Auckland man refuses to pay Aotea levy

Press, 24 April 1986, Page 35

Auckland man refuses to pay Aotea levy

PA Auckland A west Auckland man who refuses to pay his Aotea Centre levy now risks having his property sold by his borough council. A New Lynn electrician, John Ven Wyngaarden, deducted $9.76 from his rates this year — the amount he calculated would be given to the Aotea Centre. He told the New Lynn Borough Council it would not get this 2.59 per cent of his rates because he could not go along with the “apathy and wastage” surrounding the building of the centre. The council voted for staff to take steps to recover the outstanding rates. Mr Wyngaarden says he will ignore requests for the money and will not pay on principle. “The centre is not in the interest of west Auckland and its people,” he has told the council. “It is merely a showcase for the central city and the Auck-

and City mayoralty and nothing else.” The Borough Council, however, has committed itself to paying for 0.844 per cent of the Aotea Centre’s operating costs and will contribute $266,000 to its building. All ratepayers were contributing to the levy and it said Mr Wyngaarden should be no exception. The council will set out on the long process of recovering the money — with a last resort of taking his property in lieu of the cash owed. “Someone has to pay for the centre but it won’t be me,” Mr Wyngaarden said yesterday. “The council pledged money to a centre which does not suit the needs of west Auckland, and which has been badly organised and built on an ad hoc basis. “There are more important things to spend money on — like a good children’s hospital ' and rubbish collection system.”