Auckland may get more water
Hamilton City Council looks keen to lend Auckland a hand with its looming water crisis, but another council leader says it’s only a ‘‘band-aid’’.
Watercare has asked Hamilton City Council for some of the city’s unused water allocation on a short-term basis. The request was discussed with Hamilton councillors for the first time on Tuesday in a public excluded session.
Council has not made a decision and won’t formally until late June, Mayor Paula Southgate said in a statement.
Council staff were asked to discuss how Hamilton could help Auckland’s water supply with Waikato-Tainui, Watercare and Waikato Regional Council. Low rainfall has left Watercare’s storage lakes at Hunua and Waitakere desperately low and forecasts mean the outlook for the coming summer is dire.
Southgate said it was in New Zealand’s interest for Hamilton to help the country’s biggest city.
‘‘Councillors recognise that a healthy and vibrant Auckland economy is critical to New Zealand and that without water, the Auckland economy cannot function’’.
But the arrangement should not pose risk to Hamilton’s water users or the city’s water availability, she said. The council would consult with Waikato-Tainui before making a final decision.
But Waikato Regional Council chair Russ Rimmington told Hamilton’s offer was only a ‘‘bandaid’’.
‘‘It’s not a long-term solution to Watercare’s problems.’’
Rimmington recently said he thought a ‘‘lack of leadership’’ was driving Auckland’s water woes, after Watercare submitted another, third application to the council to take water from the river.
Rimmington asked how Watercare could process more water when they didn’t have the infrastructure to treat the further 25 million litres a day (25 MLD) they want.
But Watercare chief executive Raveen Jaduram disagreed.
‘‘We do have the infrastructure in place.’’ Right now, Watercare could take an extra 15 MLD (165 MLD in full) and by August would be able to process the 25 MLD, Jaduram said.
Ultimately, Watercare could not build extra infrastructure if it did not have consents, he said.
Auckland Mayor Phil Goff welcomed Hamilton’s move.
A multi-million dollar home in Hamilton didn’t have any trouble finding a buyer during lockdown.
The lakeside home on Lake Domain Drive sold for $3.2 million just three days after moving into alert level 3.
The 845sqm property became unconditional ten days after the viewing and is believed to have broken a record in the process, Rachel Waldegrave at Bayleys Real Estate told Stuff.
‘‘Based on the Hamilton Residential Statistics, as far as we are aware, the sale price of $3.2 million is a record for individual property in Hamilton.
‘‘The client, who then became the buyer, felt comfortable with everything he saw online and the last piece in the jigsaw was for them to view as soon as lockdown was complete.’’
The five-bedroom, threebathroom property was on the market for six-weeks before it became unconditional to the Hamilton-based couple.
‘‘It’s a positive story, people often think properties go to an overseas buyer or someone from Auckland.’’
While the Covid-19 recession looms on the horizon and money is tight for many, Waldegrave said the property market is still in a good place.
‘‘I felt, prior to lockdown, the economy was in a strong position.
Now the property market is enjoying the spin-off from this. The cost to borrow money is very cheap, in terms of interest.
‘‘There may be some ripple effects further down the line, but currently Hamilton has a stable market and having a home in residential is becoming more important to people.’’
Waldegrave said because buyers were unable to purchase properties over lockdown they felt constrained and now reality faces a high number of ‘‘quick sales’’.