File ref: IRC-5471
18 October 2023
John Wilson
[FYI request #24195 email]
Kia ora John
Gaurdians of the Golden Mile Correspondence
Thank you for your request made under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings
Act 1987 (the Act), received on 20 September 2023. You requested the fol owing information:
Al correspondence between Wel ington City Council and 'Guardians of the Golden Mile' (GGM)
regarding the Let's Get Wel ington Moving (LGWM) project under the LGOIMA, including emails,
letters, reports, and other relevant documents from council employees or officials. Of particular
interest is the letter reportedly sent by Michael Wolff to the Wel ington City Council, as mentioned
in the NZ Herald article titled "Legal action launched over plan to remove cars from Wellington’s
Golden Mile" dated 20 September.
Wel ington City Council has refused
your request for information.
The information you have requested has not been provided under section 7(2)(i) to enable any
local authority holding the information to carry on, without prejudice or disadvantage,
negotiations.
Please note subsequent communication has taken place that is out of scope of your request, but
this would also be withheld for the same reason.
I note also that should legal proceedings be filed, there wil be an avenue for the public to request
a copy of any statement of claim through the courts. Given that, it does not appear that any public
interest in the disclosing correspondence would outweigh the interest being protected by
withholding the document. To the extent that there is a public interest in the letter being
disclosed, this would seem to have been met by the information that has already been published.
Right of review
If you are not satisfied with the Council’s response, you may request the Office of the Ombudsman
to investigate the Council’s decision. Further information is available on the Ombudsman website,
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz.
Thank you again for your request, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
Kind regards
Amber Smith
Senior Advisor Official Information
