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North Shore property developer Rick Martin announced yesterday he would stand for Mayor of Rodney.
Mr Martin, who polarised Rodney's power base in Orewa by putting up the Nautilus high-rise apartments, said he believed he had a lot to contribute to the region.
He aims to campaign for the Government to take more of a role in the leaky building saga, saying it had largely escaped liability. Various councils were being left to pay when the Government was actually responsible for the disaster, he said.
But he also aims to push for the Rodney area to continue to grow fast, saying it had tremendous potential and was crucial to Auckland's future.
John Law, Rodney's Mayor for the last two terms, had announced he would step down in this year's election on October 13.
But when he learned from the Herald yesterday that Mr Martin was standing, he said through a spokesman that he might stand again after all.
Mr Martin, who has almost finished the $125 million Sentinel apartment tower at Takapuna, is one of the area's largest land owners.
He owns almost all the undeveloped land in Albany's centre and large tracts of land elsewhere, including a big portion of Silverdale.
He founded Cornerstone Group which has developed many buildings on the North Shore - including some leaky apartments.
John Drury, president of the Orewa Ratepayers and Residents Association, said Mr Martin would get no local support because he had built the Nautilus which people hated.
He was also unpopular because he had land-banked large areas, giving him enormous power to strong-arm the council and force out height restrictions, Mr Drury said.
The association had not yet decided who to back as mayor.
Dr Hans Greuber, a retired engineer of Waiwera, Puhoi businessman Larry Mitchell and councillor Wayne Walker were also standing, he said.
