Tag: Papakura

Submission Sent

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105 Pages and The Room Smelling of Toner Later

 

Finally after 28 days (I was in Australia for part of the Unitary Plan feedback process) my submission to the first part of the Unitary Plan is in with Council.

You can see the feedback below which still only covered a select area of the UP. I have filed different submissions at different stages however on other aspects of the Unitary Plan including:

  • Parking Regulations
  • Transport
  • Social Infrastructure
  • Social Development
  • Water
  • Planning methodologies (although again mentioned in this submission)

 

I must apologies in advance in regards to my submission. As I imported blog posts from here into the submission, some ease of reading aspects might have been lost. All commentary on the Unitary Plan can be found here: https://voakl.net/category/planning/urban-planning-and-design/unitary-plan/

And so where next?

Unitary Plan coverage will continue although at a lesser pace until the next round begins – most likely notification later this year.

But other areas requiring commentary have come up such as Port of Auckland, my favourite – Auckland Transport, and now the elections.

A massive thank you to my readers throughout the Unitary Plan process. The UP has not been easy nor without its controversies. But pressure will continue Council as the UP and Rural Urban Boundary go through their next phases.

My Submission

TALKING AUCKLAND

Talking Auckland: Blog of TotaRim Consultancy Limited

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Bringing Well Managed Progress to Auckland and The Unitary Plan

Auckland: 2013 – YOUR CITY, YOUR CALL

 

 

Concerns on the Manukau South Link

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Port of Auckland – Can we talk please?

Caught this today in the Manukau Courier. Rather interesting that they bring this up today of all days. Ah well lets take a look:

Wiri train tracks block access

Creating a southern connection between the Manukau Train Station and the main trunk line could be more difficult than first thought.

Local boards throughout the south have called for the link so passengers can travel from Manukau to Papakura and Pukekohe directly.

Passengers wanting to head south from Manukau now have to transfer at Papatoetoe.

But a Kiwirail spokeswoman says if the connection gets approval it would need to cross tracks that lead to Ports of Auckland’s inland port at Wiri.

That would require reconstruction of those tracks.

“This part of the rail corridor has quite complex track layouts because of the Manukau branch junction, the port facility and the EMU [Electric Multiple Units] depot,” she says.

A Ports of Auckland spokesman didn’t want to comment on how ripping up its tracks could affect operations at the port because no-one had put forward an official proposal to do the work.

But Manurewa Local Board chairwoman Angela Dalton says linking the Manukau station with the main trunk line made more sense than other transport projects being pushed.

“It doesn’t make sense to me, pouring money into the city rail link when we need to get things moving out here.

“We need to get cars off the streets and the trains connecting effectively.”

Auckland Transport‘s main priority at the Manukau line is double-tracking it so services can run every 10 minutes to and from Britomart, council documents show.

It’s also assessing the viability of a link between the two lines as part of its rail development plan.

 

The Manukau South (Rail) Link is a project that I have been following closely since I first raised the point that a Electrification Mast would be in the road of the south link early last year. It is a project that I still follow closely while Auckland Transport develop a case study for this link – that south so desperately need!

In saying that though has anyone actually approached Port of Auckland and had a decent conversation with them on how the South Link might work. Work as in POAL has their Wiri Inland Port that covers part of the South Link path. And whether POAL should move their Wiri facility 900 metres down the road where this is a mothballed siding and massive block of land sitting vacant.

Port of Auckland I think we of the South need to have a chat over coffee and hot scones. What do you think?

 

THE CLUNKER AND ME – The Final Round

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Where Ben is for the Final Round of Unitary Plan Community Meetings

 

Commentary and community meetings continue as The Unitary Plan causes further debate from all sides. I am continuing my jet-setting around the city – although with a main focus closer to home in Southern Auckland and this is where I will be for the final weeks of this round of Unitary Plan feedback.

Please note that while the Unitary Plan feedback closes 31 May; BR:AKL will continue Unitary Plan commentary while TotaRim Consultancy Limited will continue to offer Unitary Plan services to wider Auckland.

 

  • May 6 – Monday: Hawkins Theatre. Papakura is zoned a Metropolitan Centre (18 storeys) and up for some interesting intensification (my home gets rezoned to Mixed Housing – and I am only 100 metres from the northern end of the Metropolitan Zone). Transport is also on the books so how will being a Metropolitan Zone affect Papakura’s transport with motorway interchanges failing us already, the Great South Road still a goat track, the Mill Road Corridor causing grief, and the third busiest rail station – Papakura going to be placed under HUGE pressure from all this growth. This is all hitting at home folks – for me any way. I live here in Papakura so this a big one for me. I will not be letting Penny Pirrit nor Kevin Wright (if he shows up) off so easy this round with the questions in making sure Papakura will not be adversely affected in the Unitary Plan. Home is where the heart is folks and while I support progression and growth, I won’t allow unchecked growth lowering the amenity values of Papakura!
  • May 8 – Wednesday: Vodafone Events Centre. PUBLIC MEETING – REDOUBT ROAD/MILL ROAD CORRIDOR – this is an independent public meeting/rally about the Redoubt/Mill Roads corridor and its effects on those who live within the proximity of the proposed south-east bypass. I live about 5 minutes drive from the southern Mill Road end of the corridor and would notice any rat running down the three main roads that either feed into the Papakura Town Centre or Beach Road which feeds State Highway One via the Papakura Interchange. The road I live on could also be affected as it could act as a bypass to get further north of Porchester Road in order to access the Takanini Village (if Walters Road was not used in the first place). So I will be attending this public meeting to gauge reaction on the feelings of this corridor. 
  • May 13 – Monday: Karaka Hall. KARAKA PUBLIC MEETING – KARAKA COLLECTIVE PRESENTS – a public meeting hosted by the Karaka Residents Association where for the first time the Karaka Collective will be speaking publicly on their idea and reasons for both developing Karaka North and West, and wanting the Weymouth-Karaka Bridge. Okay this meeting is most likely going to be fiery with emotions running on both sides. However at least Karaka Collective are now planning to speak to the residents of Karaka and Weymouth on their plans. Those plans I have in PDF format over at the linked title above (in magenta).
  • May 14 – Tuesday: Auckland Town Hall – Auckland Plan Committee (confirmed). I have a speaking slot here while the Unitary Plan is still under the feedback process to provide clarification on the Manukau City Centre idea. After giving the idea at the Manukau Civic Forum and through my subsequent post: MANUKAU AS THE SECOND CBD OF AUCKLAND; the idea has been noted by Council (Councillors and planners) as well as growing some legs and going for a run. So to save the councillors getting befuddled around Manukau I thought I might go and clarify what I mean with Manukau as our Second CBD.
  • May 14 – Tuesday: Town Hall – UP to You – A Generation Zero Unitary Plan Forum Event. From the Facebook flyer the event is:
    “Auckland will grow by 1 million people over the next 30 years. What will Auckland look like in 2043? The Unitary Plan is an Auckland-wide rulebook to shape the way we grow, calling for a quality, compact city. 
    Since this is a vision for the future, its impact will be greatest on young people. How do we want our city to look? Where do we want to live? How do we get around, and what’s the cost of living in a bigger Auckland? 
    Despite the great impact this plan will have on our lives, the youth voice is largely being ignored in this discussion. It’s time for young Aucklanders to speak up. Learn what it’s all about, talk to the planners, contribute your ideas, submit and have your say in the future of your city!”
    Already in the CBD that day giving my presentation to the Council that day so I might as well trundle along to this youth event and mingle with my counterparts and contemporaries in regards to the Unitary Plan. Sould make for a very good evening 😀 and looking forward to it.

 

These are my final rounds of engagement for this part of the Unitary Plan. It has been quite a journey since March 27 when I both started jet-setting around the city attending Unitary Plan community meetings, running Unitary Plan commentary, giving presentations, and now finalising my submission for the UP. Still got plenty of work to do as the Unitary Plan hits notification around September (at current speed) and all that will entail. But as I mentioned earlier; I will be carrying on my Unitary Plan work – albeit on a more “professional” basis now through TotaRim (which is now open for business).

 

BR:AKL: Bring Well Managed Progress

The Unitary Plan: Bringing Change

Auckland: 2013 – OUR CITY, OUR CALL

TotaRim Consultancy Limited: Talking Unitary Plan that is simple yet informative about YOUR city, YOUR home.