KEY POINTS:
The Eden Park upgrade has hit a planning snag and may have to go back to the drawing board.
The Herald understands there are resource consent problems with the $197 million option to upgrade Eden Park for the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
The planning issue is the latest problem to hit the project.
The current resource consent for Eden Park is for an earlier $320 million upgrade. It was granted in January.
The next month, the Government announced a new scheme costing $175-190 million that met the International Rugby Board's requirement of a 60,000-seat stadium for the 2011 final.
That scheme, which has risen to $197 million, involved expanding the 46,000-seat stadium with a new south stand and temporary seating over the east and west stands.
Redevelopment board chief executive Adam Feeley has acknowledged there are resource consent issues with the $197 million scheme, but not said what they are.
There were any number of outcomes, ranging from not having to change the existing consent to varying consent with no notification, limited notification or full notification.
"Obviously we have no desire or intention to pursue one which goes down the latter [full notification], but which particular route is still to be determined," Mr Feeley said.
Last night, Auckland City planning chief Mark Vinall said the council was expecting to receive a fresh resource consent application from the board within days.
"That consent will be for whatever option they go with in terms of design," he said.
Mr Vinall said until the council saw the application and a design, it was too early to know what would happen in terms of notification. Officers and technical specialists would assess the application "as quickly as we can" and make a decision in the New Year.
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