northland chamber

Local Government Sale of Leasehold land

• 
  The Facts as we understand them are
  
  The Whangarei District Council owns a large amount of land which it leases to various commercial concerns
  
  The revenue from the lease of this land is used to subsidise rates
  
  A private business wishes to purchase a property which belongs to the District Council on which there is no current signed lease.
  
  We understand there is policy concerning leasehold land which states that leasehold land does not normally get sold however provides guidelines for the exception to this rule
  
  As far as the Northland Chamber of Commerce can ascertain there are 3 issues concerning any sale of leasehold land
  
  The issue of Leasehold land being put up for sale (or not)
  Economic development potential as a good reason for selling the property
  The transparency of the offer and acceptance for the property to ensure that the return on the property is the maximum available
  
  Issue 1 - The Northland Chamber of commerce suspect that having large amounts of land designated as leasehold stifles development opportunities. It would be our preferred option to see all leasehold land becoming transformed into a form which would promote maximum investment in the district
  
  Issue Number 2 – we will always applaud a local authority that assists business to grow, prosper and develop as long as there is a net gain to the community & supports economic development
  
  Issue Number 3 –When it comes to selling ratepayer / taxpayer property the chamber will always support an open and transparent bidding process i.e. Public Tender for the sale (open or closed)
  
  
  The Northland Chamber of Commerce is the networking, education, advocacy and marketing group for Northland business, and is part of a nationwide network of 30 and a world-wide movement of 21,000 chambers. Subscription to the free fortnightly chamber e-news can be arranged on info@northchamber.co.nz. Enquiries to 09-4384771 or www.northchamber.co.nz, www.kaiparachamber.co.nz and http://www.farnorthchamber.co.nz/
  
  You can have a say on this by going to the Northland Chamber of Commerce Feedback website on http://www.northchamber.blogspot.com/