Here we are in what is only the beginning of a global depression and our elephant-sized council is trumpeting rule changes to upgrade the falling knife of CBD commercial properties. 

Please stop trumpeting your ridiculous aspirations, Mayor Stoltz. You cannot legislate to halt the economic downturn in CBDs that is worldwide. You simply cannot legislate to force landlords to make improvements which don’t stack up. 

Show me a tenant who would be prepared to pay the amount of rent required to cover the costs of the owners if these types of buildings were restored to their former glory, at today’s prices and in the current economic environment. 

There is a clear expectation from those in the Beehive that local councils start making some tough spending decisions to ease the pressure on ratepayers, yet here they are trumpeting their aspirations once again. Simply continuing to borrow and putting the financial burden on residents is unsustainable and unfair. 

We don’t need an “aspirational” Mayor. We need a realistic Mayor. 

Peter Jones