The test of NZPC's intentions was clear well before their PR visit. Shortly after they bought the property portfolio off previous owners, the Todd Group, NZPC had put a number of commercially zoned properties on airport land up on Trade Me for sale. These were properties directly tied to the commercial sustainability of the airport.
Previous airport owner Sir Noel Robinson had successfully executed Plan Change 73. The Environment Court accepted his experts' evidence that, like airports around the world, Kapiti Coast Airport could not be sustained by landing charges alone but needed appropriate development around the airport proper to support airport operations. That's why he only leased the commercial-zoned land to businesses.
NZPC's decision to put these properties for sale on Trade Me is effectively a breach of the intent of the Plan Change 73. There is something morally wrong with this.
BeachFM's popular radio jockey John Hayes described this as an oxymoron position where NZPC effectively undermines the very sustainability of the airport and then decries its unsustainability. This only served to raise the credibility of Tim Costley's position in blowing the whistle.
The opposition from the general public to NZPC's move intensified further when mana whenua Ngati Puketapu joined the opposition by a call for the Crown to return their ancestral land taken under the Public Works Act in 1939 for defence purposes.
Last week, councillors unanimously supported a motion to support their call and requested council's CEO to table a staff report on steps to progress this call. The hapu has continued its consistent stand that supported the future of a sustainable airport.
The voice for justice from Ngati Puketapu and their commitment to the airport has not only stimulated a surge in community opposition to NZPC's intention but also entrenched the moral imperative of this opposition.
This week, the moral imperative to save the airport was deepened even further by an appeal by senior staff of Wellington Hospital's Intensive Care Unit.
The Aeromedical Retrieval Service uses Kapiti Coast Airport as an alternative to Wellington Airport and an "essential lifeline" to transport critically ill patients, including children. It also supports Organ Donation NZ services based in Auckland Hospital.
The closure of the airport will have "... potential adverse consequences for patients", said the appeal letter to my office. My reading of this is that critically ill patients, including children, could face death. This raises the wider role of the airport during civil emergencies.
The Kapiti Aero Club has pointed out that the Wellington Regional Policy Statement defined Kapiti Coast Airport as a Regionally Significant Infrastructure. The efficient use and development of this infrastructure, the RSP adds, can be adversely affected by development. NZPC's spin doctors have attempted to dismiss the value of Kapiti Coast Airport during civil emergencies.
The Wellington Earthquake National Initial Response Plan, however, recognises the importance of Kapiti Coast Airport for refuelling and for its ability to support medium lift military aircraft. The airport's central location on the Kāpiti Coast and large land area is recognised by the plan as a potential National Assembly Area.
In pointing out these matters, we still need to recognise that NZPC are the legal owners and they have inalienable legal rights that go with this ownership. A solution is needed to ensure the interest of all the stakeholders.
The public interest of the community not only in Kāpiti but regionally and even nationally, is at stake. Statutory public bodies like KCDC, the Greater Wellington Regional Council and, especially, the Crown have responsibilities.
We have a fight in our hands and community support is critical. We have a battle in our hands.
