money,” he tells the Sunday Star-Times.

And he claims that’s what he told Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown during a workshop, when Brown sat next to him and urged him strongly to vote to turn Western Springs Speedway into a concert venue.

“I spun around and yelled at him in front of everybody,” says Turner.

Turner insisted to fellow councillors that it wasn’t the first time he’d had a bristly exchange with Brown.

“The last time he threatened me was when he went into his en suite, came back with a toilet brush and threatened to put it up my arse,” Turner claimed.

Brown’s office says he doesn’t share that recollection of events.

“If Councillor Turner has any concerns, there are appropriate channels available to raise them,” a spokesperson says, while the mayor “does not consider that any threats were made”.

But, Turner believes the message was clear: vote in tandem with the mayor or lose positions on council committees and the extra remuneration that comes with them.

Says the mayoral office: “The mayor has always been clear that councillors are expected to stay focused on what is in Auckland’s best interests.”

That tension is just a prelude of what is expected at a vote on Tuesday over whether to turn Western Springs into a mid-sized music venue and boutique sport stadium.

Councillor John Watson calls it “the most bitterly contested sporting decision in Auckland history”.

And in Watson’s view, its further evidence of council’s event’s agency Tātaki Unlimited and the mayoral office’s “obsession” with evicting speedway at any cost.

“I don't think obsession is too strong a word. It’s like he’s taking it personally,” says Watson.

The Star-Times understands that Brown has himself been subjected to threats, prompting a security response from Auckland Council.

“The Mayor and his family have previously been the subject of threatening social media posts relating to the Western Springs issue, which required security at his home,” a spokesperson says.

One social media comment ahead of the meeting reads: “Be careful crossing the road Wayne…”

But, Brown says his view hasn’t changed. He believes the city “can get more from its assets”.

“A fringe group that wanted speedway back at Western Springs Stadium ran a very unsuccessful campaign against him in last year’s election. That result suggests at least 180,000 Aucklanders support his approach,” his office says.

Last year, Brown took to social media to say speedway had attracted less annual visitors “than a corner dairy”.

“To be clear, I think speedway has a place and I want to see it flourish,” he said. “Western Springs just isn’t viable anymore and it puts a burden on the ratepayer.”

As a compromise for evicting speedway from Western Springs, the council spent $11 million on upgrades at Waikaraka Park, consolidating it as the city’s home of motorsport.

But that move has been no less controversial.

Jason Jones, spokesman for Western Springs Speedway Association, a fans-led group trying to keep the sport at the stadium, says it was always going to be “a disaster”.

“One of the great things about Western Springs is you get a sunset in the afternoon. It’s really quite magical,” he says. “Waikaraka faces the other way. It’s by the ocean. It’s cold.”

Jones says its a sport that “relies on bums on seats” and for many it was the “atmosphere” and “culture” of the venue that people came for.

“I’ll be honest with you, I’m a motorsport fan, but watching cars just go around a track is boring as shit right? That’s not why you really go; it’s the whole show.”

And people are “emotionally invested” in the stadium, he says. “My grandparents met there, I’ve grown up my whole life there, and we’ve had family and friends die there.”

Meanwhile, several councillors, along with Jones, allege the council set up speedway to fail at Waikaraka Park by under-investing in upgrades. They cite a 2023 Tātaki report that suggested $35.29m would be needed for a like-for-like experience.

Without that investment, says Jones, Waikaraka Park has been left with “plastic seating that isn’t elevated enough”.

But Wade Jennings of Waikaraka Park Speedway disputes those claims. He says since the $11m upgrade the track is “phenomenal”.

“The racing is faster. There’s more passing. It’s more exciting, and there’s no crashes. My opinion is that at Western Springs it would be hard to find a night of racing where you didn’t get at least three crashes of guys driving into the wall and wrecking gear.

“Now the fans might like that, but guys crashing into concrete walls is no good.”

Jennings knows that the demolition of Waikaraka’s grandstand in 2020 has left it without seating on a par with Western Springs’s bowl, but says upgrades will form part of the next phase of work. “Nobody was saying it was the full Monty. It was just the critical stuff to get racing.”

Jennings says he believes criticisms of Waikaraka have a “political purpose”.

“I’ll tell you this. We’ve been closed for three weeks because somebody lodged a complaint to Worksafe three pages long, claiming the design was dangerous.

“We know where it [the complaints] came from, but we’re not going to say anything in the papers about that.”

Jennings acknowledges there are speedway drivers who have chosen not to come to Waikaraka.

“Whether they’re being pressured to do it, or they think they’re doing it to show support for ‘Save our Speedway’, I don’t know. The reality is, there’s an active campaign that is probably deterring people.”

Contentious vote

On Tuesday, Auckland’s councillors are being asked to vote for a proposal that would see the council chip in $2.5 million for a “semi-permanent” stage and VIP hosting facilities within a Western Springs Bowl.

It follows a bid by music promoters Brent Eccles and Campbell Smith in conjunction with the Ponsonby Rugby Club.

Council staff say it would attract “mid-size” events with 15,000 to 30,000 spectators, netting around $750,000 for the council in revenue a year.

But Watson calls that “fanciful”. He points out it will compete with Eden Park which has been granted approval for 32 concerts, 20 of which will be mid-size.

“The notion that a semi-permanent stage will be a game changer is just living in cloud cuckoo land. There’s only so many concerts that come; it’s not an endless smorgasbord,” he says.

The proposal was consulted on in a public feedback process which showed that 30% of respondents supported it. However, a slim majority of 33% asked the council to “explore other options” while another 16% wanted current arrangements to remain.

Some councillors have interpreted that as showing a cumulative majority in favour of speedway, while others have called to re-consult.

The question of a possible return of speedway wasn’t specifically included in the consultation.

The Western Springs Speedway Association, formed in 2024 by the ‘Save our Speedway’ protest movement, had submitted its own proposal to manage the stadium ahead of consultation. But it missed an “expressions of interest” deadline by nine months and was rejected by staff “on the basis of probity”.

The bid was not associated with Bruce Robertson of Springs Promotions, who had been the official promoter at the stadium since 2020 and now runs speedway at Waikaraka. But, under the proposal, an undisclosed investor was to spend $12m on a “multi-purpose” facility to host speedway and music events.

Councillor Mike Lee told staff the snub was “disgraceful”.

“What would you think of a country that held an election and exiled the most popular candidate, six months before that election?”

The council’s refusal to consider the offer will be the subject of a judicial review in the High Court, to be heard in July.

It adds to a complaint that was made to the Serious Fraud Office over claims council staff “misrepresented” the views of Speedway NZ, attributing a letter to the wrong author. The SFO refused to confirm or deny whether it was investigating to “avoid prejudice”.

“This whole process has just been riddled with impropriety,” claims Watson. “It’s perhaps the worst example of backroom politics and bureaucratic chicanery.

“And what it leaves at the end is the destruction of an iconic Auckland sport of the last 96 years,” he says.

Tātaki staff acknowledged “the history” but told councillors it was an “inflection point”, calling the concert proposal “a modest, least-regrets approach” that could be up and running by October.

Waikaraka’s Jennings says his club is waiting and ready to welcome the speedway fraternity.

“Right now there is damage being done to the reputation of the sport. But, there’s only one group of people making all the noise,” he says.

Western Springs’ Jones says “we're in absolutely no way against them”.

“But, it's created problems for everyone in the sport. Right now it’s on life support with no oxygen en-route.”

Correction: This story reported that the Western Springs Speedway Association was formed in 2004. It was in fact incorporated in December 2024. The story also reported that a complaint had been made to the Serious Fraud Office which had not been investigated. The SFO has since clarified that it could neither confirm or deny if it was investigating. Amendments to story made March 2, 10:12AM.