Riccarton firm ‘seen as a monster’

Press, 6 September 1989, Page 14

Riccarton firm ‘seen as a monster’

By RICHARD CRESSWELL A Riccarton firm which

has been told to move out by the Riccarton Borough council is viewed as “a green-eyed monster,” says its managing director.

The council may serve Cargo King an injunction ordering it out of its site because its trading there breaches District Scheme zoning requirements. The managing director of Cargo King in Auckland, Mr Peter Day, said Cargo King was regarded as a “monster and retailers are scared of us.” The Riccarton Road outlet is in the council’s official zone seven. The zone, on the northern side of Riccarton Road, permits bulky goods stores, hire outlets and some professional services.

A council spokesman said the outlets could only sell goods which required a vehicle to take them away.

“About 80 per cent of Cargo King’s goods would breach the zone,” the spokesman said. Mr Day said only 50 per cent of products the firm sold breached the zoning. Efforts were being made to remove them.

The company did not want to leave the site, he said. It would try to find another site in Riccarton for those products it was not permitted to sell from its present outlet. Mr Day said the council had been pressured to enfore its District Scheme requirements by other retailers.

Mr Day said other retailers were also in breach of the zoning rules. The council’s town clerk, Mr Don Hampton, said other stores in the zone had existing use rights, allowing sales of “walk in and walk out” products. Cargo King’s was a new

building, and since opening it had traded in breach of the zone.

“Cargo King have had close to a year to adjust their business and conform with the zone. If they can still conform then that is fine, but now the solicitors will have to work it out,” Mr Hampton said.

Mr Hampton said the company had not been informed of the zoning restrictions by the real estate agent when it occupied the building. Mr Day said the zoning restriction was peculiar to Riccarton. Riccarton residents seemed to want a ghetto on their northern side, he said. “It is very poor planning.”

The council had not been able to find an alternative site for the company in spite of negotiations, said Mr Day. He praised some councillors for being helpful.