Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown will undergo hip surgery this month after injuring himself “chasing down a cheeky drop shot” in a tennis match.
When asked how long he would be off work, Brown said: “Not long I hope and I do a lot on [Microsoft video meeting platform] Teams anyway”.
This afternoon, Brown’s office confirmed he would go under the knife on March 24, but was expected to resume his mayoral duties the next day remotely.
“Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown is well known for his love of tennis,” the mayor’s office said in a statement.
“He expects to be back on court at his beloved West End Tennis Club soon enough, chasing down lobs and sending the occasional backhand winner skidding down the line.
“He may be unavailable to attend some events for a short period afterwards.”
The hip injury was sustained during a match last year.
There are provisions in local government legislation to guide councils when elected members can’t perform their roles because of situations such as medical leave, including having deputies or alternates take on those duties.
One public event Brown will miss is a March 27 speaking engagement at the Herald’s annual Project Auckland luncheon.
Auckland’s 79-year-old mayor was re-elected to a second term last October in a landslide win with more than 100,000 more votes than his nearest rival Kerrin Leoni.
Aside from tennis, the mayor is known to be a keen surfer.
The medical interruption comes as Brown is deep in debate over Plan Change 120, the council’s response to the Government’s directive to plan for a capacity of two million homes, which drew more than 10,500 submissions.
On Wednesday, Auckland councillors approved an outline to Housing Minister Chris Bishop on how the council intends to cut the city’s housing capacity from two million homes to 1.6 million.
Bishop had asked the council to outline its plans to him by March 17, after bowing to pressure from concerned Aucklanders over greater intensification in suburbs last month and reducing the housing figure to the lower number.
Brown called the decision a sensible approach that corrected “insane interference” from the Government.
“It’s not the best in the world, but better than what the council had when the Government stuck their oar into Auckland for three houses of three storeys high, on every section in the city,” said Brown.
“We now have capacity for 1.6 million [houses], less than two million, and I agree with that.”
Bishop plans to pass legislation before the end of April to change the Resource Management Act for the 1.6 million figure, ending six years of Wellington directing Auckland on new density rules.
Last week, Brown also acknowledged a 7.9% average household rates increase was higher than he would have liked. He said it reflected the costs of the City Rail Link, a project he has criticised for blowouts and delays but now sees as vital to reinvigorating Auckland and driving economic growth.
Aucklanders are currently being asked to have their say on this year’s annual plan which outlines the rates increases.
The increase will mainly cover the annual $235 million bill for interest and depreciation on the $5.5 billion project once it opens to passengers this year.
It is the largest rates rise since the Auckland Council was formed in 2010.
Rates for the average household, already strained by the cost-of-living crisis, will climb from $4055 last year to $4375. This is an increase of $320, or $6.16 more a week.
Brown said this year’s budget, which comes into effect on July 1, was about continuing to do things better, faster and cheaper, while continuing to boost performance across the council.
“My expectation is simple: deliver smarter services, maintain what we have, and get more from every asset. A major focus for the coming year is transport reform. There will be a new public transport service provider, with all other transport functions brought into the council so decisions are simpler, faster, making us more accountable,” he said.
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