Stony Batter move cuts across council

Press, 27 November 1982, Page 6

Stony Batter move cuts across council

PA ■ Auckland The Government's recommendation to sell part of the Crown land at Stony Batter cut across decisions made last week by the Waiheke County Council said a council member, Mr R. C. Delamore yesterday. Mr Delamore. a member of the planning committee, said the council had adopted a series of recommendations from the town-planning committee on the development of

the area, which included parking, toilet and picnic facilities. He said there was not much basis for the compromise recommended by the Minister of Lands. Mr Elworthy, because the council had repeated it wanted full access to Stony Batter. The Town Clerk, Mr Calbi Gargiulo, i said the council had not yet studied any proposal in detail and would not make any official statements until it had. Earlier compromise statements might be altered.. Mr Elworthy has recommended that the defence works on the '2oha of Crown land be kept'as public land. The rest could then be sold to the managing director of Caxton Paper Mills, Mr J. B. Spencer, who already owns 1800 ha surrounding Stony Batter. Mr Elworthy's office said that “at a rough guess” less than half the land would be made reserve, leaving a ■ little more than lOha to be sold. The chairman of the

National Party's Waiheke branch. Mrs Kathleen Hillman. said yesterday that “we are disgusted that the Minister intends some of the land should be sold to Mr Spencer. We are at a loss to understand the views of the chairman of the County Council that the division of the land is an acceptable compromise. “No compromise is necessary, because Mr Spencer

already has grazing rights over Stony Batter.” said Mrs Hillman. A spokesman from the Save the Tunnels Action Group. Mr Malcolm Shepherd. said; “We want to try to persuade the Land Settlement Board that none of the land should be sold to Mr Spencer and that it should recommend the entire area should be made reserve." The chairman of the National Party’s Auckland Central electorate, Mr Allan Gardner, intends to visit Waiheke Island at- the weekend, before making final submissions on behalf of the party. The Stony Batter row flared in Parliament again yesterday When a Labour member alleged that the Government would sell extra land surrounding the Waiheke Island fortifications to Mr Spencer as repayment for his $5OOO National Party campaign fund contribution. The Government immediately protested that the allegation by Dr M. E. R.'Bas- . sett (Lab.. Te Atatu). was out

of order and demandedxhe be made to 'withdraw and apologise for it. The Speaker. Sir Richard Harrison, said Dr Bassett had made a highly disorderly 'imputation of bribery and asked him to withdraw the allegation and apologise. Dr Bassett complied. Dr Bassett made the comment during question time. A similar allegation on Tuesday by the Labour member for Auckland Central. Mr R. W. Prebble. led to Mr Prebble's being taken to the Privileges Committee . for misleading the house. The Minister of Justice. Mr Mclay. answering questions for the Minister of lands. Mr Elworthy, who was away in Auckland at a seminar, said it was Mr Spencer who in fact had opened up access to Stony Batter, which was this week designated a reserve. ' Mr Mclay sought and was

later given leave to make a Ministerial statement on behalf of Mr Elworthy. He quoted from a letter from the Waiheke County Council to Mr Elworthy in the middle of this year when the county expressed concern that Stony Batter might be sold to Mr Spencer. “The county chairman wrote that the area of land in question covers about 40 acres, but it is not the intention of the council to be unnecessarily aggressive about the matter, and ask for the whole lot to be created a reserve,” Mr Mclay read.