Port Plans Will Cut Views

This map shows part of the inner Waitemata Harbour. Devonport is to the North - and you can make out the Mt Victoria and North Head volcanic cones. You can also make out Queens Wharf and Princes Wharf - and more particularly the Port. The Waterfront Development Agency, with the support of Auckland Council, recommends that the Port be almost doubled in size...

The Auckland Council Master Plan, and the Auckland Waterfront Development Agency plans show a huge expansion of the Port through reclamation. If you don't support such huge expansion - then you need to put in a submission about this - if nothing else. Does it matter? Yes it does....

This picture is from the end of Queens Wharf looking out to the Harbour entrance. You can see Mt Victoria and North Head to the left. A signature view from Auckland's public waterfront.

The arrow indicates the view line from the end of Queens Wharf. Other view corridors in Auckland have protection in the Regional Policy Statement. Why is this view not protected? Because - for expedient reasons - neither Council nor Central Government (which own Queens Wharf) have sought a Plan Change for the new activities that now happen on Queens Wharf. So this great view is not protected in the public interest.

This image shows how that view will change after the reclamation. In fact it is likely to be even worse because Ports want to stack containers very high on their newly reclaimed land to cope with an almost doubling of container volumes. These volumes will cause serious congestion on surrounding streets also. Isn't about time there was some collaboration with Ports of Tauranga?

But it could get worse than containers. We had three cruise ships in for the semi-finals on Friday. Quite festive and fun if it only happens when there's a big event, and downtown parking and accommodation is at a premium...

The closer you get, the bigger they become...

You can see how the Pacific Dawn totally dominates Queens Wharf, and blocks the morning sunshine and public views. Shed 10 is almost lost alongside the ship - which isn't even the biggest ship to visit Auckland.

This is the Queen Mary II. (This is another of my computer models - all to scale). In fact Queen Mary II has never berthed alongside Queens Wharf because the ship is too long. That's why there are proposals to put a "dolphin" - a support structure off the end of Queens Wharf - to moor the ship. Docked there it will block views from Queens Wharf totally - without any help from Ports reclamation. If you want to protect Queens Wharf so it can be used as Queens Park (not a cruise ship park), then you need to put in a submission about that too.

Auckland Plan to Bust MUL

It's getting interesting as Auckland Council opens the Kimono a little and we get to peek inside...

But I'm not sure I like some of what I see, or maybe I'm just confused by it.

Auckland Council has been considering the Auckland CBD Masterplan (which - by the way, I think should be moving to something more like "Central Activity District", rather than "Engine Room"... how post-industrial....). This seems to have been an opportunity to release tit-bits about the Waterfront Masterplan as well as bits and pieces from the Auckland Plan.

Amongst which is The Southern Initiative. Unclear exactly what this is, but apparently it will tackle social and economic disadvantage and need.

And then in the next breath we learn there are 7 growth areas, aas well as the CBD area, and these are prioritised this way:



It would be great to see a bit of a rationale for this prioritisation. On first glance it's like a bit of something for everybody - rather than a genuine prioritisation.

But the bit that's a real worry is the inclusion of Pukekohe and Warkworth. These are both outside the MUL. I can't speak much of Pukekohe - but I do know a little about Warkworth. Not only is it outside the MUL - the Metropolitan Urban Limit - it is beyond the end of Alpurt B2 - the new Northern motorway. In fact it's slap bang on the proposed route of Minister of Transport's "holiday highway".

If I was him I'd be pinching myself a little. "what's going on here, don't tell me theat Auckland Council is giving me another reason to support the motorway extension..."

Because that's what a growth strategy for Warkworth will require. Roads. Transport. It's like Auckland Council knowingly intends pricking its own MUL strategy.

I could understand a growth strategy for Orewa, or even Silverdale. Both on good state highways, and even got the Northern Busway running up there now.

But not Warkworth.

Haven't we learned from Helensville? There the Auckland Regional Council experimented with rail. Did that promote growth up there? Don't think so. Misconceived. Just as Warkworth is misconceived.