Council signals new approach to managing foreshore

A new approach to the provision of infrastructure along Auckland’s foreshore will see a move away from building hard coastal defence structures such as the one washed away at Snells Beach earlier this year.

The beach access stairs opposite Sunburst Avenue, along with a 115m long section of timber seawall, were extensively damaged during Cyclone Gabrielle. Fill was washed out from behind the wall and sections of the concrete footpath were undermined and collapsed.

As part of initial remedial works, broken sections of the seawall, the concrete footpath and other storm debris are being removed by Auckland Council.

The reserve and beach are being made safe for reopening by reshaping the coastal edge of the reserve to enable access from the grassed reserve to the beach, removing exposed timber piles and re-establishing beach access steps at the southern end of the site.

Where it was damaged, the footpath is being relaid along a more landward alignment to restore pedestrian access along the reserve.

The current remediation work, costing $60,000, is an interim solution to allow the reserve to be reopened. Resilient land and coasts general manager Paul Klinac says that when the seawall was initially built, it reclaimed part of the beach and extended the reserve onto the beach, making it vulnerable to storm damage.

“Adjacent sections of the wall that are located further landward were not damaged in the cyclone,” he says. “The current resource consent for the wall expires next year and, as part of renewing it, Council will re-evaluate the effects, appropriateness and design of the structure, and consider alternative options.” page 2

Klinac says the failure of the seawall provides an opportunity to relocate infrastructure, including the footpath, to a more appropriate alignment that is not as reliant on hard coastal defence structures.