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.