Keep public away from yacht base says Cup village

America's Cup Village Ltd is opposing a planning rule formulated in 1996 that will open the western side of the Viaduct Basin to the public.

When consents for the village development were granted four years ago, the Auckland City Council and Auckland Regional Council ruled that from June 30, 2000, a public walkway should be created along the water's edge on the western side of the Viaduct Basin where yacht syndicates are based.

Now ACVL has lodged an application to exclude the public from the area on grounds that syndicates for the next challenge in 2002-2003 are expected to start turning up before the end of the year.

ACVL says in the application it has been formally advised by eight syndicates that they want bases at the basin.

"At least five overseas syndicates have indicated their intention of physically using the base facilities by the end of this year.

"Team New Zealand continues to occupy its base and is intending to centralise its administration operations on the site."

The Cup village company, dogged by controversy over its spending of Aucklanders' money, says a public walkway is "clearly unrealistic."

It was inconceivable that the challenger syndicates or Team New Zealand would base themselves in the basin with the public wandering about.

"The public of Auckland would lose the benefits of the major public investment in the redevelopment of the Viaduct Basin for the America's Cup as well as the other benefits that flow from having the regatta based in downtown Auckland."

The application has been publicly advertised, meaning that after the submissions deadline of July 31, a public hearing will be held into the application.

Warren Sinclair, of Sinclair Fishing Tours, said he would oppose the application and hoped other Aucklanders would do the same, to open up the waterfront to the public.

Mr Sinclair said he believed Aucklanders had a history of apathy but access to the waterfront was worth fighting for.

He said ACVL's claim that the public would get in the way was nonsense because, with a little thought, both the syndicates and the public could use the area.

Mr Sinclair was appalled that the publicly owned ACVL wanted to override the right of the public to have access to the waterfront.

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