Battle over community centre gets more heated

Punakaiki people who have campaigned for a community centre in their village say submissions from some who oppose the project are so offensive they are seeking legal advice.

Members of the group, who have asked not to be named, say they believe some of the more vitriolic comments about supporters of the project are defamatory and should not have been made public.

The submissions, published on the Department of Conservation website, are due to be aired at a public hearing in Westport on Tuesday. It is understood DOC was asked to take down some of the saltier offerings but has declined to do so.

The proposal was presented to the West Coast Conservation Board last November, nearly four years after the Buller District Council agreed Punakaiki needed a public meeting place and earmarked funds for it.

The council has applied to DOC to use stewardship land north of Dolomite Point – nearly opposite the Pancake Rocks – for a 100-square-metre building to be used for community gatherings, workshops, meetings and Civil Defence purposes.

Richard Arlidge, who was contracted by the council to help lead the community engagement process, said most people in Punakaiki supported the project.

He declined to comment on some of the more personal allegations by submitters opposed to it, but rejected claims by Punakaiki Tavern owner Ian Ryder and others that the group had worked in secret and the community had not been consulted.

In his submission to DOC, Ryder said businesses consulted.

‘‘These seven people worked in secret for over a year and were instructed not to talk to anyone that they felt was against what they were planning to do ... I firmly believe there are people with hidden agendas that want a facility at the top of the hill . . . so it can be used solely for commercial purposes,’’ he said.

Arlidge said the council had hired the building next to Ryder’s tavern for its information and feedback sessions, and they had been very well attended.

The council had formally recognised Punakaiki’s need for a centre in 2015 and set aside $100,000 as a seeding grant for it in 2016, he said.

‘‘This project has been featured in every annual plan the [Buller District Council] has put out since then. It’s been a very public process; anyone has been free to become involved and have a say on it and no-one can credibly claim it was some sort of secret.’’

Arlidge said he had been paid about $4000 by the council as a contractor to publicise the project and help organise information and feedback, including a questionnaire that showed strong support for a non-commercial venue for the community.

Of the 86 submissions DOC received on the Punakaiki community centre application, 64 were in favour, 20 opposed, one was neutral and one was informal. in

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