Worker injured, power cut in house-site accident

Maori interests will be offered an initial opportunity to buy the historic former Devonport Borough Council building at 3 Victoria Rd.

If the building is not sold to mana whenua, it will be sold on the open market.

Auckland Council development arm Eke Panuku decided on the timetable for the sale last week.

“Mana whenua were consulted on the site during the rationalisation process,” a report to the Panuku board said.

Cultural-significance interest was noted as the site offered an opportunity for development for future generations.

“Eke Panuku will negotiate with mana whenua via expressions of interest in the first instance.” The property will go to market in November with the agreement of sale and purchase expected to be executed in March 2023 followed by settlement in June 2023.

“Current uncertainty in the property market may impact on the potential sale price, although this may be offset by the Devonport town centre being an established special character location to attract investment,” the report said.

The future of this property and its use has attracted much attention from the community and the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board over the years including some resistance to its sale.

• An inventory of the furniture in the building – council board tables, chairs, desks, clocks and other artifacts – has been compiled, though no decision has yet been made on what will happen to these. Some of the more historic items from the Devonport Borough Council days, such as the mayoral chain and chair, have already found a home at Devonport Library.

Eke Panuku says it is working closely with Auckland Council’s Archives Management team to safely relocate and store the heritage items. There will also be discussion with local-board officials and local institutions to gauge interest in displaying some of the items locally.

Worker injured, electricity cut in powerline accident

Work halted... Construction stopped awaiting clearance from WorkSafe and Vector after the incident on this Lake Rd site

A worker was injured in an incident on a Lake Rd building site which left parts of Hauraki without power.

The man, who had been working on the roof of a three-storey terrace housing development at 258 Lake Rd, was taken to North Shore Hospital last Thursday.

This was shortly after a loud bang echoed round the neighbourhood just after 10am.

The site manager for developer Auckland Construction Group said he was relieved to hear from the man several hours later.

“He’s okay. I got a text back from him to say he wants to get back and finish the job.”

The worker would need to be cleared by the hospital first, the manager said.

Work had been paused on site, pending clearance from WorkSafe and Vector. St John confirmed it was called at 10.05am. The patient was treated at the scene then transported to hospital by ambulance in a moderate condition. Vector restored power to the area shortly before midday.

Workers remaining on site in the morning had been isolating the area and clearing it, pending clearance, the manager said.

The worker, who has been with the company for a year and a half, was finishing roof flashings at the front of the site at the time of the incident, the manager said.

“We had done all the required safety measurements,” the manager said, “It was an incident caused by the overhead powerlines.”

Worksafe later confirmed it was making initial inquiries.

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Simon Watts

MP forNorth Shore

National Party Spokespersonfor LocalGovernment and Associate Finance&Associate Infrastructure

Your localMP, supporting youand our community

1Earnoch Avenue,Takapuna northshore@parliament.govt.nz 09 4860005