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Auckland Council has announced that Tātaki Auckland Unlimited (TAU) will continue to operate North Harbour Stadium and Domain Precinct following the conclusion of an Expressions of Interest (EOI) process.
Initiated by the North Harbour Stadium (NHS) Steering Group in January, the EOI sought alternative management proposals aimed at enhancing community engagement and improving the venue’s financial performance.
The NHS Steering Group is made up of Upper Harbour Local Board chair Anna Atkinson and deputy chair Uzra Casuri Balouch, Hibiscus and Bays Local Board chair Alexis Poppelbaum and deputy chair Gary Brown, working together with TAU.
Although two submissions were received, the evaluation panel determined that neither proposal sufficiently met the required criteria nor offered a significant improvement over the current operational arrangement.
The evaluation process was conducted by a panel consisting of representatives from the steering group, Auckland Council and TAU alongside independent panel members from the local area.
They unanimously supported maintaining TAU management, citing lower associated risks and opportunities for improved short-to-medium-term community outcomes
Chair Atkinson said independent financial analysis of the proposals received pointed to increased costs to ratepayers, when compared to the existing operating costs. “The proposition of added financial burden to ratepayers, alongside assessment of other criteria within the proposals, was what led to the panel’s recommendation of TAU remaining operators of the stadium,” Atkinson said.
One of the submitters, Eventfinda Stadium, expressed disappointment with the outcome, saying their proposal would have significantly reduced costs to ratepayers within a few years.
Eventfinda Stadium chief executive Brian Blake said: “We presented a subsidy model based on the losses Tataki is currently incurring, but that subsidy was reducing over time. We expected a further exploration of the proposal with the financial analyst as the information provided caused a number of limitations in our ability to thoroughly build the model out. We made this limitation known throughout the process and have not seen the assessment referred to.”
However, he said Eventfinda Stadium remained open and optimistic about re-engaging in dialogue should the opportunity arise.
With Stage 1 complete, the NHS Steering Group is now progressing to Stage 2, focusing on developing a long-term vision for the stadium precinct. Both the Upper Harbour and Hibiscus and Bays local boards have allocated funds to support this phase, which will explore ownership, governance, and funding models, and is expected to conclude by December next year.
