Honeymoon Over For Chinese Garden

After a busy period when the Chinese Garden was first opened, visitor numbers are now well down. This was probably to be expected as Dunedin residents initially went to see what it was like, and now the hard reality is setting in. The hope of this Garden paying it's way is well gone, and ratepayers will have to pickup the tab.
Maybe those who said that the Chinese Garden would be a White Elephant, are right.

Merry Christmas, Ratepayers

By Christmas, the Council should have given an indication of how big next year's rate's increase will be. I predict that it will be over 10%: the third year in a row with a big increase.
Hat Tip: Patricia McCarty

DCC Venture Capital Fund?

Last week's "The Independent' magazine has a story (not on-line), reporting that the Dunedin City Council and local business incubator, Upstart, are co- funding study to look at establishing a "side-car" investment fund for investors. This fund would co-invest with Upstart's Angel investors, who are used to analysing startup companies.
Upstart chief executive, Norman Evans, is quoted as saying:

Anything that stops people putting their money into bad investments by spreading their risk is a good idea

Evans tells of a local farmer who had invested $1,000,000 in a local IT company:

I thought, "poor guy, he’s just blown a million bucks in a sector he knows nothing about trying to do the right thing to help a young company get going". There should be a place for people like this to invest

Such a venture capital fund is not a bad idea. I would consider investing in it myself. But I would be interested in knowing the performance of the investments that the Upstart Angels have made so far.
And wasn't the farmers unfortunate investment very like the investment of the Dunedin City Council in "The Street" where $700,000 was lost. Norman Evans was on the board of "The Street".

Bus Shelter Ripoff

The cost that the Dunedin City Council is charging the Otago Regional Council for constructing a bus shelter has increased from $6000 to between $12,000 and $15,000 since 2007. One third of this cost is for the consent process. This means that $4,000 to $5,000 is being charged for consent to build a bus-shelter.
This can only be described as a rip-off.

Emissions Trading Scheme Stupidity

The Emissions Trading Scheme bill was reported back to Parliament this week, with Treasury reporting that the cost to taxpayers if New Zealand can't meet its international obligations could rise to about $100 billion by 2050 -- twice as much as originally estimated. This is about $2,000 a year per taxpayer.
This money will be given to the United Nations which will pass it on to countries such as Russia, or other corrupt regimes.
As temperatures fail to increase as predicted, the wheels are falling off the global warming theory. And even if it is true, and other countries fulfill their obligations (unlikely), then the Kyoto Treaty will do very little to solve the problem.
It is hard to imagine more stupid politics : the rest of the world is laughing at us.

Whose Tree Is It Anyway?

The Dunedin City Council is deciding whether landowners in Taieri Road will be allowed to remove a 27 metre sequoia tree which is on the Council's "significant tree" list. The owners say that the tree damages driveways, drops debris and causes "huge stress and anxiety". They were supported by 23 submissions with 3 against.
But Council planner, Karen Bain, has recommended that the consent be denied but that the Council contribute $6,000 of the $12,000 required to deal with the problems created by the tree. The owners would have to pay the other $6,000.
It is good to see that an organisation called the Protect Private Ownership of Trees Society supporting the owners. There are few voices in today's society which stand up for private property rights.
The Council panel should respect the rights of ratepayers to manage trees on their own property, and reject the recommendation of the Council bureaucracy.

Climate Change Debate At Last

When I first started expressing skeptical opinions on global warming many years ago , I felt lonely with few others willing to go public with similar views. Perhaps they did not want to look foolish because "the science was settled" and "deniers" were betraying our planet Earth.
But times have changed: there is a vigorous debate going on in the ODT, with many skeptics joining in.
I think that the main reason for the change is that people can see that the predicted increase in temperatures has not happened. Remember, the Central Otago ski-fields were going to be out-of-business by now. But there has just been two Ski Seasons with metres of snow. And Dunedin has just had a very cold winter.
Rather than relying on assurances from scientists, people are seeking out information for themselves. More balanced articles are appearing in magazines and other media. "Investigate" magazine has produced a free on-line magazine, "Climate Reality". For those seriously interested, I thoroughly recommend Professor Ian Plimer's superb book, "Heaven and Earth", a history of the Earth's climate up to the present day.

No Pay Rise Good Public Relations

Dunedin City Council chief executive, Jim Harland, and most of the Council's senior have declined a pay rise this year, due to economic circumstances. This is certainly good public relations, especially given the large pay rise recently given the Christchurch Council's chief executive.
But Jim Harland already well-enough paid after last year's 10% increase to $335,000. In any case, he could hardly have expected much more than the 2.5% increase that he has recently negotiated with DCC staff. And after recent Council blunders, such as the parking debacle, the Council's Performance and Appraisal Committee may have found it difficult to justify any pay rise at all.
Jim Harland talks of negotiation but any change must be agreed by both sides. If an employee is not happy with their salary, then they are free to find an employer who will pay them more.
Council management soon faces the challenge of producing a budget for next year with a reasonable rates rise. Jim Harland has shown a talent for spending money in good times, he is yet to show that he can save money in difficult times.