The Edge board has been willing to punt on some rather speculative ventures, but strangely it has come over all queer at the thought of jointly promoting the February Hero Festival.
Board members are willing to host the seven-day gay festival at the city's premier entertainment complex, but have rejected a proposal from their own staff that the Edge do it as a joint venture.
The rejection has annoyed the staff, and raised the ire of liberal city councillors such as Vern Walsh, Kay McKelvie and Victoria Carter.
There are dark mutterings of discrimination and homophobia.
The three councillors want the decision reviewed at the December 18 meeting of the city council's attractions committee.
Ms McKelvie is furious that as chairwoman of the finance committee, she is being refused a copy of the board agenda.
"We've got a responsibility to ensure the organisation that we own meets statutory requirements in terms of discrimination," she explains.
She says part of the city's mission statement involves celebrating and recognising diversity.
Vern Walsh, one of only two councillors on the Edge board, is one of three who voted for the joint venture recommendation. The others were Waitakere City Mayor Bob Harvey and catering entrepreneur Maurice Nicholson.
Mr Walsh says the financial risk is virtually nil and "much safer than many others that we've entered into in the past."
He would not discuss why the other board members (David Hay, Sir Hugh Kawharu, Pauline Kingi, Peter Menzies and Rosie Horton) voted "no," saying the meeting was in confidence.
But he has asked that the board chairman, Mr Hay, release the confidential papers to the city attractions committee so councillors can debate the issue in public.
The Edge refuses to discuss the joint venture proposal, but it is understood to involve use of the Civic Theatre, Town Hall, Aotea Centre and Herald Theatre. The Edge would invest about $116,000. The Hero Trust's contribution would centre on sponsorship. The budget was based on 3000 to 3500 patrons with break-even point being reached when 1700 tickets at $69 each had been sold.
By 3000 ticket sales, the Edge would be $60,000 in profit.
Theatre development manager Lester McGrath told the board in his report that "the objectives of the project meet the Edge's mission statement to build a strong and long-term relationship with the Hero Trust board both as organisers of a major event in the annual Auckland calendar and as an ongoing client."
He said that the Hero festival would "earn a positive financial return for the Edge in a month that is traditionally quiet."
Mrs McKelvie is arguing that the board is entitled to make decisions based on financial concerns, but if its concerns are political or if it considers the issue is controversial, it should let politicians make the decision.
The reluctance to hand over the board papers makes her concerned that "grounds other than financial" were involved.
Victoria Carter says Mr Hay rang her the day after the decision to say the board had opposed it because of its controversial nature. For this reason, she feels it should be discussed by the city attractions committee.
As for Mr Hay, he's refusing to join in the debate.
I'm not surprised. He is a long-time critic of the gay festival. His liberal opponents are going to think the worst whatever he says.
But on the face of it, it does seem a petty decision.
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