ARC parks head's departure a big loss, says ex-boss

Lance Vervoort

A former Auckland Regional Council chief executive says she is shocked by the resignation of parks boss Lance Vervoort because of the Beckham football match flop.

"He did a fabulous job, if you look at the regional parks," said Jo Brosnahan, who headed the council for eight years and is founding chairman of Leadership New Zealand.

"Auckland can be proud of the parks which are a reflection of the work of Lance and the team of rangers."

On Thursday, the ARC accepted the resignations of Mr Vervoort and Mt Smart Stadium group manager John Lynch.

The men wrote a confidential report to councillors last April recommending the opportunity to hold the LA Galaxy match featuring David Beckham.

Only 16,600 people turned up to watch and the stadium - a business unit within the ARC parks network - lost $1.79 million.

The Auditor-General's report on the planning and managing of the event is expected in a month and ARC leadership will not comment on the executives' departure.

The stadium is the home of the Vodafone Warriors and yesterday club chief executive Wayne Scurrah said Mr Lynch would be missed after his two years' work.
"He ran the stadium in a sound manner and we had a good working relationship."

Australasian Parks Forum board member Michael Ayrton said Mr Vervoort was well respected.

The ARC parks network grew from 20 to 25 during the nine years Mr Vervoort was general manager and director.

Neither man lists football among his interests - Mr Vervoort prefers fishing and bush walking while Mr Lynch rugby, cricket and golf.