Government taskforce presents plan to keep syndicates at Viaduct

By HELEN TUNNAH

A $16 million extension of the Halsey St wharf has been proposed by a Government taskforce to ensure America's Cup syndicates can stay at the Viaduct Harbour if New Zealand hosts another campaign.

Four of the 11 syndicate bases at the Viaduct will be lost after this Cup because they are on private land due to be developed into apartments.

America's Cup Minister Trevor Mallard said the proposal to extend the wharf provided security for anxious syndicates asking where they can be based for any fresh challenge against Team New Zealand, probably in three years.

How the extension would be funded has not yet been decided, but Mr Mallard said he favoured using Infrastructure Auckland funds.

The proposal is contained in the report of a working party set up to decide how to provide enough room at the Viaduct once the four bases were lost to commercial development.

He said the taskforce considered 13 options to set up bases around or outside the Viaduct, including at Gulf Harbour, but the preference was to keep the syndicates centralised.

The taskforce's favoured option is for an extension of the Halsey St wharf which would provide enough room for two or three new bases, at a cost of $16 million.

It could be developed separately or alongside a second $6 million option involving the widening of the western Viaduct area, which now houses Prada, which would also provide enough room for two extra bases.

If only one option was pursued, there would be fewer sites than now, but Mr Mallard said long-term use of the area had to be considered.

The Halsey St extension was preferred because it would be attractive, would have little impact on existing bases and yacht turning areas and did not require significant dredging.

He said any development was dependent on Team New Zealand's defending the Cup, but the Government wanted to give challengers an assurance that work was underway to provide sufficient syndicate bases.

Among the 13 options outlined by the taskforce report were larger and more expensive extensions of Halsey St wharf, rearranging present bases or developing sites at Westhaven, Wynyard wharf, Bayswater or Gulf Harbour.

Mr Mallard said funding options for any redevelopment of the Viaduct were still being considered.

"There's still discussions to be had about that. My view is Infrastructure Auckland is probably the best option.

"There's also a view that Auckland City gets the benefit of where the boats are parked."

He said if Infrastructure Auckland, which invests funds on infrastructural projects such as transport and stormwater on behalf of the region's ratepayers, was used there would need to be a law change to enable the spending. Infrastructure Auckland already owns the seven publicly held bases, through its subsidiary America's Cup Village Limited (ACVL).

Auckland Mayor John Banks yesterday welcomed the proposal to develop the wharf, but said he did not think the city's ratepayers alone should carry the cost.

"I believe that it should be funded regionally, the perfect vehicle to deliver that outcome is Infrastructure Auckland.

"The money is there and it is a regional asset. The cost will be outweighed by the benefit."

A Government-backed report on the financial spinoffs from the last cup said it generated an extra $473 million of economic activity in the region, and more than $640 million nationally.

ACVL chairman Peter Kiely said each of the existing syndicates had been spoken to about their plans for future cups, and most had indicated they would return and wanted to renew existing leases, including two teams housed on the sites earmarked for private development.

He said it was not yet clear what would happen to syndicates which had leased more than one site for this cup, such as Alinghi of Switzerland, which occupies two bases, but most teams had actually asked for increased land.

He said teams also wanted to secure leases quickly.

"They've realised if they want to be competitive in this contest they have to be here for three years."

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