Former Auckland Heart of the City boss Alex Swney has today admitted to tax evasion charges.

The 57 year old was fighting the accusations he had $1.8 million worth of unpaid taxes .... but he's now abandoned the chance of a judge-alone trial and will be sentenced in April.

NZME court reporter Rob Kidd says the turn of events was a surprise.

"The IRD condensed the 39 charges that he originally faced to four representative charges that he eventually pleaded guilty to."

The Heart of the City's board also has launched civil proceedings against Swney, after an independent investigation.

Chairman Terry Gould says they've obtained interim asset freezing and disclosure orders from the court.

Heart of the City won't comment on today's turn of events.

Centre manager Tania Loveridge says it's still taking civil action against Swney, and a separate Serious Fraud Office investigation is ongoing.