Corporate welfare or visionary move: Inside Wellington's Reading Cinemas deal

On the Tiles

Wellington has been divided over the City Council's secret Reading Cinema deal.

The building was closed in early 2019 after an earthquake risk was discovered and it has since become a symbol of the tired state of Courtenay Pl. The council has been working on a $32 million deal behind closed doors but details were leaked late last year, sparking a debate over whether it was appropriate for a cash-strapped council to be funding Reading’s multimillionaire owners to fix one of the city’s most common gripes.

This week, the council met to discuss a move by a group of councillors to stop the deal - which ultimately failed.

Today, Georgina is joined by Wellington City councillors John Apanowicz - who supported the deal - and Nicola Young - who opposed it - to get both sides of the tense debate.

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