Councillors not yet certain about Napier Port decision

Council will gather on Wednesday to make a decision about Napier Port. Photo / Paul Taylor

Hawke's Bay Regional Council will gather on Wednesday to discuss the future of Napier Port, although it is not yet clear if a final decision will be made.

Councillor Paul Bailey said he was still considering the decision, and felt some of the issues raised during submissions needed to be explored further.

In particular, he felt council needed to take another look at applying to the provincial growth fund for the money.

Council chairman Rex Graham said he was looking forward to the decision being made, as it would allow the council to get back to focusing on it's environmental kaupapa.

"I was always keen to get a decision done pre-Christmas."

He was not sure whether they would achieve this goal as not all councillors were ready to make a decision.

For him, the question came down to whether they wanted to invest into a commercial asset or environmental projects.

Deputy chairman Rick Barker said if the council did not feel it was in a position to make a decision on Wednesday, he would not be opposed to delaying the vote.

"While next Wednesday is an important day, if we are not absolutely willing to make a decision that day, if people don't feel comfortable about it, we might just have to draw our breath."

Councillor Peter Beaven felt the council had gone through a really thorough process.

"A lot of people seem to think this is a rushed decision, but in fact we've been contemplating this for more than two years.

"I'm confident we'll be in a position to make a decision on Wednesday."

He said the key theme which came out of submissions was prioritising local participation if there was to be a partial sell down.

Councillor Fenton Wilson said as long as council were provided with all the information, he felt confident they could make a decision on Wednesday.

"With a little bit more information on the day, I think I can end up in a place where I can make a call."

Council received over 3000 written submissions, with 51 people speaking about their submission over three days of hearings.

The majority of written submissions supported a partial sell down, with spoken submissions supporting Hawke's Bay ownership.

The issue will be discussed on at the council's meeting at 10.15am on Wednesday.