America’s Cup laws needed urgently

Press, 29 July 1989, Page 2

America’s Cup laws needed urgently

By

CULLEN SMITH

Special planning legislation is needed now if New Zealand is to host a successful America’s Cup regatta in 1992, according to a report commissioned by the Minister of External Relations and Trade, Mr Moore.

Huge benefits for New Zealand are forecast in the detailed 146-page report released yesterday by Mr Moore as Minister for the America’s Cup. But facilities will not be ready in time unless the Government moves urgently to introduce fasttrack planning laws, says the report from Development Management Resources Consultants, Ltd. The report predicts the Cup and associated events will mean a minimum economic boost to New Zealand of $1 billion and possibly as much as $1.3 billion. Building facilities for competing syndicates, syndicate spending and an estimated influx of 160,000 visitor to Auckland as the host city will provide thousands of new jobs, it says. If an imminent decision from the- Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court upheld Judge Carmen Ciparick’s March ruling awarding the America’s Cup to the Mercury Bay Boating Club, syndicates would require basic facilities in Auckland by late next year. Mr Moore said the syndicates would start arriving about October or November, 1990, to prepare for a February, 1991, world championship regatta in the new America’s Cup big boat class. An America’s Cup challenger elimination series was scheduled to be raced in late 1991 and early 1992, with the eventual challenger due to meet the defending yacht in late January, early February, 1992. Facilities were expected to take 10 months to a year to complete, meaning construction would have to be under way by this December at the latest, Mr Moore said. The consultants advised that planning procedures made it almost impossible for projects to be completed in the required timespan. Mr Moore said he accepted that special plan-

ning needed to be set up for Cup syndicate facilities. However, any special i Cup legislation should have limited coverage, maintain public rights, provide an appeal process, have regard to the Treaty of Waitangi and include a “sunset clause” enabling its easy repeal after the set time needed to approve Cup projects. Mr Moore said he was preparing papers for the Cabinet. The critical path for having legislation, the special planning system and Cup facilities in place was “extremely tight.” The report recommended legislation be passed by September 1 this year. If the Cabinet agreed to a special bill, it would still be subject, to a select committee hearing and Mr Moore said he would prefer the committee sat in Auckland. Sunset laws relaxing controls on wagering, shopping hours and liquor sales along with other administrative matters, including the tax status of competing syndicates, also needed attention. But Mr Moore said these could wait until after it was confirmed the Cup was coming south. “The first priority is to make sure we’ll have facilities for the syndicates and we have them available on time,” he said. Mr Moore said he intended to go ahead with setting up an America’s Cup office in Auckland to liaise on special planning matters and bring together the main Cup players, including Government departments, local bodies and syndicates. An office director would be appointed within the next three weeks. “I want the essential work done when it needs to be done, without going overboard while we await final confirmation that New Zealand has the Cup,” Mr Moore said. “We’ll be ready to make the most of massive opportunities the Clip is going to offer us.”