My Account
Local knowledge matters. It can make all the difference. Add doing your homework, then standing up to take an issue on – even against the odds – and it is possible to have a successful outcome for the community. Presently I am questioning the proposal by Auckland Transport to sell-off a number of properties on Whangaparaoa Road (HM May 8 and 22).
Twenty of these properties, on the northern side between D’Oyly Drive and Brightside Road, were acquired many years ago for road widening; a number of them over the time I served as a Rodney District Councillor – so I know the history, circumstances and holding costs.
But while much of Whangaparaoa Road was widened and upgraded, including either side of this 400-metre stretch, work on this particular section was put off largely to do with cost – because any realignment is very expensive and would involve significant retaining.
This critical part of Whangaparaoa Road still needs attention and investment because it is dangerous – it is hazardous to turn in and out of from the properties each side, life-threatening to cycle along and risky to walk beside with a footpath on one side only. Add to this a risky intersection at Brightside, bus stops either side, blind corners each end, and underlying ground conditions that are unstable and it paints the picture.
There are opportunities to sort out these problems and at least make provision for them prior to any consideration of sale. A side road accessed off Brightside, safer turn into Brightside, retention of land for future retaining works, the possibility of an off-road cycleway and walkway, protecting the substantial pohutukawas for land stability and environmental reasons (perhaps as a local pocket park) and reinstatement of walkways all make sense. It is essential to have adequate space to allow works without disrupting traffic. The last thing we want is anything like the disruption some years ago that took place when work was underway between Vipond Road and Red Beach Road.
Already, and over coming days and weeks, I will be taking these matters up with Auckland Transport, the Hibiscus & Bays Local Board and other Councillors – and doing whatever it takes to make sure this vital stretch of road is ‘future proofed’. This column to bring the matter to readers’ attention is part of that. Of course it would be great to put off the sale altogether until after any works are complete and to have any sale returns go back to the Hibiscus Coast that met much of the holding cost over the years.
On other issues, myself and fellow Albany Ward Councillor John Watson have been active in stopping the sale of marina land at Gulf Harbour and elsewhere (involving another Council Controlled Organisation, Panuku); battling to save institutions like Speedway and Eden Park; funding for sports and recreational clubs and ensuring as much as possible that the Hibiscus Coast gets its share of the Council spend. The recent improvements to the wastewater plant at Army Bay are an example, as are upgrades to the Stanmore Bay Leisure Centre and very recent funding for the Hibiscus Coast Youth Centre which does much to assist youth in the area.
Whangaparaoa land sale decision delayed
The proposed sale of 23 Auckland Council owned properties on Whangaparaoa Road was due to go before Council’s Finance & Performance Committee on June 18 for final approval (HM May 8 and 22).
Hibiscus & Bays Local Board chair Julia Parfitt says that this has now been deferred while AT does more investigative work.
