By PAUL YANDALL
HAMILTON - Tim Finn and Dave Dobbyn and Gary McCormick's agents are among a group of creditors preparing to take legal action for unpaid fees against the organisers of the Hamilton Gardens Food and Wine Fiesta.
The fiesta, on February 20, has been criticised after several entertainers and event workers were left more than $35,000 out of pocket.
Musicians Finn and Dobbyn are each owed $10,000 and production manager Robert Barclay $12,000 after cheques from the organisers were not honoured.
Although compere McCormick has received his full $3700 fee, his agent and brother, Mark McCormick, is owed $1700. Waikato Security is owed nearly $2000.
The fiesta was one of 26 events held between February 11 and 20 as part of the annual Hamilton Gardens Summer Festival. It was organised by the Waikato Gardens Festival Trust and sponsored by Turtle Lake Garden Cafe & Restaurant.
After denying allegations this week that the event had been a financial disaster, organiser Chris Lister said the entertainers and Mr Barclay had received half their fees. Cheques for the remainder, which she said amounted to only $28,000, had been stopped when the money was not available.
"We put in $15,000 of our own money to kick this off. We've done what we think is the honourable thing. We've done our best."
Ms Lister said the event was "a huge success" but blamed lax security for poor concert gate sales. Ticketek had sold only 2492 tickets at $25 each, despite there being "well over 7000 people there."
She said she had approached Mark Oberman, chairman of the Summer Festival Foundation which organised the festival, but was told the foundation was under no obligation to pay for any loss.
Bridget de Launey, a spokeswoman for Finn and Dobbyn, said both Ms Lister and the foundation had been ducking for cover.
Mr Barclay said he was owed just under $12,000 and had started legal action against Ms Lister and the Waikato Gardens Festival Trust.
He was determined to recover his fee after being burned to the tune of $118,000 in the Sweetwaters debacle. "We've got a contract and they don't seem interested in honouring it."
Waikato Security managing director Chris Mangan said his firm was hired to provide security for the entertainers and he rejected any suggestion that it was responsible for gatekeeping.
"Even if there were 5000 people, how could we have stopped them from entering? There were only four of us there."
His company was still owed around $2000 and he was taking legal advice.
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.
Latest from New Zealand
Watch: Full video emerges of 'hate crime' vandalism of Auckland's rainbow crossing
Hooded and masked vandals can be seen filming themselves painting over rainbow crossing.