Rudman's city - Parliament makes waves of its own with Motat Act

By BRIAN RUDMAN

Amid all the hoopla surrounding Team New Zealand's triumph last Thursday, another famous victory passed unnoticed.

Parliament passed an act forcing the citizens of Manukau, Waitakere, North Shore, Papakura, Rodney and Franklin to pay their fair share towards the running costs of the Museum of Transport, Technology and Social History.

I'm sure the timing was coincidental but it couldn't have been more appropriate. What better way to celebrate the world-beating technical achievements of the yachties on the Hauraki Gulf than to ensure the survival of a museum which holds, among its treasures, one of New Zealand's great technological achievements of a century ago, the third of Richard Pearse's pioneering planes?

For years Motat has lingered near death, kept alive by annual cash transfusions from Auckland City of just under $1 million and droplets from Manukau and North Shore.

Despite 60 per cent of visitors being Aucklanders from outside Auckland City's boundaries, the other territorial councils steadfastly refused to give any financial support.

This, regardless of a poll showing 87 per cent of the region's population supported equitable funding for this popular institution.

Now the recalcitrant councils are being forced to be good regional citizens by Parliament.

Modelled on the Auckland Museum's legislation, the act allows Motat to levy up to $4 million a year.

The museum is planning an inaugural levy of around $2.5 million, about double its present income.

Based on a mix of capital value and population size, Auckland City will pay around $1.1 million, Manukau $462,000, North Shore $431,000, Waitakere $274,000, Rodney $121,000, Papakura $71,000 and Franklin $57,000.

Motat and its officials are understandably delighted.

I suspect the view from the outlands is rather the opposite, and not just because at least some of them are just plain mean.

They are also worried about the precedent the Motat Act represents. If regional assets such as Motat and the Auckland Museum can levy the whole region for funds, why not then the Auckland City Art Gallery, the Auckland Philharmonia, the zoo, the Auckland Theatre Company?

No wonder mayors like Waitakere's Bob Harvey must have rushed for their smelling salts when they heard the bill had passed.

Mr Harvey used this "thin end of the wedge" argument in a letter to the Herald a week ago.

"One could argue that Eden Park, the maritime museum, North Harbour Stadium and even the Auckland Domain are regional facilities," he said.

"That would add millions of dollars to rates bills across the region, and it was for this reason that we made a submission against the proposed regional levy bill [for Motat] last year."

The good news is that Mr Harvey is not ideologically opposed to regional levying. Indeed, he says the idea "is a sound one." It is just that he is against it happening right now.

Before any levying takes place, he wants general agreement on what qualifies as a regional facility.

In this he is echoing North Shore Mayor George Wood and Manukau's Sir Barry Curtis, both of whom last month spoke of their desire to resolve the issue.

Mr Wood talked of the embarrassment of holding on to the coat-tails and purse-strings of Auckland City and of feeling "a bit of a heel" when he went to Auckland City-hosted events.

Sir Barry agreed that "the time is overdue to review the way we fund all these regional facilities ... There's a need to get together to try and find a more fair and equitable way of funding all the regional facilities we have."

All of which sounds very encouraging. But so far it is only talk.

Talk of the sort that struggling regional institutions have grown both weary and wary of over the years.

For the more cynical among us, it's hard not to see it as anything more than simple time-wasting, engaged in to avoid facing up to regional responsibilities.

After all, if the big four cities all agree the problem should be sorted, why don't they get together and do it?

As for the moaning minnows of Rodney, Franklin and Papakura, if they do not want to join in, who really cares? Certainly they should not be used as an excuse for any further delays.