'Asset-stripping' furore in Whangamatā 4 minutes to read Outise TCDC offices is Whangamata Ratepayers' Rob Boston, Ben Dunbar-Smith, Helena Vaughan and Waveney Vaughan both of Whangamata. Photo / Alison Smith Outise TCDC offices is Whangamata Ratepayers' Rob Boston, Ben Dunbar-Smith, Helena Vaughan and Waveney Vaughan both of Whangamata. Photo / Alison Smith As hearings got under way for the Thames-Coromandel District Council's Ten Year Plan, resident Ben Dunbar-Smith asked councillors: "Why are we asset-stripping Whangamatā?" TCDC is proposing to sell a piece of industrial-zoned land at 101 Lindsay Rd for an expected $3 million. The council has a forecasted $152m debt this financial year. Selling the land would save ratepayers $8.40 annually, while a second option to keep the land and generate revenue from leasing it would save $4.50 on rates annually.