A bitter dispute between Auckland mayoral prospect John Tamihere and the council's development agency Panuku over a proposed housing development in south Auckland looks destined for the courtroom.
Stuff has seen a memo showing Panuku terminated negotiations with Tamihere-led Ngai Tai Waipareira Housing back in August, after a stalemate was reached over the level of social housing at the Tavern Lane development in Papatoetoe.
But Tamihere hit back this week, dismissing the memo as "bull....t" and saying he was still in talks with Panuku when he addressed councillors about the dispute last September.
"People can say what they like in the memorandum in August. The day I arrived at council, I was still in talks with the chief executive of Panuku – we still had a side bar conversation on that day," the former broadcaster and government minister said.
"Our argument is there's a binding contract afoot. That will play out in a court case soon to happen."
Meanwhile, Panuku was sticking to its guns, with its development director, Allan Young, confirming Auckland Council's development arm had terminated commercial negotiations with Ngai Tai Waipareira Housing over Tavern Lane.
The dispute centres on the level of social housing in the development.
Tamihere wants to lift social housing numbers at the development, which has the potential to deliver 70 homes, to 70 per cent.
But Panuku blocked those plans, instead requiring an equal three-way split of market homes, social housing and "affordable" homes in the development.
The disagreement eventually boiled over into a war of words between Tamihere and his former Labour Party colleague, Auckland Mayor Phil Goff.
Goff claimed Waipareira's stance was purely commercial.
"They buy the land off Panuku, they commission the builder, they sell it to Housing New Zealand and they sell it at a profit," he said late last year.
Tamihere hit back, saying his organisation was simply trying to build up supply in the face of a "screaming need for social houses".
On Thursday, Tamihere said there were two parts to the planned court action.
"There's two legs to the litigation; one is that we argue there is a binding contract on foot, regardless of their bull....t memo saying it's terminated," he said.
"The second leg of the litigation is a human rights leg of the litigation, in regards to the egregious nature of the [housing split] policy."
Young said the Panuku Board expected to discuss re-offering the Tavern Lane development to the market in the first quarter of 2019.
Meanwhile, Tamihere was weighing up a potential tilt for the Auckland mayoralty.
Last October, he told Stuff he had been sounding out Auckland councillors as he pondered launching a bid.
Tamihere said only one councillor opposed his possible candidacy, adding he would make a final decision soon.