MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR – WAITEMATĀ LOCAL BOARD

As I mentioned in the July edition of Ponsonby News, the Waitematā Local Board has unanimously adopted a forward looking draft, three-year Waitematā Local Board Plan.

This is now open for public consultation, and I encourage residents and businesses in the Waitematā area to have their say.

The board is currently receiving feedback on the way it allocates funding and on the issues that it advocates for, to ensure it can best serve the community that it represents.

A big thank you goes out to all those who have already provided feedback.

The draft plan explains the role of the board (for those who might wonder what it does or how it gets its funding) and the purpose of Local Board Plans in general. To give an idea of the types of initiatives which are included in the draft plan, here are just a few examples:

Improved overland flows and stormwater management in parks and reserves.

· Water quality improvements at Newmarket, Waititiko, Waipāruru and Waipapa streams and Te Wai Ōrea lake and wetland.

· Investigating options for modifying Heard Park.

· Reflecting Maori heritage and whakapapa in our public spaces and facilities.

· Supporting events that bring people into our town centres.

· Various climate resilience projects.

· Supporting and facilitating involvement by our diverse communities in decisions affecting the Waitematā area.

Advocating for additional public amenities such as drinking fountains, toilets, showers and lockers to support a shift away from cars and to provide a better experience for residents, visitors and tourists.

· Supporting council initiatives to deliver affordable housing for those who need it most.

· Advocating for initiatives to improve safety and to make us feel safer.

Investigating options for a new multipurpose facility in Grey Lynn, incorporating a community centre and library services.

· Progressing the delivery of a civic space at 254 Ponsonby Road.

· Working with Eke Panuku, City Rail Ltd and Auckland Transport to lead quality urban regeneration for areas around Karanga-a-Hape and Maungawhau stations.

· Working with Watercare and other CCOs to upgrade and deliver key infrastructure projects, including Herne Bay wastewater connections and Pt Erin extension to the Central Interceptor, and delivery of the Westhaven seawall upgrade.

Supporting the preservation of significant heritage buildings.

Providing accessible pedestrian and cycling connections to Parnell Station, opening the Greenways route from The Strand through the old Parnell rail tunnel and creating accessible pedestrian connections from Parnell Station to The Domain, The Strand and Parnell Town Centre.

The draft plan has a number of key themes running through it. Not surprisingly, the flooding and slips that we experienced earlier this year have led to a focus on climate resilience. The board is also focused on making our public spaces as widely accessible as possible, reflecting our Māori heritage and cultural values. Our infrastructure – including the bits that we tend to notice only when they fail (think wastewater overflows) – will continue to require investment so that it meets the needs of a growing population.

You can find the draft plan and information on how to make submissions on it, at: akhaveyoursay.aucklandcouncil.govt. nz/hub-page/local-board-plans-2023

Any remaining submissions on the draft need to be with us by Monday 14 August.

As always, to help the board get the best out of your feedback, we would be grateful for any submissions to be as specific as possible – in terms of what we could change before we finalise the plan, what the change should be and the reason for suggesting the change. The board will take all feedback into account, with the aim of making sure it is genuinely representative of the views of the community as a whole. We can’t guarantee that every suggested change can be made, but that doesn’t mean we don’t welcome all constructive feedback (and, please, let’s all focus on the issues that genuinely affect the quality of the physical and social environment that we share in this wonderful, fascinating, diverse part of Tāmaki Makaurau).

Genevieve Sage, Waitematā Local Board Chair