D'arcy And Goran

The Auckland Council has bailed out Eden Park to the tune of $63 million, and nearly $10m of that is a brand-new, no-strings grant.Mayor Phil Goff supported a proposal from officials that the extra money, totalling $9.8m, be a no-interest loan, secured against the Eden Park assets. But by a vote of 12-10, councillors preferred the option of a grant.Goff later told the Herald he believes councillors were wrong to give the Eden Park Trust Board a grant, partly because it is unsecured and partly because he believes it sets a bad precedent for the park."You can basically guarantee that Eden Park will be back for more, because why wouldn't they? That's free money we've just given them."The issue arose because Eden Park has a $40m loan due to ASB Bank, as well as a $7m credit facility. The trust cannot repay the loan, and under the terms of its deed the council was obliged to take it over. In addition, the council has a pre-existing $6.5m loan to the trust.The council has agreed to consolidate all those monies and