House Block Bay,
here we come!

Ben Ross writes about what that action means. Like him, I'm more likely to believe it's one of the councillors. Previous utterances should narrow the pool of those willing to flout their solemn obligations over this particular topic.

Auckland 2040 had agreed to relax density controls

get another platform to whine about their impending loss of lifestyle, courtesy Mr Orsman and whatever disaffected council member or staffer leaked draft maps to him. Intensification in the South would also be bad, they reckon, but for different reasons:

He said apartments in poorer…

Hope ACC is all set up for the consequences...

Perhaps Slater and Ede might have a go;-)

I'll think to myself next time I could take the kids to the pool but don't have the budget for it that at least my absence makes it…

Ta for clarifying. I didn't realise that.

the compromise negotiated amongst the caucus factions at the time, you mean.

As a regular user I am…

Hmmm that's odd. I just called Mt Albert Aquatic Center, and they said the kids were $5.90 each and I'm $8.20. So we're looking at the usual $20 to…

A time…

I expect if you asked a random sample of them to name 3 achievements for Mt Roskill, 9 out of 10 would have no answers at all. But that is not to say…

Nope, I'm not saying any of that. There are many strategies by which Labour could grow its vote, and it's by no means a no-brainer that picking up people who are in the opposite camp is the low hanging fruit.

Your apology for Goff's inability…

So, you…

Incumbents never win by-elections in opposition held seats, why bother with the cost of a campaign?

But what you’re ignoring is the political embarrassment – because it’s hopelessly naive to think Goff wouldn’t be mocked as…

That's pretty much exactly the one I was referring to, except, of course, changing the word "Labour" to "Phil Goff", because he was the local candidate that they voted…

You watch, Goff will remain as MP for Roskill for several months after he becomes mayor until after April then both the major parties will agree to forgo the by-election.

Well there are a lot of ways to interpret the differences between the list and party…

Thank you, Grant. I expect some tech gnome will update the Labour Party website presently. :)

Andrew Little said on RNZ Nat yesterday that Goff has been relieved…

Flaming nutbar: boom, Whittaker's next chocolate range.

yes, bow to the mouthy property owners, Phil.
Tug that forelock.

It shouldn't be "dialed down", it should be retracted and apologized for because it's just a lie. Sorry for being a broken record, but this is a tiresome habit with The Herald and Orsman in particular and it's just not good enough.…

Auckland councillors are going behind closed doors today to propose rezoning thousands more houses in the city's leafy suburbs for multiple townhouses and apartments.

The eastern suburbs of Pakuranga and Howick; Glenfield, Birkenhead and Takapuna on the North Shore; Whangaparaoa…

Updated as of 26th June this year

I was going on the notified plan from 2013. Is that the wrong one to be looking at?

That features an expansion of mixed housing urban…

what does he have to do with anything, and why do media clamour to give the sap oxygen?

always

1. Mixed Housing Suburban is 2 stories, same as Single House, Mixed Housing Urban is 3 stories. Moving around the isthmus I have started actively…

I know David Seymour and Epsom is the cheap shot that never stops giving around here, but what does he actually have…

Probably. He has supported the burghers of Epsom and Mt Eden in their fight against re-zoning for higher densities.

It's estimated that about 20% of Auckland's population is under the age of 16. That is a not-inconsiderable number of people, and they are also the portion of the population least likely to have an independent income.

Sounds like behind closed doors they are reverting back to the 2013…

Point Chevalier, where I live, is the first suburb named. But if it's solely a matter of some "single housing" being rezoned to "mixed housing suburban", it's going to make virtually no difference.

If you look at the map in the notified plan,…

I've asked this question before, but if a Manhattan-style apartment was planned for Epsom, would David Seymour use the RMA that he wants watered down to block it?

Most people are not children.

In which parallel universe do you reside, Sacha? Are they taking applications? Coz the universe I currently occupy very definitely gives veto rights to those with the money and connections to say "I've got mine, so you…

Too much, more like. People like the coastal geezers of Ak 2040 who have their own 3-level homes but do not want anyone else to share a similar height building.

None of these clowns (Orsman included) seem…

pools across the whole region are now free to children at least, but yes, huge discrepancies in which areas have them.

Really struggled to muster any fucks on reading that article. The residents of aforementioned "leafy suburbs" have been determined to keep everyone out, but they'll happily preach long and loud about how Auckland really does need to stop sprawling.

But she didn't ever excel at 'retail-politics', the kind of handshaking and speech-making talent that a politician in a…

I think she's pretty happy as a Human Rights Commissioner now though.

FWIW I seldom heard a bad word about Jackie Blue when she was an MP.

Different guy. The former deputy-mayor hasn't been seen or heard of lately, thankfully.

Someone better be asking Goff that if he doesn’t know himself, because today’s “useful rhetoric” has a most unfortunate tendency to come back and bite you in the arse. I sure…

Is that the same David Hay who’s previously been involved with the CitRats? Or are there 2 of them?

I don't know how these things work, but can't a National Party member propose that the party starts adopting candidates in local elections according to a…

John Key seems his usual relaxed self about it – maybe he thinks a National MP might want to do the same at some stage, maybe he'd rather have Goff as mayor than some of the wingnuts on offer?

It's a pity that he's standing for mayor, because he was actually a really good policy analyst for the council and drove them towards some decent social policy. Those policies remain…

AT’s planned operating pattern will see trains from the western line pass through the CRL before heading towards Onehunga. It seems like there’s a bit of gerrymandering going on this. If AT are talking about delivering single seat rides then…

Labour MP Phil Goff has announced he is standing as an independent candidate for the Auckland mayoralty, ending months of speculation about his political future.

Former Green Party member and council employee David Hay is also standing.

Other confirmed candidates are Orakei Local Board member Mark Thomas,…

Goff campaigning while being an incumbent MP will annoy the right greatly. It won’t make any great difference to the result though, even…

Key was going out of his way to say nice things about Goff, even suggesting he could stay on as an MP when he's Mayor to avoid a by-election*.

First reaction: "That's jolly generous of you, PM".

Second reaction: "OK, so which National MP…

Well, I rather wish “they” (whoever they are) would, because coronations tend to lead to more platitudes…