Saying ‘no’ the too-easy option

Imagine a Whangarei with no Kensington Park. It very nearly happened when the public said no.

The Shark Tunnel at Kelly Tarltons in Auckland. Northland missed out on building the iconic attraction in the 1980s.

In 1903, the local council of the day had the first offer on the land at Kensington but because they would have had to borrow the money to buy it, it went to a public poll.

The public said no.

Councillor Crichton Christie tells us “when councils borrowed money in those days they had to borrow it for each project and there was often a public opinion poll for it.”

“Luckily the Agricultural and Pastoral (A&P) Society bought it to use as their showground”, Cr Christie said.

The council eventually bought Kensington Park from the A&P Society in the 1920s with the provision that the Society had user rights over the land forever.

As the years wore on Kensington Park became more popular. In 1991 the council had to buy Barge Park in order to relocate the A&P’s user rights so they could guarantee the use of the central and handy Kensington location as a public sports field.

Cr Christie says “sometimes it is easier to say no than it is to say yes.”

“With vision, we learn to understand what benefits a facility may have in the long term despite a short term cost. Saying no straight away without considering the future is the easy answer.”

If Whangarei followed initial public opinion for other projects like they had in the 1900s, we wouldn’t have Forum North, Toll Stadium, the existing Town Basin, the New Library or even the Old Library (which was hugely controversial at the time).

There have been other great opportunities that did get away. Northland missed out Kelly Tarlton’s Sea Life Aquarium in the 1980’s. Mr Tarlton wanted to locate his aquarium on the Paihia water front, but the locals at the time didn’t want it. Now the aquarium is one of Auckland’s main attractions and sees thousands of visitors a week.

Great opportunities are rare and sometimes it can be hard to see the benefits they will bring, especially if it is something new or unknown. By resisting the temptation to say no because that is the easy answer and with a little consideration, a yes can often be the best decision.

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Contributing writer Arriane Christie.

This story was written for YES! Whangarei by volunteer contributor Arriane Christie. Born & bred in Whangarei, Arriane’s passions include hockey, watching rugby and travelling the world – and coming home to Whangarei.

If you’d like to be a volunteer contributing writer for YES! Whangarei, email us at yeswhangarei@gmail.com.