Still ping pong between two CCOs but getting there The Otara-Papatoetoe Local Board meetings on Monday May 18th, in which the Auckland Transport representative will give a run down on … Continue reading Manukau Parklet to be Reported on By Auckland Transport (Oh and the Interchange MK2)
Auckland Transport might as well avoid another Pohutukawa Six situation and just go back to the drawing board with the Mill Road – Redoubt Road Corridor Project. Southern Auckland knows the corridor upgrade is needed but not at the four lane, multi lane roundabout de-facto motorway that is being proposed currently by Auckland Transport.
Opposition to the scheme continues to increase, an earlier report on the corridor upgrade which suggested it could be done more cheaply and with better safety benefits than the current proposal has been dug up, and we have this:
From the NZ Herald
AT accused of bullying couple to sell house
By Mathew Dearnaley 5:00 AM Tuesday May 5, 2015
Council denies pressuring elderly pair to make way for new highway.Council property agents have been warned off “bullying” an elderly couple into a rush sale of their home for a new highway parallel to the Southern Motorway.
Eva and Yiannis Koumaki say they are very worried after receiving a letter offering to buy their home in Goodwood Heights, Manukau, by the end of this month. The five-bedroom double-storey home they built 38 years ago after migrating from Crete is among 64 houses and a motel Auckland Transport says must make way for the first stage of a $470 million-plus four-lane highway eventually stretching 18km from Manukau to Drury via the Redoubt and Mill road corridors.
The council body says the highway is needed to serve about 22,000 new homes planned over the next 30 years. The properties could be compulsorily acquired under the Public Works Act.
But the Koumakis, who acknowledge inquiring about an early sale of their home on hardship grounds, say they were dismayed to receive a letter on March 20 offering an unacceptable price for vacant possession of the property by May 29.
……Mrs Koumaki said it was unfair of Auckland Transport to restrict its offer to a market price, as the threat of the new road over the neighbourhood had depressed property sales.
Her plight has been taken up by the Redoubt Ridge Environmental Action Group, which arranged for lawyer Dilki Rajapakse to write to Auckland Transport chairman Lester Levy asking for “harassment” of the couple to stop.
Ms Rajapakse told Dr Levy the Koumakis had been “subjected to a barrage of telephone calls and [visits from] unwelcomed officials from Auckland Transport on the pretext of ‘helping'”.
“The bullying tactics and harassment of my clients by the officials must be stopped immediately,” she wrote.
AT property chief Deborah Godinet promised to review the case while instructing her team to make no further direct contact with the couple.
…..
Source and full article: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11443195
Not on Auckland Transport by any means there. But then again the entire project is not on either especially for a 21st Century and The World’s Most Liveable City.
So how about we go back to the drawing board, get that old report out from the old Manukau City Council days and start over shall we?
City nor even New Zealand are not united behind the Opposition I spotted this on Twitter yesterday and Retweet quoted it with my reply underneath it: Tenby Powell @tenbypowell This is … Continue reading Leadership on the Port? Opposition Continues to Fail There
Why the Split on Geographic Grounds? On Thursday the Governing Body resolved through the Mayor’s casting vote to allow the Port of Auckland compromise (extending one wharf rather than … Continue reading Geographic Split on the Port Debate
Close vote This afternoon the Auckland Council Governing Body resolved in a draw vote (thus needing the Mayor’s casting vote to pass it) to allow a compromise on the Port … Continue reading Port of Auckland Wharves Compromise Passes
Options to be considered and chosen tomorrow Tomorrow the Governing Body of Auckland Council will consider apparently one of four options in dealing with the Port situation. At the same … Continue reading Poll Suggests Support for the Port
Do we need to gold plate everything As I work through the parklets for Manukau City Centre I was having a look through this yesterday: Home / Parks Hub / Informal … Continue reading KISS: Keeping It Simple Stupid – With Parks
From the Tūpuna Maunga o Tāmaki Makaurau Authority
The tihi (summit) of Maungawhau / Mt Eden will be free from motor vehicles as a result of last night’s meeting of the Tūpuna Maunga o Tāmaki Makaurau Authority.
Last December the Maunga Authority agreed in principle to the move and last night progressed to a clear direction that the tihi (summit) will be motor vehicle-free, subject to confirmation of the costs associated with the various arrangements including access for those with limited mobility.
Maunga Authority Chair Paul Majurey explains that the important decision for this ancestral mountain reflects the serious consideration given to the initiative.
“There was unanimous agreement at the Maunga Authority hui last night that a motor vehicle-free summit is the right outcome for the iconic taonga of Maungawhau / Mt Eden.”
Council staff have worked closely with various disability organisations in addressing the matter of tihi access for people with limited mobility and identified practical measures such as the installation of electric gates with an access code, or similar outcomes. The access code could be distributed to people with limited mobility via the Auckland Council call centre.
Mr Majurey explains that in making their decision the Maunga Authority placed emphasis on the spiritual and cultural significance of the tihi to Mana Whenua and the community aspirations reflected in the long-standing public programme that led to the 2007 Maungawhau / Mt Eden Management Plan.
The plan identified that unrestricted access raised concerns over pedestrian safety, congestion and damage to the maunga. In response to these concerns, heavy vehicles were restricted from accessing the tihi in 2011.
“Motor vehicle removal from the tihi of Maungawhau was signalled many years ago as a necessary outcome to protect this taonga, and to reflect the Mana Whenua and community aspirations of their living connections with this taonga,” says Mr Majurey.
“The removal of heavy vehicles from the summit has been successful, resulting in significantly less congestion and also a change of attitudes in visitors. The community has embraced the much safer walk to the top of the maunga, and are excited about the enhanced experience with this ancestral place overlooking Tāmaki Makaurau.”
A motor-vehicle-free tihi on Maungawhau / Mt Eden is expected to be implemented in the coming months.
———————–
Click here for more information about the Tūpuna Maunga o Tāmaki Makaurau Authority.
The Ngā Mana Whenua o Tāmaki Makaurau Collective Redress Act 2014 appoints the Maunga Authority as the administering body for the Tūpuna Maunga under the Reserves Act 1977. The role of an administering body is to administer, manage and control the reserve(s) under its administration in accordance with the Reserves Act.
The Tūpuna Maunga o Tāmaki Makaurau Authority is independent from Auckland Council and has statutory powers and functions.
—-ends—–
Something is wrong when we are short of houses yet they are to be replaced by car parks I thought Auckland especially Isthmus Auckland (central Auckland) had an acute housing … Continue reading Playground Needing 44 Car Parks In Place of Occupied Existing Residential Dwellings?
Notice on change of fire season From Auckland Council: Change to fire season begins Auckland Rural Fire today announced the fire season will officially change from restricted to open, meaning … Continue reading Auckland Fire Season Restrictions Changed
