Source: Radio New Zealand
Last year, the Puketāpapa Local Board voted to ban dogs from running free in part of Hillsborough’s Monte Cecilia Park. RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly
The lawyers involved in a scrap between dog owners and the Auckland Council have been urged to settle their issues out of court.
Last year, the Puketāpapa Local Board voted four to two to ban dogs from running free in part of Hillsborough’s Monte Cecilia Park.
Locals set up a formal group, the Monte Cecilia Dog Lovers Incorporated Society, to the decision with a judicial review, which began at the High Court in Auckland on Tuesday.
Lawyer George Barton has taken on their case pro bono.
About 15 dog owners packed into the public gallery of a small courtroom on Tuesday morning. Auckland Council staff and the former chair and now deputy chair of the local board, Ella Kumar, also attended.
In his opening argument, Barton told Justice Andrew Becroft that as chair, Kumar did not approach the task of evaluating dog access rules with an open mind.
“She sent emails to that effect, saying the best way, the only way, to make this park safe for all of the community to use was to make it on-leash,” Barton said.
“I don’t in making that allegation suggest that there is any bad faith whatsoever. But she was always of the view that this park needed to be on-leash.”
Out of 900 responses from Aucklanders during the local board’s consultation, almost 90 percent were against removing the park’s off-leash bowl area.
Barton said that the board’s decision and concerns about safety at the park were not supported by evidence.
“That concern about safety, which was not corroborated by council staff, not supported by those who would actually know what the issues were, not supported by the actual data and statistics, effectively led her to be unable to genuinely consider practicable alternative solutions.”
Animal Management data shows that between 2019 and 2024, three people were attacked by an off-leash dog, all in on-leash areas of the park.
Barton added that the four board members who voted to make the park on-leash only were members of the same local government political party, Communities and Residents.
“The reason why that’s significant here is because the other three members, my submission, is that they essentially surrendered their discretion to dictation. Dictation, in this instance being to just go along with what Ms Kumar wanted.”
But the council’s lawyer, Katherine Anderson KC, told Justice Becroft that the local board members rightfully exercised their decision-making power.
“The passion and the emotion that the dog lovers group is putting before you in its evidence and submissions, we say, are not relevant to the core legal issues that you must decide.”
She said local boards had to balance safety considerations against the exercise and recreation needs of dogs.
“All of the evidence my friend points to relates to Chair Kumar only in terms of statements, emails, and things which he sees indicates an actual closed mind. We say that predisposition is entirely permitted.
“And my friend relies on a conspiracy theory that because they’re all part of a political party that actually has no policy on this point, that somehow they conspired together to support Ms Kumar.
“Fundamentally, it would be absolutely extraordinary in my view, if there was a finding of predetermination in this case.”
She said while the board’s chair favoured leashing, she was open to fencing off an area in a different part of the park for off-leash dogs.
That was to be considered during the board’s long-term planning for Monte Cecilia Park, which was expected to be completed in 2027.
After hearing both sides’ opening arguments, Justice Andrew Becroft described the case as incredibly unorthodox.
He said he understood the need for the Auckland Council to support and uphold the decisions of its elected bodies.
But he said he had not yet seen evidence of consistent and serious injury from dogs at the park.
He urged the two sides to come to a compromise outside of the courtroom.
He suggested the decision on the off-leash area could be put on hold until the park was reviewed again 2027.
“For what is an area the size of a running track, there is vast resources being sunk into this by the Council, and there’s a huge amount of work going into this.
“I don’t want to diminish anybody’s emotional connection to the area or to their dogs. But you’d think for what is a reasonably small area, that there might be a way of resolving it short of both sides throwing the legal kitchen sink at the decision-making.
“Clearly, there’s a significant group who are aggrieved. Is there some sort of halfway house where everyone retains dignity and honour?”
But despite this, the lawyers chose to proceed.
The judicial review is expected to conclude on Wednesday.
Auckland Council and the Puketāpapa Local Board have told RNZ they do not want to comment while the case is before the court.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
