Council in deadlock over multimillion-dollar plan to shift kart club to build more homes

Thursday, 21 November 2024

City councillors cannot decide whether to go ahead with a multimillion-dollar plan to shift a Christchurch kart club so 170 new homes can be built.

The council has been trying, unsuccessfully, to find the Halswell-based Christchurch Kart Club a new home for more than a decade after the land surrounding it was rezoned residential in 2011.

The land is owned by the council, but in 1988 its predecessor, the Paparua County Council, granted the club a 66-year lease, which does not expire until 2054.

The issue has become a “bloody disaster”, mayor Phil Mauger said at a council meeting on Wednesday.

The council was divided 8-8 on whether to continue investigating the feasibility of relocating the club from Carrs Reserve to an undisclosed private property. The council has $190,000 budgeted for the investigation work, which would include seeking a resource consent.

However, a council report said the new possible location had four challenges that could render it unfeasible - resource consent, land acquisition, cost and community views.

The council has another $3.9m on budget to pay for the relocation. However, in 2015 it was reported the cost to relocate the club would be $7.4m.

The council would not say publicly how much relocation was likely to cost now, because it was commercially sensitive.

Residential development has gone ahead surrounding the club since 2011 regardless of its presence, however, developers have paid to put bunds and acoustic barriers in place.

The council report said much of the benefit expected from relocating the club has already been realised. However, there were other neighbouring areas where development was on hold because constructing a bund was uneconomic for the developer.

“It is the developers of these areas who will benefit most from relocation of the kart club,” the report said.

The council has received two noise complaints about the club over the past five years.

Halswell councillor Andrei Moore said he had received more complaints about the tooting of miniature trains at Halswell Domain than he had about any noise from the kart club.

He wanted the council to consult with the community before spending millions of dollars on something the community had not asked for.

“If we charged ahead today and put all of these resources, time and money into moving the track we will absolutely get torn a new one from locals asking us why we are prioritising money on this when we can not afford to asphalt Halswell Junction Rd and we’ve got near double rate rises.”

Cr Yani Johanson said agreeing to continue investigating the relocation would lead to significant expectation of funding and resources from the council.

He said the city had far greater priorities to address which were causing actual harm to communities.

“It seems like we are trying to resolve a problem that does not actually exist at the moment.”

He said he represented communities where offensive noise was ruining their quality of life, yet the council was doing little to resolve those issues.

Mauger said people in Halswell had been waiting 10 to 15 years to get “this bloody disaster” sorted out one way or another.

“We have pushed it down the road for so long. Here is an opportunity to go to a private piece of land. If we spend $190,000 and it works, it could be the best thing that ever happened.”

Mauger said he believed it was worth the risk.

“If we don’t look at these things, we will never know. We can just have our head in the sand and never do anything.”

Cr Tim Scandrett said the council finally had an option for relocation so it should investigate it further.

A plan to move the club to McLeans Island in 2012 did not eventuate following community opposition.

Kart club president Shayne McLaren declined to comment this week, saying the club was under a confidentiality agreement that prevented it from speaking about the issue.

However, council staff said the club was happy to relocate.

McLaren told the council in 2019, the club had previously met with Ruapuna Raceway to see if it was feasible to relocate there. But due to the existing noise restraints the club could not operate there and there was also no practical land available to the club.

Those who voted to continue investigating the club’s relocation were: Sam MacDonald, Mark Peters, Kelly Barber, Aaron Keown, James Gough, Victoria Henstock, Mauger, and Scandrett.

Those who voted against: Sara Templeton, Jake McLellan, Tyrone Fields, Celeste Donovan, Melanie Coker, deputy mayor Pauline Cotter, Moore, Johanson.

Cr Tyla Harrison-Hunt was absent.

Due to the deadlock, staff will come back to the council with further options before Christmas.