Maungawhau Station (Mt Eden) Community Liaison Group Minutes Meeting
Maungawhau Station (Mt Eden) Community Liaison Group (CLG)
Date
Wednesday 27 July 2022
Time
5:30pm – 7:00pm
Location
The CRL Visitor Centre at Te Manawa, 1 New North Road
Presenters
On behalf of the Link Alliance: Helga Sonier, Kate Symington, Thibaut L’Hopital, Derek Whelan and Dale Burtenshaw. John Nottage (Auckland Transport) and Kate Cumberpatch (Eke Panuku Development Auckland) were also in attendance 9 CLG members attended this meeting in person
CLG Members
Agenda: No.
Agenda Item
Presenter
1
Meeting open
Helga Sonier
2
Introduction & agenda
Helga Sonier
3
Communications & Engagement team update
Helga Sonier
4
Social Impact & Business Disruption (SIBD) Annual Report
Kate Symington
5
Maungawhau Station (Mt Eden) Main site update
Thibaut L'Hopital
6
Tunnelling update
Derek Whelan
7
North Auckland Line update
Dale Burtenshaw
8
Q&A session
All Presenters
9
Meeting close
Helga Sonier
1. Introduction and Agenda: •
Helga Sonier, Maungawhau Community Manager welcomed attendees including a new CLG member and Local Board Members from Albert Eden and Waitemata. Helga outlined the meeting agenda which included the regular construction updates as well as the Social Impact and Business Disruption Annual Report for feedback.
2. Communications and Engagement (C&E) team update: • • • •
•
•
• • •
Helga Sonier provided an update on the Maungawhau Station (Mt Eden) Communications & Engagement (C&E) team activity. The Maungawhau C&E team have a new Communications & Engagement Coordinator. As the pipe diversion works at Basque Park are coming to an end, the hoardings will be removed and the area will be fully reinstated. On 27 August, there will be a celebration in the park for the public. The Porters Avenue level crossing will be closing on 12 August at midnight to enable work on the rail lines. Access for pedestrians from 13 August will be via the Porters Avenue Bridge or Brentwood Ave and Dominion Road. On 12 August, a blessing for the closure of the crossing and opening of the pedestrian bridge will take place. New neighbour packs have been developed. These contain information about the area such as a letter of introduction, a coffee voucher, station brochure, how to sign up for construction updates and newsletter, C&E team member profiles along with contact details and how to book a site tour. These are available for new neighbours to the area. Monthly Information hubs and Perimeter site tours are ongoing and have been reactivated since lockdown with the addition of a Saturday perimeter tour starting once a month from late August. Planning for the Branch Out event in September is ongoing with the Uptown Business Association and will be held in the Normanby Road & Enfield Street area. Bi-monthly drone footage of the whole site is featured on social media channels including Youtube, and shows a bird’s eye view of construction progress. A plan of hoarding art updates was shown, with the Basque Park hoarding art now relocated to Nikau Street and the Information Spot also currently being updated.
4. Social Impact & Business Disruption (SIBD) Annual Report: • •
•
Kate Symington, Senior Planner at AECOM presented the results from the Social Impact and Business Disruption (SIBD) Annual Report for CLG members’ feedback. This specifically looks at how disruption to businesses and residents can be avoided, remedied and mitigated. Specific issues such as: disruption to traffic and access, loss of customers, loss of amenity, and impacts to community facilities were discussed. As part of the project’s designation conditions, SIBD is reviewed each year to analyse matters raised by the community and how these have been responded to by the Link Alliance.
•
• •
Some of the previous recommendations were outlined along with actions that have been taken to address these, such as: Notice being provided about upcoming work; Alternative parking arrangements to reduce pressure on parking in local areas; Active social media updates on ongoing changes; Ensuring the CLG is representative of the community through advertisement for recruitment of new members. Other Link Alliance actions such as hoarding artwork, connected art events, QR codes linking to construction calendar updates and an Urban Realm specific CLG meeting were also all mentioned. A summary showing a breakdown of the complaints received in the past year was shown as well as the actions the Link Alliance took in response.
5. Maungawhau (Mt Eden) Station update: • • • • • •
Thibaut L'Hopital, the Maungawhau Station Project Manager, provided an update on the civil construction activity happening in the main Maungawhau Station construction site. This included an update on the station building, where the team were pouring the first base slab ahead of the concrete panels' installation. The ventilation building is progressing with the precast concrete panels now installed for level 1 and installation of the concrete panels for the remaining two levels ongoing. Excavation for the East Link cut and cover tunnels is progressing, these are the tunnels that will connect with those under Mt Eden Road Bridge. Utilities and services are currently being installed for the City Rail Link (CRL) platform. Construction on the North Auckland Line platform is progressing, as the existing platform is being refurbished.
6. Tunnelling update: • •
• •
Derek Whelan, Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) Tunnels & Construction Manager provided an update on the TBM and tunnelling progress. The Dame Whina Cooper TBM broke through at Karanga a Hape Station (Karangahape) ahead of schedule on 15 July. The TBM will transfer between Mercury Plaza and Beresford Square ahead of starting again the first week of August. The TBM is anticipated to breakthrough at Te Wai Horotiu Station (Aotea) in spring, completing the second and final CRL tunnel drive. Trucks entering the Maungawhau Station site via Ngahura Street would remain steady to support tunnelling operations, however these will decrease significantly once the TBM completes this second tunnel drive in spring. A number of mitigation measures are currently in place to lessen the impact of trucks on the surrounding neighbourhood and the Link Alliance continues to review these.
7. North Auckland Line update: • •
Dale Burtenshaw, Construction South and Britomart, provided a construction update for activity taking place along the North Auckland Line (NAL) in the Western and Eastern areas of the Maungawhau Station site. Construction of the Boston Road roundabout and road regrade is well underway, with the Normanby Road bridge structure complete and the eastern side now open for pedestrians.
• • •
The team have reached daylight underneath Mt Eden Road bridge as they excavate for the tunnel which will connect the Eastern Grade Separation to the Maungawhau Station site. Excavation for the new tracks continues at the Western Grade Separation, and systems track work is ongoing as crews continue to build the new North Auckland and CRL lines. Porters Avenue Bridge construction is progressing with the stair installation complete. Pedestrian access will open on the 13 August, and the bridge is expected to be fully operational (with lift access) by the end of October.
8. Questions & Answers •
There is an issue with drainage on Fenton Street with water sitting and ponding on the street. Can this be looked into? o
•
There are also drainage concerns at the bottom of Ngahura Street near the entrance to North Eden Apartments. Can this be fixed? o
•
The Porters Avenue Bridge will have a special bicycle ramp up the side of the stairs. Bicycles can also go in the lift. The full bridge opening with operational lifts will be at the end of October 2022.
Has the TBM encountered anything unexpected on the City Rail Link tunnel drive i.e., groundwater? o
•
Access on Haultain is maintained under the current traffic management plan. Our traffic control staff are there to help and assist all deliveries to nearby residents within working hours. There should be no work overnight blocking the road, unless otherwise notified.
Can the new Porters Avenue Bridge be used by cyclists and when will the lift be operational? o
•
This area is part of the alternative drainage solution to direct the street run-off into site rather than the public drains. We have since installed additional drainage socks to ensure water runs down this channel. It is currently operating to standard and cleaned at least weekly.
Access to Fenton Street was blocked between 3am – 5am and a newspaper could not be delivered on Haultain Street, can this be resolved? o
•
This will be repaired during the permanent streetscape works which starts on Fenton Street in September. As part of the works, a V Channel will be installed.
No, has all been as expected and planned.
How far below the motorway junction was the TBM travelling?
o
•
Can you turn down the siren used on the tower crane overnight? o
•
Auckland Transport will establish an additional stairway-only connection from Fenton Street bridge to the North Auckland Line platform. While this has been agreed it is currently unfunded, and will not be in place at the time the new station opens. It is a separate project to be undertaken by Auckland Transport once the Link Alliance works are complete.
What is the timeframe for the roundabout near Boston Road and when will it be completed? o
•
The Fenton Street Bridge is scheduled to be lifted in place during the 2022 Christmas Block of Line. The date for the opening of the bridge is still to be determined by the Link Alliance in discussion with Auckland Transport. It is likely to open when the new Maungawhau Station opens, as safety of users is of primary concern.
What was the outcome regarding a second station entrance from the Fenton Street footbridge? o
•
Our team has investigated and cannot find light spill from the ventilation building into the neighbouring apartments. If this concern continues, the Link Alliance will investigate further.
What is the timeframe for the Fenton Street footbridge to be installed and operational? o
•
There is no siren used on the tower crane, crews use whistles to notify those on site of an overhead load. There is a siren on the overland spoil conveyor for the TBM, however this siren is required for health & safety purposes and cannot be turned down. It sounds when the conveyor starts and stops and will continue until the TBM drive is complete in early Spring.
There is some new lighting on the ventilation building that shines into the 10 Ruru Street Apartments overnight. Can this be looked into? o
•
Approximately 20 metres.
This is currently underway. There is an expected delay to completion to later in the spring. Works on Water Street will take place over the Christmas Block of Line period.
North Eden Apartments are planning a building repaint and are seeking advice on gaining access to the rail corridor for this to take place. o
This work would need to take place during a Block of Line. Body Corporate Representative will discuss with other Body Corporates from nearby Apartments to
share contacts to support North Eden to find a good painting contractor. Other CLG members noted that abseiling may be quicker than setting up scaffolding in this area.
This CLG Presentation is available on the City Rail Link website with all other Mt Eden CLG presentations and minutes. The next CLG meeting date is to be confirmed.