A Bay of Plenty regional councillor reckons the Port of Tauranga is ‘miserly', a bit of a ‘bludger', and needs to do more for the city.
Andrew von Dadelszen's balcony overlooks Takitimu Drive. Every morning he sees the traffic congestion, especially the amount of trucks, and thinks the Port is to blame.
'Port of Tauranga is a huge asset for the Bay of Plenty and it's time for them to step up and support the community that has sacrificed so much to ensure the port's success. Tauranga traffic is creeping back towards gridlock and a lot of this is as a result of the big trucks that service our port.”
In his view, the Port's social investment is ‘plain miserly', and thinks they should be giving back more the community.
'Supporting the Half Ironman; a four year commitment to the TECT Rescue Helicopter ($62,000 per annum); sponsoring a scholarship for a handful of Maori tertiary students and a $6000 donation to foodbank just does not cut the mustard.”
He wants to see the Port investing a marine research centre, or a stadium in the Tauranga Domain, or even a museum.
'Put a million dollars into a stadium and we'll call it the Port of Tauranga Stadium if you like,” says Andrew.
'Tauranga City is New Zealand's fifth largest city and yet we lack the amenities of cities half our size. Our corporates need to step up and the Port needs to show leadership – and not just remain a bludger.
'Sooner or later, the city's residents will get fed up. The Port has a lot of good will at the moment, but they need to ensure they keep it.”
Mayor Greg Brownless thinks the Port has a positive impact on the area, and would welcome any extra public contributions they wished to make.
If the Port did seek to improve the city's amenities, the mayor's preference would be for a museum, rather than new stadium.
'I think people have been waiting a lot longer for a museum than a stadium. The big factor holding us up is the ongoing annual expenditure running a museum, which is where we would need the help.
'It would have been nice if the city council had received some shares at the time of local body amalgamation. If this idea addresses some of that unfairness, then great.”
Port of Tauranga CEO Mark Cairns has declined to comment on the matter.
34 comments
What?!
Posted on 24-02-2017 09:36 | By Chris
What an absurd, petulant and outrageous set of statements made by this pathetic excuse for a Councillor. PoT is a fantastic asset in this city, and it's not the place of local businesses to provide the infrastructure that is keenly neglected by councillors like this joker. von Dadelszen, what is YOUR financial contribution? What did your business do that makes you feel you're in a position to pass such ridiculous judgement?
omg
Posted on 24-02-2017 09:43 | By whatsinaname
If there were no trucks there would be no port if you don't like what you see out of your window dontlook or move. Simple.
Andrew
Posted on 24-02-2017 10:10 | By Splitpin007
Maybe you should lead by example and put your money where your mouth is.Port pours huge benefits into the bay of plenty.
Sorry, may have misread the article ..
Posted on 24-02-2017 10:45 | By mutley
But who is the bludger ??
Roads to the Port
Posted on 24-02-2017 12:15 | By jh
The biggest contributors to the growth of the Port of Tauranga and commercial areas at The Mount are those who paid for the excellent Roads and Harbour Bridge leading to the port, without that the Port could not grow.
My
Posted on 24-02-2017 12:22 | By Jimmy
for the 100th time, the city should be sold to the POT!!!, let them run the place...., for years developers have " developed" and successive councils have gladly taken the fees!!, and degree ridden "town planners", have had total disregard for future infrastructure!, I agree with Andrew POT could do a lot more, if they where running the place as part of their burgeoning business, .....and why could they not put a new railway bridge across the harbour?, the CBD rail free?.
Ask them nicely then
Posted on 24-02-2017 12:29 | By The Tomahawk Kid
I couldnt agree more with the comments so far. Mr von Dadelszon has every right to voice his opinion though, but NOT to demand or instigate any action from them in his role as a councillor. ANYTHING the Port contribute on a voluntary basis is an appreciated bonus. And I thank them for it. I despise those who demand, expect or wish to instigate compulsory contributions from others just because they are more successful than they are. It should be councils main objective to ASK and search out such companies for their help in building the city - not stir up a witch hunt against them. Poor form Mr von Dadelszen.
here we go again
Posted on 24-02-2017 12:46 | By old trucker
I noticed yesterday that all the trucks were banked up from half way over the bridge to Elizabeth street, that roundabout needs to be made smaller so when 2 long rigs go around there its safe,but it is bedlam.it costs $thousands a day that roundabout in hold up, NZTA does not care,even if you contact them,(yeah right) sitting in their ivory tower and wont answer phone,anyway mr von dadelszen, you may have to top your bush down soon,Maybe you will get your buddy mates on council to do it for ya,anyway its the roundabout that is CAUSING GRIEF,but no one will listen,my sixpence worth,and my thoughts only,Thankyou Sunlive,10-4 out.
Rates bill
Posted on 24-02-2017 12:49 | By Johnney
Does anyone know how much rates the port pay each year to council. Guess it would be more than the average business
POT Contribution
Posted on 24-02-2017 13:06 | By Kaimai
Jobs and taxes - payroll tax, income tax and maybe TCC rates and BOPRC rates, and then dividends which further contribute to the money merry go round - seems like a reasonable contribution to me.
Port- Cruise ships, Visitor centre
Posted on 24-02-2017 13:57 | By spoilerfactory
I agree the port needs to dip into its pocket, There is a record number of cruise ships coming to their wharf making money for them and where are they when it comes to the $5 Million for the information center for the passengers!
Mr. Von Dadelszen...
Posted on 24-02-2017 14:36 | By morepork
... needs to do some homework on common courtesy. The POT does NOT HAVE to contribute ANYTHING to the community. Demanding that they do so is not likely to encourage them and I don't blame their CEO for staying silent. Rather, their current generosity should be acknowledged before working with them to possibly expand their contribution, if they can afford it, and after consultation with the Mayor/TCC to see what might be useful. Calling someone a "bludger" (in Kiwi society) is a serious insult and Mr. vonD should apologize, in my opinion.
Port
Posted on 24-02-2017 16:04 | By sangrae
Asubstantial donation towards the proposed Information Center would be more logical than waste money on the stupid Museum that no one wants. When is Sunlive going to run a poll on the museum issue?
Pot calling the kettle black
Posted on 24-02-2017 16:30 | By peecee09
You seem to overlook the fact von Dadelszen that your own stingy Regional Council owns over 50 percent of the Port and gets over 50 percent of the ever increasing profit. How about they put their hand in their pocket. What a hypocrite.
Cruise ships
Posted on 24-02-2017 16:38 | By Johnney
The port should make more of their land and facilities available for passengers embarking on tours. All happens on public land. Imagine if logging and container trucks started lining up on the streets. Do council charge tour operators a fee??
they
Posted on 24-02-2017 17:10 | By Capt_Kaveman
could start by cleaning up the harbour that they polluted and the sand dredging put on the beach or pilot bay and not out at sea
Contribution by Port
Posted on 24-02-2017 17:17 | By aratonga
Well said Andrew!Benefits of the Port of Tauranga are unquestionable. However, the benefits are balanced by detriments. Loss of beautiful white sand harbour beaches, shallowing resulting from dredging the main channels, oil spills and other pollution are some. The recent decisions of the BOPRC is another example - recreational use of the main channels has been considerably restricted by changes to the harbour bylaws. The general community has paid and will continue to pay for the "benefits" of the port.Takitimu Drive (previously Waikareao Expressway) is a major developmental factor but the port made a miserly contribution in the form of some sand to the construction cost. Since then some minor bits and pieces but consistent refusal to provide sand for beach replenishment. Port company shareholders should demand better from their company. The company owes better to the Tauranga community.
NOTHER JUST THE ROADS CLOGGED
Posted on 24-02-2017 17:56 | By Steves
Ever since the port has dregded the chanel which increased its flow,and slowing the flow to the sides allowing sediment to drop. Now the harbour is filling up with more and more sand banks. Meaning less navigable water for the rest of us.Maybe they could spend a little here as well.
Typical comments from someone that produces nothing...
Posted on 24-02-2017 18:34 | By Heavy Haulage
Maybe he needs better glasses as if he looks closely the majority of traffic is CARS... Nothing to do with the port.
Stoney Silence
Posted on 24-02-2017 19:44 | By Taffy
What about some comment from the Chairman of the Regional Council being the majority shareholder of POT (51%) It seems that the left hand doesn,t know about what the right is doing.Just put all the parties into a room and don,t let them out until the have a unanamious decision with all contributing to setting the I Site. The POT have/will benefit with extra revenue from berthing fees,the Regional Council from higher Dividends and TCC from passenger spending.How about using the POT building right beside the gate passengers use at present ,renovate that build a replacement for POT. (Just a suggestion ).
NUTS Andrew.
Posted on 24-02-2017 21:03 | By Murray.Guy
For the Port to assist fund a museum, destroy the Domain with a stadium, is to further cripple the ratepayer with the excessive annual operating costs and destroy the environment. How on earth this relates to accusations of traffic density, clearly only Andrew in his dream world knows! The Port income pays his Councillors salary and provides our buses only with a myriad of other extremely valuable contributions that add value through the oversight and efforts of the BOPRC staff.
Yes Johnny, Council clip the ticket
Posted on 24-02-2017 21:29 | By Murray.Guy
Tauranga City Council, Tourism BOP control, manipulate and clip the ticket at every opportunity, and it is grossly counter productive. 15% commission for doing next to nothing for starters.
How
Posted on 25-02-2017 08:24 | By milka
How did this fool get elected
What's your real gripe, councillor?
Posted on 25-02-2017 09:15 | By nerak
Could it be noise, fumes, or you just took an opportunity to push another of your barrows? peecee09 is right, POT, KETTLE, BLACK. How many directors EARN their fees? Not very many, and you collect a few. Plus you're sponging off TCC and BOPRC ratepayers! Appalling to see such poor form from a paid servant of our city. Oh, and the percentage of cars far outweighs that of trucks, fact. Might have something to do with a growing city? Interesting, of 3 minutes of meeting since you were elected, you attended none of those meetings nor put in an apology. Pity I can't access the myriad others...
Totally agree with AVD!
Posted on 25-02-2017 11:24 | By TheCameltoeKid
He's pretty much hit the nail on the head. Judging by some of the comments below there's some pretty blinkered people in this village. The man has a valid point and people are of course allowed to disagree with it. I wonder how many of you lived here before all the container mountains blotted the landscape. And you can't say that all the fert boats don't have an effect on the harbour when they unload. I think that the Port Company/Regional Council should contribute to the schoolbus service since most of the congestion is Mummies dropping their little darlings off to school and college kids with their new license taking their cars to school probably following the very schoolbus that's just done a pickup in their area. Take a good look! there's hardly any congestion during the school holidays is there?
Port gets a free ride
Posted on 26-02-2017 22:15 | By BnbyHro
Why shouldn't the Port pay more towards the impacts it has on the city? It impacts on the traffic on our roads and the continuing maintenance of them. It impacts the air those in the Mount industrial and residential areas breath in every day (Methyl Bromide / Palm Kernel dust to name two). It impacts on the water quality on a daily basis (oil spills, bilge water from ships, palm kernel, bark, methyl bromide, timber antifungal treatments, heavy metals etc. etc.) and they still have no discharge consent! It's contracts and processes impact on local workers to do their jobs in a safe environment daily. In return the local economy does receive a tidy sum, as does the regional council. The difference is paid by our community in: health costs; road repairs / increased traffic; and the quality of our Harbour to name a few...
Bnbyhro
Posted on 27-02-2017 09:01 | By Heavy Haulage
If the port has to pay more for the impact it has on the city then individuals like yourself should have too aswel. Your cars exhaust fumes impact the air quality where people have to live and work. Your household waste and human waste directly pollutes the waterways which yourself does not have any discharge consent. The health costslike your ACC levies are paid by big companies like the port so they more than pay their way. Pot holes etc and road repairs are paid by the road users themselves with port traffic paying a much bigger chunck thru heavy road user extortion. Most of your argument is rubbish.
Heavy Haulage
Posted on 27-02-2017 19:54 | By BnbyHro
makes no attempt to refute any of the ways the negative impacts of the port are born by the community and the environment we live in, rather than this cost being paid by the port, and it's shareholders. It is obviously not just the port that has this business model, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be held more accountable for these impacts. Unlike the port in comparison, I have thought about how to minimize my impact on the air, and roads, by commuting by bike to work for example. Unlike the port, my waste streams are covered by discharge consents (through my rates) that limit their impacts on the Harbour and environment by requiring costly treatment facilities to be put in place with regular monitoring. Unlike the port my daily business activities do not impact on the health of my workers or others...
@BrnbyHro
Posted on 28-02-2017 13:59 | By morepork
The problem I see with your post is that you outline a number of negative things you accuse the POT of causing/exacerbating, but you then seem to think it is OK, as long as they pay more. The environment we live in is a responsibility for all of us. The fact remains that the POT doesn't HAVE to contribute anything (morally, they probably should, and they do...) and DVD is completely out of order to label them as "bludgers" so he can make a cheap political point. The TCC is the final arbiter of the priorities for Tauranga and they have to encourage the business community to support what is needed. It isn't done by failed politicians demanding money from Businesses who are thriving through their own industry and effort.
Bnbyhro
Posted on 28-02-2017 14:02 | By Heavy Haulage
Big deal you bike to work. Everything else you consume adds to the citys pollution. Who you trying to kidd? So what if you have consent to pollute. Its still pollution. I regularly visit the port and dont find it any different to any other place at the mount. The toilet wastes go into the same treatment plants as everyone else. The stormwater goes into the same stormwater drains as everyone elses. What impact exactly is the port having on your health? Do you actually work on the port?
CameltoeKid
Posted on 28-02-2017 14:29 | By Heavy Haulage
What do you expect to see at a container port? Trees???
Friend or foe?
Posted on 04-03-2017 03:00 | By Oldboy
People are proud that Tauranga is home to the largest port in the country, but as locals do you really get much more benefit than just being proud? Personally I think it is a major industrial blot on an otherwise picturesque area. Not only is it an industrialised eyesore but the noise, water pollution, and impact of all the trucks has a very negative impact on all of us. Our roads are its vital arteries, so it has a direct impact on our daily lives. They pay their tax and make other small gestures but they are a long way short of their community role. I for one believe they have a moral and corporate responsibility to do more. So many other major businesses in first world countries do huge things in the local communities they are part of. Time for POT to do it's bit.
@Oldboy
Posted on 05-03-2017 20:39 | By morepork
I never cease to be amazed at how easily people seem to advocate spending other people's money. It's very easy to say "they can afford it; they should pay more...", but the reason "they can afford it" is because they enjoy good working relationships and sound fiscal management. Do you really think it is OK to target anybody (corporate or personal) who is doing well, and demand more off them? Provided they are doing what is legally required (and POT are doing more than that) I don't think you have any right to do so. What they should do morally, is a matter for them. It isn't up to us to impose our values on them. And calling them "Bludgers" is reprehensible. In the face of that I wouldn't blame them if they DID stop supporting the charities that they do.
Pull together guys
Posted on 26-03-2017 08:02 | By Papamoaner
It's all part of one city.
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