War of the wards

Papatoetoe and Manurewa square up over which of them gets to keep Manukau City centre, writes Rowena Orejana.
Outside, it's grey and dreary as rain pours down. Inside, people teem around the
mall at the heart of Manukau City. Some stride purposefully to supermarkets, others browse in the shops, killing time and hoping the weather will clear.
One of the busier shoppers takes a moment to chat. She's lived in Manurewa for a while now. "I shop here because it's quite convenient," says Julie, explaining that she works in one of the offices nearby.
This area, Manukau City centre, is in the middle of a tug of war between two wards as the deadline nears for the setting of ward boundaries for the new Auckland council.
Under the Local Government Act of 2009, the Local Government Commission is required to determine the boundaries of the wards and their names by March 1 to prepare for the elections in October.
In its submission last month, Papatoetoe Community Board asked the commission to extend the south/southwestern boundary to the State Highway 1 to 20 link, which is  under construction, and Puhinui Stream. This would put Manukau City centre, the district court and police station within its boundaries.
Papatoetoe Community Board chairman Stephen Grey says it's only logical since the new ward, composed of Papatoetoe, Otara and Mangere as proposed by the commission, will be known as the Manukau ward.
"These strategic buildings are known as Manukau buildings. It makes sense to have them in Manukau," he says.
The logic doesn't fit with Manurewa Community Board chairman Michael Bailey.
"This has always been naturally a part of Manurewa. I'm talking about the 1950s. And we've been [part of] Manukau longer than Papatoetoe has," he says.
"I can't understand why it's suddenly important for them to get this area. I can't really see why they want it except that there's going to be more rates coming to them rather than Manurewa."
But even if the centre goes to the new Manukau ward, the rates will go into the coffers of the new Auckland Council.
Mr Grey denies it's a matter of money.
"[The city centre] is also expensive to maintain. Financially, our ward won't be better off if we get the strategic buildings," he says. "It's more of a marketing and a naming benefit.
"The shopping centre would be in a bit of a conundrum. What is it going to call itself: the Manurewa shopping centre?"
Julie, the busy shopper who chats with us, says it would not really matter to her  which ward the commission puts the city centre in. "It would still be here," she says.
Mr Bailey can see the commonsense of her comment.
"It's just an imaginary line. I'm not sure it will affect the people as much as we politicians would like to think," he says.
Still, it is a political responsibility he finds hard to relinquish.
"It will be easy to say that they can have it, but would we be doing right by the Manurewa people?"