Tauranga City Council is taking legal advice as it considers the next steps for its marine precinct deal after a last-minute injunction halted the sale.

The council held a closed-door meeting on Monday to discuss the issue.

The marine precinct deal has drawn public criticism for its price and because it would displace many of the businesses that use the Sulphur Point precinct, also known as Vessel Works.

The $13.98 million sale of the council-owned precinct to Christchurch developer Sam Rofe was due to settle on Friday last week.

It was stopped at 8.20pm on Thursday after the High Court granted an interim injunction which prevented the sale from being completed, Tauranga Mayor Mahé Drysdale said in a statement.

The council was also served with judicial review proceedings that raised concerns about the council’s processes relating to the transaction.

Drysdale said the council was seeking further legal advice and information ahead of making an informed decision.

The council was not in a position to make any further comments about the sale and it could not confirm a timeframe for any decisions, he said.

Pacific7 managing director Sean Kelly, pictured in 2018. Photo / John Cousins.

The injunction was filed by Sean Kelly, the managing director of marine service company Pacific7, which is based at the precinct.

Kelly said the injunction was on behalf of the affected businesses to safeguard the community’s interests and local marine businesses.

“We now have clarity about what’s at stake, and it’s our responsibility to protect the interests of our community and industry,” he said in a statement at the time.

Kelly’s lawyer, Matthew King, said Pacific7’s main legal argument was that the council knew before entering into the sale agreement that many of the marine precinct users would be displaced, and that before deciding to go ahead with the sale, the council should have consulted with those users to understand the benefits they brought to the local economy and if it would be possible to move them.

“Pacific7 further states that the decision to sell places considerable risk to the future of our local fishing and marine service industries.”

Tauranga MP Sam Uffindell met with the Auditor-General and asked him to investigate the Tauranga marine precinct sale. Photo / Alex Cairns.

Tauranga MP Sam Uffindell and Act MP Cameron Luxton have also called for the Auditor-General to investigate the sale.

Uffindell said, in his view, selling the precinct “well below market value” was a “really bad outcome for Tauranga” and would impact the fishing industry “significantly”.

Pāpāmoa-based MP Luxton shared Uffindell’s concerns regarding a “lack” of public consultation and the sale price.

“Ratepayers deserve clarity around this decision to ensure their interests have been put first,” he said in a statement.

The Office of the Auditor-General confirmed it received correspondence asking it to look at investigating the issue.

An aerial overview of the Tauranga marine precinct. The precinct is outlined in red; the blue shaded areas are privately owned. Image / Tauranga City Council.

Drysdale said he had written to the Office of the Auditor-General to express full support for any review or investigation it might deem necessary.

In May, the council announced the sale of the precinct to Rofe, to be developed into a superyacht refit destination.

The sale conditions meant most of the working-boat operators would need to shift from their precinct berths.

As part of the sale, the council also agreed to pay up to $29.2m to develop an alongside wharf and replace the existing Bridge Wharf, and the council would receive part of the berthage fees.

Reports presented to the council said developing the precinct under private management would benefit the city’s economy.

Rofe was approached for comment last week about criticism of the sale.

• This story has been updated to clarify that King’s words were Pacific7′s legal argument.

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.