Mark Davis holds a folder showing family land was taken under the Reserves Act by the former Papakura Borough Council in the early 1950s without compensation. Photo / Dean Purcell
Mark Davis holds a folder showing family land was taken under the Reserves Act by the former Papakura Borough Council in the early 1950s without compensation. Photo / Dean Purcell
An elderly couple want Auckland Council to halt the sale of a piece of land in Papakura they are convinced was taken from the husband's family without compensation.
Mark Davis said his parents felt cheated when the former Papakura Borough Council took a piece of farmland at Coles Cres inthe early 1950s for a reserve under the Reserves Act.
"Mum and dad thought it would end up being a playground for youth in Papakura," Mark Davis said.
Instead, the piece of land where Davis learned to milk a cow, was turned into the "Davis carpark".
Davis said his parents, Charlie and Rita, were paid compensation for a seven-foot strip of land to widen Great South Rd, but never received payment or compensation for the reserve land.
"I could see the disappointment in my father's face. He was told 'there's nothing you can do about it Charlie, it's the law'. Mum and dad just shrugged their shoulders...but they felt aggrieved," he said.
The land at Coles Cres in Papakura (green outline) that the council will consider selling on Thursday. Photo / Auckland Council
Tomorrow, councillors will consider a proposal by officers to sell a 3586sq m piece of land at 36 Coles Cres comprising five separate parcels and valued at $1.7 million. The land, part of which was owned by the Davis family, is expected to be sold for housing.
A spokeswoman for the council's development agency Panuku said investigations into the former council's archives showed the land was vested under the normal processes at the time, but external lawyers will check to ensure the council has met all its statutory obligations.
The investigations found a block of land owned by Marguerite Davis was sold in January 1953 and one lot was vested in the Papakura Borough Council as a parking reserve.
Council archivists checked all the records, but were only able to find a council resolution on December 15, 1952 approving the signing of the deed for the subdivision, the spokeswoman said.
She said there was no record of a transaction between the council and Marguerite Davis, but the reference to a deed and not a proclamation or gazette notice "seem to suggest the land was not simply taken with no compensation being paid".
Panuku's general manager assets and delivery Marian Webb relayed a similar message to Lyn and Mark Davis on Monday, saying councillors would consider the sale tomorrow subject to the statutory processes, including revoking the reserve status and ensuring the council meets any offer-back obligations to the couple.
Papakura town centre. Photo / File
Lyn Davis told the Herald today the council should put the sale on hold until lawyers go back over the records to see if they should be compensated.
The couple have also asked for any compensation to go towards a replacement statue at St Mary's Catholic Church in Papakura that was destroyed by vandals. The statue was donated to the church by Mark's parents.
Since March, the Herald has been asking Panuku how the former borough council acquired the land and whether the Davis family have grounds for compensation.
In May, Panuku said it was "unable to find out further details around the acquisition and or any compensation" and no decision had been made to sell the property.
On July 18, the Papakura Local Board approved the sale of Coles Cres and another property at O'Shannessey Rd. The agenda item did not mention the ownership and compensation issues raised by the Davis family.
The board had to give approval for the sale of the land before councillors make a decision to begin the sales process.
Mark and Lyn Davis are disappointed with the process.
"It's not very democratic, is it," Lyn Davis said.
