A controversial housing development proposed for Shelly Bay again hit the headlines last Monday over a city council vote back in 2017 to sell and lease its land there, leaving Lavery with the authority to make the final transaction.
But ahead of local body elections last year Lavery said the matter would instead go back to council for reconsideration due to the high level of public interest.
So when the council's website was updated with a note from McKerrow saying "work will progress in line with the Council's 27 September 2017 resolution", all hell broke loose.
It was read by some as McKerrow making no commitment to revisit the council's decision on the lease and sale of its land, which triggered a petition and a legal threat from Sir Peter Jackson and his partner Dame Fran Walsh.
Foster wasted no time in pointing the finger over the wording, saying "sometimes you need to mean what you say and say what you mean".
He accepted the information on the council's website could be misconstrued and said that would need to be corrected.
Foster said there was no need for McKerrow to apologise but said there were always lessons to be learnt in being more explicit.
The council has since posted a Shelly Bay project update on its website, which is essentially the same update from McKerrow, but with significant clarifications.
"In line with the Council's resolution of September 2017 and Chief Executive Kevin Lavery's statement of 11 July 2019, Council officers are now undertaking the work necessary to be able to report back to the Council for consideration and decision. This will include the proposed key commercial terms."
The update reads as a very direct effort to make it crystal clear the lease and sale matter will in fact go back to council.
While McKerrow's wording over Shelly Bay was ambiguous, her wording over a mayoral task force to dig into the capital's water woes was anything but.
The terms of reference for the task force landed on the council's table on Wednesday.
McKerrow advised councillors against appointing community representatives and experts to the task force's membership because it risked confused accountability.
One expert had warned her not to "make this bigger than Ben-Hur", McKerrow said.
Councillor Fleur Fitzsimons fired back- "it's too late, it already is, this is a big issue in Wellington."
Fitzsimons had the numbers for an amendment that added up to four community representatives to the task force and up to four independent subject matter experts, which flew in the face of McKerrow's advice and Foster's original proposal.
It was a hard and fast lesson for McKerrow and everyone else in the room that Foster does not have a clear majority around his own table.
Then on Friday, Andy Matthews resigned from his position as the council's chief financial officer.
It's understood he wants to return to consultancy and will see through this year's annual plan process before he leaves.
Matthews' exit isn't the end of the world, in fact it gives McKerrow more of an opportunity to reshape the council's executive leadership team in line with her style.
But it has added to the mounting pile on her plate, and it's only officially day one.
