The Six, the coup and a city in turmoil - inside Tauranga's fractured council

Friday, 14 August 2020

They were elected officials on big salaries, running a major city experiencing big growth, big problems and the big decisions that came with them.

But they weren’t playing as big kids.

“Soft***k!” came the barb from their leader at one councillor in a group dubbed “The Six”.

Schoolyard name-calling and spats between cliques erupted.

Bullies and victims, proxies and plotters - like a high school drama penned by Shakespeare.

Welcome to Tauranga City Council.

**READ MORE:

* Tauranga mayor's profanity-laced flip-flop over quitting

* Deputy coup in Tauranga divides council

* Treaty of Waitangi pulled from wall amid protest over controversial councillor

**

The depth of infighting was revealed earlier this month in emails and texts obtained under the Official Information Act.

In them Mayor Tenby Powell, a determined ex-military officer and businessman in his first term among a council with many long-servers, called a councillor a “soft c**k,” others “spineless cowards” and “Judas” following a chaotic attempt by his foes to claim the deputy mayoralty.

Meanwhile, members of a group of six councillors, called “The Six” by themselves and the “mob” by others, labelled the mayor “arrogant” and “narcissistic” and mocked one councillor over “frilly tops and white pants” in schoolyard fashion.

They claimed Powell is arrogant, he contended he simply wants to break their stranglehold over the city.

Tauranga has been plagued with chaos from its council for several years. From million-dollar blowouts on mistakes like the failed Bella Vista Homes development to woes with parks and projects, reports have revealed poor staff culture and now infighting amid a spiral of failing projects.

Even the normally polite relationship between central and local government was strained. Tauranga MP Simon Bridges said 'locals will be unimpressed by name-calling” and called for maturity.

Labour MP Jan Tinetti said the infighting was a 'shame” but she added relationships between council and government could not be better.

“Ministers have recognised the leadership of Powell and the chief executive.”

But, the disharmony amongst his own councillors, whatever the cause, is clear.

The released emails and texts reveal there was a coup by six councillors to remove Powell’s deputy mayor in a bid to “get Larry [the deputy mayor] gone and take control of Tenby”, according to one involved.

This act would cause massive disruption to the councillors and see all the dirty laundry aired in public.

SIX-COUNCILLOR COUP

‘The Six’ contended Baldock stifled debate, citing one example on May 19 when three councillors left a meeting after Baldock closed down debate on the Elizabeth Street upgrade.

He did so after two speakers had voted for and against the recommendations.

This was later agreed to be an error of process.

As Morris said at the time, the group wanted “more democracy less Baldocracy”. The six also claim Baldock would tell councillors to “shut up” which is something Baldock refutes.

On May 25 “The Six’ councillors Kelvin Clout, Andrew Hollis, John Robson, Dawn Kiddie, Steve Morris and Bill Grainger signed a letter of a requisition in May 2020 to remove their support of deputy mayor Larry Baldock and call for a meeting asking councillors to elect a new one.

The plan, emails show, was to vote in councillor John Robson to this role in a bid to combat Powell’s go-it-alone mentality. In the wake of Baldock’s resignation, it had been arranged for Powell to appoint a new deputy to create an easier transition.

Emails show Baldock was set to “fall on his sword” and resign before the meeting. This would allow a new deputy mayor to be appointed and essentially nullify the requisition letter.

At first, Powell offered this to Clout, as an olive branch, but Clout turned it down saying he wanted to back Robson, The Six’s pick, for the job.

The Six say Powell is aggressive, vindictive and punishes councillors who speak out. In an email Clout said to Powell he could be “triggered” and “failed to separate the person from the issue”.

Powell struck back saying to Baldock via text “He was washing his hands of this spineless coward” referring to Clout and said he was a softc**k”.

Powell says councillors in Tauranga are not used to making decisions and have preferred to push decisions out for others to deal with.

Examples he uses from his time in office are reinstating the Mauao base track which sat unrepaired for years, setting up a homeless task force and rescinding the controversial begging ban bylaw as among the moves made to advance the city.

Following Clout’s refusal, Powell appointed new councillor Tina Salisbury as the deputy mayor.

Salisbury described the move as a “hospital pass” but one she would run with. The Six were not placated and sent in a second requisition letter to remove Salisbury.

After the appointment, conversation descended to school-yard levels. Morris messaged Kiddie jokingly asking her if she would stand as the new deputy mayor. Kiddie responded mocking Salisbury's experience for the job and the clothes she wore such as “frilly party tops” and “tight white pants”.

Morris asked Kiddie: 'Would you consider standing for DM?'

'Of course, Tina would be super pleased and in fact would be my new bestie! I could think of nothing more rewarding also than Sharing a ride on a Harley with Tenby but I need to upgrade my wardrobe and get some low cut tops, really tight white pants and off-shoulder frilly party tops!

Morris did not answer. Kiddie asked if text messages could be seen in any Official Information Act requests.

Jokes out of the way The Six decided to press on and send another requisition letter Salisbury.

The coup was back on.

DISTRACTION AT A TURBULENT TIME

The week the second letter was sent coincided with the council announcing it would abandon a car park project it had spent $19 million on due to errors in construction. A lawsuit for the defective Cayman Apartments was also about to settle to the tune of $21 million and cost an additional $1.5 million in legal fees.

Last triennium there was the $14.2 million buyout of the failed Bella Vista Homes development, problems with the $11.4 million marine precinct project, a $3.3 million blowout on the Durham Street upgrade, $2 million Greerton roading project which only exasperated issues, and $1 million worth of wasted consultation on Kulim Park.

The council was getting a reputation.

A DRINK WITH THE MAYOR

A Steinlager Classic and a bowl of chips was the order from Powell as he discussed the coup with Stuff in June. This was before the OIA which would reveal the council’s infighting in texts and emails. Powell spoke about being the average politician and talked about breaking the entrenched councillors “stranglehold” on the city.

Tauranga CBD looked strangled. More than 100 empty shopfronts stare vacantly at wide, open streets in the CBD. There was barely any traffic or customers in the bar district. Construction work choked up streets.

Powell did not mince words about being called arrogant.

“Is it arrogance or confidence to be courageous and progress the city?” he says. “The reality is very few of our councillors have worked at an executive level, and they have been thrust into an environment of governance for which they have no past experience and few skills.”

He says in the last six months since taking office he has been baited by councillors on social media and there was an effort, he heard, to “drive him out of town”.

“I’ve heard that from multiple sources,” he says.

“The reality is we have achieved more in the last six months than the previous council did in three years.

“I ran for mayor to break the stranglehold as evidenced by the years it took to fix Mauao base track and endless circles of discussions about the Elms,” he says referring to the angsting over the symbolic gifting of an historic homestead to a Maori trust as recognition of historic wrongs that put it in Crown hands.

“Tauranga has been held back for years by a group who work hard to stop all progress, and this exists today with a small group of councillors who have made a lot of childish noise.”

TEA AND BISCUITS WITH THE SIX

On the other side of town, councillors who wrote the requisition met over tea and biscuits. They say the mayor’s outbursts when challenged is what drove them to act. Outburst is a proper noun in the group.

It refers to a time shortly after Powell took office when he called Hollis a “f***ing climate-denying racist” which saw the mayor censured.

“Up until then,” Hollis said. “We worked well together.”

One of the first acts Powell took as mayor was to ask Hollis to resign. The reason was a Facebook post Hollis had made about “burning the treaty” and “ending the iwi gravy train” during the election.

After being elected Hollis says he made a joke when asked to have a photo taken by the treaty, hung in council chambers. In this photo, some say he was holding a lighter but others say he pretended to be holding a lighter.

“I made the lighter gesture not under the treaty or in any way posed next to or beside or anything more than a passing piece of frivolity,” he said.

”It was a successful joke and elicited the desired set of chortles from those that observed.

“Would I do it again? Yes…there is only a few that would find it uncomfortable or offensive but that is the nature of humour and is also the purpose of freedom of expression.”

Hollis says the outburst clouded over council ever since. A strategy meeting the following day was hijacked by talk of the outburst and further segregated the teams.

Robson was put forward as a deputy mayor candidate from the six by others in the group for his ability to challenge and combat Powell.

“We’re not asking for a change of leader,' Robson said. “We’re asking for the leader to change. He’s got something to offer this city. He can do this. He has good ideas.”

Robson said Powell has to remember he has not bought a company or is in the military and local government leadership is vastly different.

“Local body politics is a true test of leadership,” he said.

Morris said Powell is easily riled.

“If you disagree with the mayor’s viewpoint, the response is anger,” he said.

“A couple of colleagues expressed a different opinion on the mayor’s proposed 12.7 per cent rates increase. And the mayor exploded in a closed-door meeting. It was a foul-mouthed tirade in front of staff, councillors and it was very unprofessional.”

Morris says leadership is about bringing out the best in people and using their strengths.

“That is not occurring right now,” he said.

They say they supported the appointment of Baldock as deputy at the time but had since soured given the attitude they say they receive from him.

THE MOB IS FICKLE

Clout was not present for biscuits with the six. A point not lost on the others. Their coup had just reached a crucial stage as they had successfully seen their target Baldock removed but they were unhappy with Powell’s appointment of new councillor Tina Salisbury to the role.

Powell had initially offered the job to Clout who had turned it down to support Robson but then asked to get the position again.

Clout wrote to Powell saying “I appreciate you are not happy. I have indicated my support of Robson for the position of DM. I made my commitment to my five colleagues that John would be an appropriate choice as DM… I did not want to go back on my word.”

The next day he emailed back saying he would be “willing to offer himself as your DM and seeking to bring healing between council and yourself.” He also spoke about flattening the remuneration curve between councillors and it came with the condition of appointing Robson to the Smart Growth Committee.

Clout was seen to be wavering on the sending of a second requisition letter to remove newly appointed Salisbury into Baldock’s former position.

Fellow members of the six also lambasted Clout for his flip-flopping on his support of their coup.

Morris said Clout was “weak as cats’ piss” while Hollis said Clout, a devout Christian, had time to “save his soul” by pulling his press release rescinding his support of the six.

“If you have thrown Tina to the wolves then shame on you for being a coward,” Hollis wrote. “Tenby has beaten you and the city is now worse off because you are weak. A sad day.”

Hollis says he does not regret the words he said to Clout and the pair now have a working relationship.

“I was pretty ropeable when he withdrew his support,” he said.

The comments came after members of The Six, which then became five, were unhappy at Clout’s flip-flopping and his decision to rescind his support for the removal of the second deputy mayor.

“We told him not to sign the second requisition letter unless he was sure,” Morris said.

“We said if he wobbled on it fellow councillors would look bad. We told him to think about it and make the decision. After a few hours, he came back and said, ‘Yep. I’m in boots and all”.

Morris said there was a lot of “water cooler talk” included in the OIA . “If you were speaking to the person directly you would probably phrase it a different way. There have been hurt feelings.”

CLOUT TURNS THE OTHER CHEEK

Clout says the comments against him were “humiliating and hurtful”.

“Whilst I am not personally affected by the name-calling I am conscious of the effect it has on my wife and family,” he said.

“I have never been one to hold grudges, and there is too much to do in our governance roles to be distracted by internal council issues. I will continue to work positively with my colleagues.”

Clout also responded to the attack on his Christian ideals.

“Some say that Christianity has no place in politics but I absolutely refute that stance. I can’t separate who I am as a person (or my belief system) from who I am as a politician. Although I have my shortcomings, I do seek to apply biblical principles to the way I relate to people, and in the decisions I make.”

“I have no regrets in bringing our leadership issues to a head, but I also wanted to bring some closure as soon as possible, so we could all get on with the job we were elected to do; provide strong and intelligent governance to our fast-growing and beautiful city.”

SALISBURY TAKES HIGH GROUND

Salisbury says she will take on the challenge of being the deputy mayor 'boots and all' and will wade through the swamp. She found some high ground by staying out of the fight and earned respect from colleagues in recent months.

Salisbury had expressed concern in texts to fellow councillor Heidi Hughes about the level of “plotting and scheming” from fellow councillors and called for calm and hopes the “circus” will end.

“I got a bit of a hospital pass given the circumstances it was done,” she said.

“I feel incredibly capable that I can do the job. There are some big personalities in our group but I work quite collaboratively. I think it can be effective. We need to get on doing what we have been elected to do at a time when our city needs to support businesses and families.

“We need to get the job done right.”

WHO WON?

As the dust settles people try to figure out who won the coup.

Some say the fight needed to happen to get it all out in the open and allow healing. Members of The Six do not regret any comments made and both sides believe they were in the right.

Shortly after the coup settled down councillors voted to flatten the remuneration curve between councillors and reduce an income spike for the deputy mayor position. It meant an increase for all councillors.

Robson was appointed to the Smart Growth Committee, something Clout had wanted to do if taking on the deputy mayor position.

Morris says asking about winners and losers was misunderstanding their point.

“This isn’t a game that involves winning and losing. It’s about ensuring the leadership of the city tolerates diverse opinions and moves the city forward,” he said.

Hollis said, 'We [The Six] won'.

“Robson is now in the Smart growth committee… there is now no incentive to vote based on threat of being demoted and Larry Baldock is no longer the DM.”

Baldock said people won on both sides.

“They wanted to get rid of me and put Robson in to control Tenby. They lost,” he said.

“They flattened the pay structure so that councillors Hollis, Grainger and Robson will get more pay. They won.”

Powell labelled the saga a failed coup.

“My hope is we will be able to move forward with a quorum of councillors,” He said.

“We needed this to happen to recognise the issues of the past and realise we need to go ahead. Change is difficult. It comes with white water. We will come out a lot stronger and more reliable council.”

Powell said the public should be disappointed in the comments of elected members, including his own.

“I also say democracy has not been served well in recent months. We have to take responsibility for that.”