Tag Archives: public funding

Oct 23 2011

A Commercial venture and the public purse. #4 Bridge sentries cost $80,000


Sentries guarding the Auckland Harbour Bridge on match days of the Rugby World Cup have cost taxpayers more than $80,000.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10761065
On watch on the bridge. Photo / Jason Dorday

They are there to foil any attempts at pranks, protests or even terrorism.

Transport Authority spokesman Tommy Parker described the bridge as an iconic structure and said the security was a precautionary measure to ensure no one tried to gain access.

Six security guards have complemented the closed-circuit television on the motorway network and have cost $81,000 for more than 300 hours on duty.

So that’s $45 per hour per person for 300 hours to sit and do nothing “just in case”. and it’s cost the taxpayer $81,000 for the privilege.

This is just a vile use of mitigate and safety planning in a grand  cover-your-arse gesture for some jobsworth in an office. We didn’t have this when we had the America’s cup in town for instance, and that really was a global event.

And it’s already illegal to climb the bridge without authorisation, no corporate in their right mind is going to buy into a guerilla marketing act unless they really do want two reactions (1) legal and (2) loss of market – who’s going to think that Corporate X changing the flag for theirs is nothing but a cheap publicity stunt, and the fallout would be horrible for them, and expensive.

The farce that is our bending over and taking one for the #IRB and the #RWC will unfold over the next months, when some of the out-of-pocket expenses that we the country have had to find, without recompense and without any fear of breaking even become apparent. We all know we’re in the hole for millions, but it’s a lot more millions than they said it would be – wasn’t it something like $32millions, give or take.

There is no way that there have been millions of tourista dollars into the economy, most of the attendance is local people using local money that they now won’t spend on local things for local people, we’ve given it all the to the IRB in our wisdom.

At least we’re left with not the white elephant Eden Park stadium that will be partially dismantled and under used for the next couple of decades.

via Bridge sentries cost $80,000 – National – NZ Herald News.

Oct 22 2011

A Commercial venture and the public purse. #3


Downstage Theatre in Wellington – this is like déjà vu all over again!

Cash-strapped Downstage Theatre wants Wellington ratepayers to provide a $90,000
bailout so it can continue to operate

Downstage’s chief executive and director, Hilary Beaton, said it was “disrespectful” to term the funding request a bailout.

The theatre had trained generations of actors and had “greatly contributed to the cultural fabric of the city” which added weight to calls for extra council funding, she said.

“I don’t see it as a bailout. I see it as an investment in the future and a recognition of the past.”….  But chasing audiences with tacky populist shows was not on the agenda. “We are not suddenly going to do topless lap dancing or commercial British comedy. We are committed to our programme of presenting local crafted work.”

Riiiiight, as is the obstinate refusal to put on any commercially viable event preferring locally crafted works of dubious merit and popularity. And a call to titillation, aren’t you glad we already have suffrage because this frump would like to have performance as art, which appeals to about 4 people, if you count Gordon the dog as a person.

Mrs Beaton says ” Trouble started this year when theatre attendance took a triple hammering
because of the Christchurch earthquake, the global financial crisis, and the  Rugby World Cup”

How’s that again? talk about clutching at straws, everything except nothing you did or didn’t do then. People would go to the theatre regardless, if the pricing was right and the event was worthy. What a nonsense.

Having such a vexatious chief executive and director in Hilary Beaton you have to wonder (a) what it is she does for real work (b) what she considers worthy (refer to Gordon the dog) and (c) just how much money is enough.

Having lofty ideals and ideas is fantastic, but if you find that what you’re doing is giving you the same result over and over then perhaps what you’re doing is what the problem is, not the other way around –  what’s happening isn’t the problem you have – the problem is what’s happening is you’ve managed to art yourself into a corner.

If you can’t run a commercial venture at a profit then you shouldn’t be running it. If you’re lucky to have a benefactor or a patron then by all means go ahead, it isn’t fair to expect joe public to stump up the cash for something they have little or no interest in when they have greater interest in something else.

I refer you to this blog piece and info graphic where is shows that 57% of Wellingtonians consider it a “special interest” option rather than an “amenity”

Oh and I took my quotes from here via Downstage Theatre Seeking Bailout Of $90,000 | Stuff.co.nz.

Oct 20 2011

A Commercial venture and the public purse. #2


Here’s a thing.  We’re all familiar with a user pays model. You want something, a goods or service, then you should be expected to pay.

Seems the Police are considering charging the organisers of future big commercial
events, such as the Rugby World Cup, large concerts and the Wellington sevens, for policing.

These Events soak up significant police resources, which leave other areas short-staffed.

And it’s free!!. So you can organise the biggest commercial money spinner, and the police will show up, en masse, gratis. Courtesy the tax payer.

That’s not at all right by any definition of right.

*Crying ensues* The cost of recovery would therefore be included in the cost of the ticket. Which will add-on a dollar or two to the ticket price, depending of course on the number of people and the amount of police you had turning up.

Of course being how we’re all super scared and all about mitigating problems the real issue is the over-enforcement and the over-policing of events where heavy-handed appears to be the approach, why not use a sledge-hammer to crack a nut.

Sep 21 2009

Funding and Self-Sustaining organizations


This is the 9th Annual Fashion week in Auckland. But the organizers were saying this year was hard since they found it difficult to come up with funding to stage the event.

Excuse me? If this is such a stunning event of significance shouldn’t it be self-funding from receipts and charges?

If it’s not then what’s the point of having a commercial event?

This is the same week that some jobsworth has decided that sports clubs can’t receive donations from charitable trusts (pub poker machines) because in essence they are not charitable organizations. Poker Machines prop up the racing “industry” another unsustainable past-time.

Sports clubs though? What do they do with the money. For as long as I’ve been having my child play sports it’s been fees for this, fees for kits, fees for travel, fees to go tournament, club fees, you name it it goes on. And they are not minority sports.

By and large they use council owned facilities, and have dubious facilities at best, assembled in the roaring 70′s mostly.

Sure you need sponsorships, you’d be a nut-bar if you thought 6,000 gate tickets pays for 25 professional rugby players and as many back-room staff.

But it’s always struck me as ironic that something that is clearly commercial often calls for government cash to support it, if it really was that important then wouldn’t it fund itself. I’d be willing to bet Cirque Du Soleil, WWE, U2, Simon and Garfunkel et al. all made a commercial killing. Why would they come otherwise.

Then on the other hand NZRFU have already chalked up negative $30 million for the right to host the world cup. And we’ll end up with a white elephant in the middle of a urban centre- still it’ll be nice for the 6000 faithfull every other week to watch from the Gods their professional athletes. Won’t it.