RDC CEO's Delegation of Authority
We have received response from RDC regarding the CEO's authority and delegations to sign agreements for 6 Teitei Drive. Previously council have just referred to the delegation being provided on 5th August 2020.
The wording of the delegation has now been revealed:
That Council authorises the Chief Executive to enter into the agreement with CIP to receive the $7.78 million grant, subject to the Chief Executive negotiating acceptable terms for the Funding Agreement
We note that the CEO did in fact sign an agreement with CIP in November 2021 for a funding grant of ~$2.1m to build 6 units at Moore Street + later received a further ~$300k of the contingency funds with an amendment agreement (8th Feb 2023) to renovate existing units at Moore Street. The total funding signed and received from CIP is documented as $2,405,000. We believe this is covered by the above resolution and have no problem with that step.
However, we consider the CEO did not have authority to sign the agreement now disclosed and dated 4th April 2023 with Housing New Zealand Build Limited for the following reasons:
The Delegation is specific, for the CEO to enter into agreement with “CIP” to “receive” the $7.78m grant; subject to the CEO negotiating acceptable terms for the funding agreement.
Funding by way of grant to RDC for the Teitei Drive project was rejected by CIP and never eventuated any further with CIP.
No further agreements were signed between RDC & CIP.
Kainga Ora signed an agreement with Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (MHUD) for funding (not with CIP), and the funding going to Kainga Ora, not Council.
The Agreement dated 4th April 2023 was between RDC & Housing New Zealand Build (not CIP as per the delegation) and was for sale of land.
The delegation given on 5th August 2020 does not provide for the sale or gifting of land.
Indeed the Teitei land social housing project was not in contemplation as at August 2020 – see Ree Anderson report tendered at the meeting and now a publicly available document.
Council have confirmed no further delegations have been provided since 5th August 2020, thus we believe the contract signed on 4th April 2023 to be null and void.
The additional residential lots over and above the 44
OIA's were submitted to RDC & KO on 29th September and both have responded in the last 24hrs. RDC's response was as follows:
RDC would have transferred this request to Kainga Ora as it is believed to be more closely connected with the functions of the agency that submitted the resource consent
This is factually incorrect, RDC and KO are joint applicants of the resource consent. All media releases, all discussions with the public (including the 31st August public meeting), all OIA responses; all state that ALL decisions and designs are agree by the partners; so council saying they don't have the information or for KO to answer is just wrong and deceitful.
Kainga Ora responded with
This request was acknowledged in our letter to you of 19 October 2023 (sent to your personal email), which acknowledged this request and several others. We advised you that we are treating these additional requests as one request, and notified you of an extension of time to make our decision, to 28 March 2024. If we can respond sooner, we will do so.
So again, hiding from the answer and setting a date for the end of March 2024, days from conditions set out in the S&P agreement; thus making the question a moot point if it doesn't proceed. But not answering before a decision on the resource consent, essentially dragging on the information so that the public isn't aware of the backroom deals that have been done.
Council are acting in bad faith and not providing information to the public and delaying the release of information in the hopes the resource consent is approved and the land sale becomes unconditional; before they make details public.